RISMEDIA, February 2, 2009-Keller Williams Realty announced the release of a new home valuation tool on the company’s national website, KW.com. The new tool displays home value estimates from both Zillow (www.zillow.com) and Cyberhomes (www.cyberhomes.com) for any address in the United States, generating a side-by-side comparison for consumers.
“We already know that consumers are going to the Web to find out how much their home is worth, now they can get the same information without going to multiple websites. And, the tool provides Keller Williams Realty with another way to generate leads for our agents at no cost to them,” said Bryon Ellington, chief products officer with Keller Williams Realty International.
According to the company, with the new home valuation tool, the consumer is taken to the estimate and is asked to submit their contact information to receive assistance in interpreting the results. The lead is then sent to the Keller Williams Realty office that matches the request based on zip code.
The new estimate tool aligns with the goals of KW.com, according to Ellington. “KW.com was designed to give consumers the information they want, and get them in touch with a real estate expert as quickly as possible to help them interpret it. We know that no online tool can replace the local expertise that an agent brings to the table-and our hope is that this will start the conversation with an agent.”
“Especially in this market, consumers need guidance from a real estate professional,” said Cary Sylvester, executive director of technology for Keller Williams Realty International. “By hosting this tool on KW.com, we hope to create a place where home sellers can get a snapshot of their home’s value and locate an agent in their city who can help guide them.”
This new tool follows in a series of technological innovations by the company, including an agreement with WolfNetTM Technologies to provide IDX to all its agents at no cost, the development of the Keller Williams Listing System (KWLS), which provides agents with increased exposure for their listings by automatically displaying them on more than 100 popular home search engines and is the further implementation of the company-wide lead routing philosophy – dubbed, “My Listings, My Leads,” where every lead generated from these new tools goes directly back to the listing agent at no cost.
For more information, visit www.kw.com.
