Interview with Google Business Development ‘Real Estate” Justin McCarthy.
“We prefer to look at this data as through organic search, we don’t think it should be paid content, we understand that traditionally classifieds are normally paid content, but we think this data is valuable for consumers”
Real Estate Video by – Real Estate Blogger
Thought this might be a little interesting! Yes they want your listings and every single one of them for FREE!
23 Comments
Robert Simeon
The worst kept secret in Australian real estate is out !! Game – set – match Google. Loved the bit about using organic search process given that Google have been borrowing REA and Domain templates for their own organic growth. It certainly handed out a valuable business lesson there – indeed.
Now for those who believe that REA and Domain can compete with their current business models of paying customers ?
I guess the agents that signed those one year contracts have even more to smile.
Paul Krayven
I think REA and Domain have a place with their models for quite a few years yet. I’m still sceptical of Google Real Estate until i see it in action.
snoop
unlikely they will move in this market.
Lets wait and see.
We have been waiting a year now.
Adam
BRING IT ON !
I’m sick of REA and DOMAIN
Elizabeth
Good Morning,
No mention of dates in this article, nor about Australia for that matter.
Hasn’t google been operating this real estate section for a while now in the United States? What is the traction there?
Free listings does sound appealing. However Adam in another post stated that Google want to own all the worlds data. Not sure free listings compensates for that. or does it?
E
p.s. Good to hear from you Robert, I thought you had dropped off the face of the earth.
Adam
OK.. repharse.. They would LOVE to own your ability to VIEW the Worlds Data.
Hence projects like putting every book onto the web to be viewed digitally.
You will still need to feed your listings into Google Elizabeth. Your competitors would love it if you didnt though.
Cheers
Glenn
I certainly think Google will be a major player in our industry but this video discusses nothing new. It was just a rehash of what has already been released officially and I guess the only news is that for now, they see that the major exposure remains with organic results which is what was originally implemented.
The other original implementation was Google Base Real Estate but he did not seem to cover that. I can only assume that they have found that the majority of their success with Real Estate has been through the organic arm. I would think that they would continue with the Real Estate sub-portal in Google Base, but their focus will be on their base search engines.
I guess for the portals this is actually bad news. If the Google Base Real Estate was going to be the vehicle of choice which is in effect a portal, then they can compete directly portal to portal for the consumer. What they cannot compete with is the worlds biggest and most popular search engine integrating listings into normal organic search result pages, for FREE!
Elizabeth
Good Evening,
So it is not Google Base which is coming as the gentleman from Google avoided it altogether, it is Google itself with search results?
If I conduct a Google Search for “House for sale crown street” and press the Search Button – the list of results is interesting.
http://www.google.com.au/search?sourceid=navclient&ie=UTF-8&rlz=1T4GZHZ_enAU240AU240&q=house for sale crown street
The listings are dominated by the portals.
Wouldn’t these results remain the same? As in, the portals would dominate?
Are these changes happening to Google in Australia, or the United States? There was no mention of Australia in the video.
E
Peter Ricci
Hi E
If you searched for the term ‘real estate sydney’ in Google you would get search results but what will appear right at the top is a number of drop down menus with property type, price range, sale of lease, so you can filter the results from the search engine.
That is how it is working in the USA and will work here on launch of Google base Australia New Zealand.
Paul D
Just a quick tip Elizabeth, Why don’t you actually have a look on Google Base. There are already about 50 Australian properties there. That way you can speak with authority at least for today. Whilst there are not many, I suppose you have to start somewhere. So I guess I had better describe how to get there for you, otherwise you may end up lost in Wikipedia Land. Go to Google Base. When it opens click on “housing”. Then you can either type in the City, or go to Keywords and type in Australia.
And please don’t tell me that in the keywords search, there are properties from the USA with “Australian Cyprus flooring”, I already know that. That is the result of a keyword search. The point is that there are already Australian properties on Google Base, so don’t keep harping on, about when will it happen and the boy who cried wolf, and lets wait and see because it may never happen — It already has !!!!
Glenn
Elizabeth…
As I said earlier.. there was nothing new in the video, other than the fact that they see the future of real estate and google is along the lines of organic results. I guess you can read between the lines and Google Base is not delivering real estate to the masses as well as integrating it with the organic results are. I think a dedicated Google Real Estate would be needed, but that is just my opinion.
The details in the video have already been reported here in the past. Google still has not detailed a specific Australian launch but as has been pointed out there are Australian properties on the US version.
Elizabeth
Good Morning
And PaulD, you always supply superb information.
So just so I am clear on this:
– Google Base has launched, but is in the USA (yes I have seen the site already, but thank you for your concern)
– There are 50 or so, listings from Australia on Google Base (including a myriad of listings which include the word ‘Australian’ in their descriptions.)
– Google Base is here already according to you, but you cannot search by clicking on Australia on the Google Base Map.
My points to you Paul are this.
– 50 listings is not much, the local Ray White agency has more listings on its own site.
– Everyone has been talking about Google Base, however this Google fellow talks more about Search Results from a normal http://www.google.com search.
– Google have had Google Base out for a considerable time now, and if all it can muster up in this time is 50 Australian listings, then it tends to make Myhome appear as a strong performer.
– I am not sure that potential purchasers will understand that in order to search for Australian listings, they will need to conduct a broad search for American listings, and then scroll through the results to find something from Australia.
Now I am all for a new service, with more leads, greater branding opportunities, and potentially with Google new markets. A tremendous opportunity!
However, PaulD, when running a business I can only deal with marketing vehicles which deliver. I cannot jump at shadows, nor can I get caught up in the hype of hypothetical IT developments.
I think that clarity is needed around Google
PaulD
Hi Elizabeth. Thank you for your reply. Firstly I do not know the first thing about Google Base, except that it IS a reality. Your usual conservative approach was expected. You sound like there are only U.S. properties on Google Base and that is the way it will stay. Do you expect someone from Google to turn up in your ofice to give you a personal explanation of how the system works, or ask you opinion of what features you’d like to see??? Is that the clarity you seek? If that’s what you expect then you might as well retire now. What a joy it must be working in your office. You probably still use conventional telephones, and do manual property inspection reports.
Robert Simeon
Google will not be using Google Base to launch their real estate portals which is why they don’t encourage users to pursue this. Why open a shop when you can own an entire shopping centre ? They realise they have so much more to offer which explains why currently they are working on bigger and better releases.
From Google Earth to Google Mapping to Google Base I believe we are still some way off seeing their complete Google Empire that will encompass real estate, motor vehicles, boats, employment and just about anything else that can be sold.
They could at present control our property data in a heart beat just that for the time being we will have to wait for their mother of all releases.
For the moment they encourage users to use their search engines as all the relevant property data on http://www.google.com and search pages from within Australia.They are in the driving seat which explains why so many businesses heve ensured that their online businesses are Google compliant for searches.
We will just have to be patient – as we all know they do nothing by halves !!
Elizabeth
Good Evening.
Robert, what you stated above seems more of a reality to me, and matches up with what I took from that video interview.
I also agree that there is a tremendous opportunity ahead for, and with Google.
PaulD. My dear PaulD.
I do thank you for thinking of my business. It has been around now for a couple of decades, the phone system works well, and has been upgraded several times. You may be interested to know that I have the internet connected as well.
As for my conservative approach to business. I stand by that 100%.
In the time I have been operating my own agency I have seen New Offices and Models open up with great fanfare, only to die in normal market conditions.
Tell me PaulD, which agency do you work for?
Or judging by your trust in products which have not launched as yet – does the office you work for even exist yet?
E
PaulD
Thank you for your concern Elizabeth.I don’t work for the office. I own it. And my office has been around since 1916 – That’s 91 years. My grandfather started it, and he was on the very first Council of Auctioneers and Agents. There’s more real estate history here than you could ever dream of. So go and play in your sandbox.
Elizabeth
Good Morning,
PaulD, I am impressed to hear of your business
snoop
Meowwwww
Nick Hopkins
E
The most brilliant put-down I have ever seen in my 50 yrs on this good earth.
I have never met you, but I am now slightly in love with you.
N
PaulD
I would have thought that you of all people Elizabeth, would understand that any business is only as good as the person who directs the operation. You have struggled to start and run your business over 20 odd years. The success can be directly atributable to you. There is no guarantee that if you sold the business, and were no longer involved, that your business would be a success, just because of the reputation you have created. I have seen, as you probably have, excellent businesses ruined in a matter of months by poor management. Reputation gives you perhaps three months, if you don’t perform, well it’s pretty obvious what happens.
The ultimate measure of a real estate business, apart from reputation, and ethics and all the other intangibles is success. Success basically means making sales. I wonder with your experience of building your business over so many years, would you share with us, just exactly how many sales your office made last financial year?
Adam
A pissing competition amongst Real Estate agents ?
We need to get the media to get involved, this should be monumental !
Nick Hopkins
PaulD…My advice would be to leave it alone, and accept the fact that Elizabeth has outsmarted you on this one.
Since your nastypost on 26th Sept 07, the only thing I think when I see the login PaulD is Silver Spoon in mouth. – Unwise post in a meritocracy.
Be nice to people…Good way to lead your life.
N
PaulD
How jolly decent of you to defend the lady old chap.
I’m detecting a pommie with a chip on his shoulder about the British class system. Well mate, this is Australia, there’s no such thing as your class system here, and yes we are a meritocracy, and that was exactly my point, if you read my previous post about running a business. It’s very east to talk the talk on an anonymous platform like a blog, but when it comes time to walk the walk, it’s amazing how many people fall short when the spotlight is on. I am an analytical person, always have been , always will be. Numbers make the world go round. I was just interested in whether someone who makes all sorts of assumptions and questions my credibility measures up — that’s all. I think that question has been answered.
And by the way, the last line, very good advice, I’ll take you up on that, perhaps you should also.