By Estate and letting agents using livestream viewing app Gavl have had to carry out 16,000 fewer physical viewings since it launched in the UK in May 2020.
Some 16,000 physical viewings have been replaced by 1,430 livestream open house viewings with an average attendance of 11 people at each event.
“Converting 16,000 physical appointments into 1,430 livestream viewings has saved agents a huge amount of time across the whole viewing process from qualification and travelling, through to answering questions and gathering buyer feedback,” says Joel Smith, CEO of Gavl.
“Agencies which have embraced livestream viewings are unlikely to return to their old way of doing things as the technology has saved them time and money, while significantly improving efficiency and customer satisfaction.”
Eliminating ‘dead’ time spent on viewings
One of the key time-saving elements of livestream open house viewings is not having to carry out up to 20 viewings for each available property.
With an average of 11 people attending each livestream event, that’s an additional 10 viewing appointments agents would usually have to carry out if hosting a physical viewing for each applicant.
“Agents carrying out a livestream event instead of multiple physical viewings save a significant amount of time travelling to and from the property. There’s also the hours spent carrying out each viewing to consider,” explains Smith.
“By showing the property to a group of interested parties at once, agents can answer all the key questions in one go without having to repeat the same process over and over again.”
Simon Thompson, Director at Miles & Barr, a Kent agency with 15 branches, adds:
“We have managed to substantially reduce the number of viewings per let which in turn has had a positive effect on the quality of service that viewers have had following the livestream.”
“We were undertaking approximately 20-25 viewings per day, this has now been reduced to less than 10 per day. These physical appointments are therefore far more productive and customer service-friendly.”
“We have been able to reallocate viewing staff to other roles to support and grow the business. As such, not only has it helped save money, it has also allowed us to be more productive in generating more business,” he says.
Reducing administration and generating leads
By carrying out virtual open house viewings, agents can also reduce the time spent qualifying applicants.
The combination of knowing an applicant’s status and starting conversations at the viewing stage reduces the chances of time being wasted with buyers or tenants who aren’t serious or interested in the property.
“Qualification of applicants needn’t take hours nor be an admin-heavy process. Livestream open house events allow agents to pinpoint the most serious buyers or tenants quickly and then focus their resources on progressing the transaction with these applicants,” says Smith.
According to Thompson at Miles & Barr, livestream viewings allow his firm to show properties to a greater number of people in a rental market with extraordinarily high demand and low stock.
“This affords the landlords a greater opportunity of securing their preferred tenant and reduces the pressure on negotiators to pre-qualify applicants,” he says.
As well as improving the qualification process, livestream viewings provide agents with an opportunity to generate new business.
“Being able to engage with prospective sellers and landlords while showcasing another client’s property is an efficient and highly effective way for agents to take on new instructions,” Smith explains.
Gavl’s research shows that 11% of consumers attending livestream viewings are prospective sellers, while a further 6% are landlords.
“The feedback from customers has been very positive and now forms part of our valuation presentation. Staff also prefer the use of Gavl, it reduces the possibility of infection and allows the property to be shown to a wider audience than traditional physical viewings,” adds Thompson.
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