Esoft Tomorrow with +100 participants was a symphony of technical knowledge and prognoses for the future
With Odense Harbour as its picturesque backdrop, real estate agents, managing directors and others in the property industry got a taster of how the future will look on the property market at Esoft Tomorrow. In addition to topics such as artificial intelligence, PropTech and social media as well as sustainability and the perfect home presentation, there was also the opportunity to show the world the journey that Esoft has embarked upon. This article highlights some select messages from the event, but common to all of them are innovation, innovation and innovation.
One of the biggest questions that the property industry insiders need to ask themselves is: What does the future hold? Marina Nielsen from Isobar introduced the audience to various scenarios that could well characterise the future of home sales, some of which are already a reality in the US. Nielsen also mentions that “Give customers the chance to understand what they are buying.”
US company Opendoor offers its sellers instant sales by using data to calculate the house price, from which they take a significant cut. However, this means the user can start looking for their new dream home immediately, without the hassle of keeping the place clean for showings, lengthy negotiations and buyers who then back out.
It’s a simple question of convenience, and, as the managing director of PropTech, Nadim Stub, emphasised later in the day, it is extremely valuable if you can reduce friction processes, because people will gladly pay for convenience.
Give customers the chance to understand what they are buying.
- Marina Nielsen, Isobar
When you buy a house, this will in many cases be a lifetime investment, so the user is interested in more than just the state of the roof in the home condition report or the number of square metres. Here Marina talked about social proof, facts about the neighbourhood and a ‘house test’, the latter giving users the chance to try out their new home before the contract is signed, so the user can find out more about the house’s charm, its neighbours and the surrounding area.
Using social media formats effectively
There were many exciting offers for the future of home sales, and SoMe specialist Anine Arnild was in no doubt whatsoever that social media is the way forward. Studies show that daily activity on social media is incredibly high, including among the older generation, which is why it is obvious to take advantage of the advertising opportunities available.
Anine explained that being creative sells — in other words, let videos and images speak for themselves, providing they fit the SoMe format. Users move around on Instagram and Facebook incredibly quickly with no time for small talk — so, therefore, concentrate on what’s important and find one point of focus, for example, a beautiful bay window that perfectly sums up the home’s atmosphere.
AI — a collaboration between humans and computers
The reason why Facebook advertising is so effective is that the media has access to a wealth of personal data, which means it can target adverts to the correct group of people. These data are crucial for advertising, but Professor Jacob Sherson took it one step further by introducing his public to the possibilities of artificial intelligence.
Esoft’s own tech department also presented their visions of AI, where, for example, home descriptions and image retouching in the future will be performed in close collaboration between computer and human. And our very own Juan Francisco said, among other things, “Esoft is trying to bring the power of AI into our daily workflow.”
Esoft is trying to bring the power of AI into our daily workflow.
- Juan Francisco, Esoft
“The classic home presentation is a little like a supermarket moving its products around to arrange them by brand,” says Søren Bech. In 2019, Esoft has a lot on their drawing board — both looking well into the future and just around the corner, and product manager Søren Bech challenged the classic listing presentation, which is not consistent with current digital trends.
The classic home presentation is a little like a supermarket moving its products around to arrange them by brand.
- Søren Bech, Esoft
When you read the text in a listing, you often come across phrases like “there is ample opportunity here to…” or “can you imagine knocking down the wall and making a combined kitchen-living room”, where the reader is expected to be able to visualise these transformations in their head. Rather than let the potential buyer’s imagination do all the work however, you can create 3D visualisations and virtual reality.
The day was rounded off with chilled white wine, snacks and the opportunity to try out the VR glasses.
Written by Ditte Haugstrup, Ass. Team Leader at Esoft
https://www.esoft.com/esoft-tomorrow-article/
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