I am convinced that the mobile web offers some of real estate’s most exciting opportunities in the next 5-10 years.

Some of the ideas I’m about to share are certainly not the “show me some case studies” type, but most great opportunities are best identified early, no? And as is the case with all impactful technologies, those companies that identify and take advantage of that potential sooner than their competitors, have an advantage. They gain critical “trial-and-error” wisdom that will take their competitors years to learn.

Check out my posts from September and November of 2008 for a primer on my thoughts about Mobile Marketing for New Homes and Home Builder Mobile Marketing with Google. Below I’d like to hash out what I see as the next step (not that, as an industry, we’ve taken the first one yet.)

What we’re just beginning to see is the power of the Internet, combined with location specific relevance, combined with mobility, combined with personal recommendations. Yes, all of this has taken off with a game by the name of Foursquare.

For those of you not familiar with Foursquare, I encourage you to check out their website and even sign-up to play – I was excited when the game was finally made available in my hometown of Baltimore. The short explanation – Foursquare is a game where users who register (for free) use their mobile phones to “check-in” at any location/business to which they travel – gas station, coffee shop, deli, school, etc. Players are rewarded for check-ins based on volume, frequency, and consistency. After regular check-ins at a particular location, a user may be awarded the status of “Mayor.” For example, a Foursquare player may carry the title of “Mayor of Starbucks – East & Main” or “Mayor of BP Gasoline – Downtown.” Players are also connected to their friends, getting to see where their friends have traveled, and even receive notes and recommendations left by their friends.

Why should any business care about Foursquare?

First, Foursquare is building a very reliable local directory. I’m sure more than a handful of people have been frustrated with local business directories online. Foursquare is using its players to build an accurate database of local business and is using the GPS data from their phones to help.

Second, Foursquare players are “early adopters,” meaning they tend to be early users of new technology, and have a lot to do with a product’s evolution into the mainstream. This also means that they have a high likelihood to be influencers within their social circle; i.e. other people go to them for advice.

Third, Businesses can identify loyal customers. Most businesses would like to think they know all their regulars, but for many, it’s not realistic. Businesses can identify those regular patrons and reward them. Many businesses in popular Foursquare cities, like New York, already offer discounts and specials to whomever has been crowned “Mayor” of their establishment – Click here for a sample. What better way to reward customer loyalty, and encourage others to visit more?

Fourth, Research. Where do people go after they leave your business? What competitors are growing/shrinking their popularity? What else do people do around or near your business?

And if those aren’t good enough…

It seamlessly integrates with Twitter and Facebook making it easy for people to tell all their friends where they are, too.

Two great places to learn more about how businesses are using foursqaure:

foursquare.com – Great samples, and the company has made a commitment to provide data to businesses in the future – Like web analytics for real life… Truly, this could develop into the online-to-offline traffic connection we’ve been wishing for since the dawn of the Internet.
Robert Scoble – In a recent blog post he shared quite a few examples of how businesses are using Foursquare. Its more tech and less business, but a great read.

So what does all of this mean for home builders and real estate?

Lets look at the key features of the game/service:
We’ve given consumers a fun tool that encourages them to log the places they’ve visited.
We’ve got a tool that employs geo-location to suggest new places to its users.
We’ve got a tool that encourages its users to leave “tips” (aka reviews at times) for their friends.

Below are just a handful of ideas:

1. A “Parade of Homes” where users would check-in at each model using Foursquare. Reward participants for checking in at all the models on the tour, and encourage them to leave “tips” for future visitors. A little while ago I projected that within 18 months, somebody will do this. I’d love to see it happen sooner.
2. What about organizing a Realtor tour? Encourage agents to visit your models on a tour, or simply encourage them to “check-in” at your models more often (with clients preferably).
3. Reward your regulars. Identify the agents who visit more than one of your communities.
4. Partner with a local business and offering their “check-ins” some type of bonus to stop over for a model tour.

But wait… there’s more

Foursquare recently announced it released an API (Application Programming Interface) – a way for other companies to build on top of its service. This means that almost any company who can think of a creative or useful way to use Foursquare’s service, can now integrate the data into another system. When announcing the release of its API, Foursquare shared that an integration is already under way with the Layar browser for Android powered mobile phones and iPhones. Not familiar with how cool Layar is? You can see an example video here. Mashable.com also has a nice write up on why this API is big news.

Waste of time?

Foursquare has been called a waste of time by some. How many remember when the Internet was called a waste of time? I still hear that from some people today.

Some of the thoughts I shared above use Foursqaure as the basis for the idea, but it may not actually be Foursquare that is eventually used to accomplish them. Like many tech startups, they can be bought in an instant, or their technology duplicated by someone with a better twist. With the release of its API, Foursquare has empowered a new world of possibilities. The eventual tool the home builder and real estate world embraces may not even look like Foursquare.

Who knows, maybe there’ll be a white label Foursquare solution available to Home Builders Associations, Property Management Companies, and Multiple Listing Services?

Most of this is a bit far out (not the concept, but the timeline). I don’t expect to see something like this for a while (maybe 3-6 months in an urban market), but I see amazing possibilities here.

What model home couldn’t use more traffic? What model home doesn’t want more visits from influencers in the community? What home builder isn’t trying to attract and identify active Realtors?

So, what are your thoughts? Waste of time, or real potential? I’d love to hear from you below.

Related posts:

1. Mobile Marketing and New Homes – A Perfect Fit
2. Homebuilder Mobile Marketing with Google
3. Mobile Real Estate Marketing Just got Awesome… thanks to Trulia

Currently, this is only available on phones running Android, Google’s smart phone platform, so market penetration will be a little low until its available for other web-friendly phones, like the iPhone.

If you didn’t see the video, check it out below.

Related posts:

1. Mobile Marketing and New Homes – A Perfect Fit
2. Homebuilder Mobile Marketing with Google
3. Location, Location, Foursquare. How the Game will Jolt Mobile Real Estate Marketing into Prime-time

NewHomeSource.com is the consumer portal of BHI, and if you’re not part of the database, you probably should be. I’m not going to go into a pitch for BHI, but I will say that they are the hub of new home listings on the Internet.

One of the under-promoted benefits of being in the BHI database is that all of your listings are automatically available in a mobile friendly format – at NO extra cost. To visit the New Home Source mobile site, go to www.nhs2go.com from your phone. Search your area, or search for your listings, to get an idea of what a user will experience on their phone.

So an nhs2go.com user can find your listings if they’re searching, but how does this give you a mobile opportunity?

Step One: Find your listing(s)

You can also visit www.nhs2go.com from your desktop computer. It looks a bit odd on a large screen, but it’s still easy to follow.

I’ve searched my area and located a community in Baltimore named Ashman’s Hope. Below is a direct link to the Ashman’s Hope page on nhs2go:
http://www.nhs2go.com/community.php?cid=41714&adv=0/

Step Two: Create a Redirect

You’ll need to get your IT or web people involved in this step. A “redirect” is when you tell someone to visit to yoursite.com/whatever, but then redirect (or automatically forward) them to a new location.

Obviously http://www.nhs2go.com/community.php?cid=41714&adv=0/ is not an address you’d print on a sign. It’s not memorable or easy to type. However, if you visit www.ashmanshope.com/mobile from your phone, you’ll see that we’ve created a redirect that will forward you to that complicated URL above.

Step Three: Promote it

This new mobile website (ashmanshope.com/mobile) is simple to print and remember. It belongs on onsite signage; at the very least on the closed sign. It’s also well suited for brochure boxes when prospects are likely to pick up information alone in your community. This address could be used anywhere you think a user would be well served by accessing the info on a mobile site, including combining it with a Text Message (SMS) campaign.

It really is that simple.
So what are the advantages and disadvantages of this approach?

Disadvantages:

- The Mobile Site is Unbranded – The “New Home Source” header is at the top of the page, as opposed to your builder logo. However, there are no ads, including no competing builder logos.

- New Searches are Possible – At the bottom of the mobile page, there is a link where a user could start a “new search,” potentially exposing them to other properties. It’s a small option, and very low on the page. It’s not prominent unless someone knows what to look for, but it is there nonetheless.

Advantages:

- Low/No Cost – The cost is absolutely $0 if your community is already a part of the BHI network.

- Rich Content – The site includes community photos, prices, floor plans and elevations; almost everything that is available on newhomesource.com.

- Current Content – Prices, plans, and availability is automatically updated when BHI is updated. There’s no need to maintain something new.

- It’s Mobile & Simple – This is a great tool for brochure boxes and closed signs – When visitors want more information now and no one is onsite. When visitors don’t have a computer, but they do have their have their phone. The website address can be texted to a client or real estate agent as a follow-up. The possibilities are literally limitless.

While the solution is not a perfect one, it certainly makes it nearly free and really simple for a builder to have a fully functional and info rich mobile-web presence.

In 2009, being a homebuilder with a mobile website is cutting edge. So go forth, and be cutting edge for free.

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Related posts:

1. Homebuilder Mobile Marketing with Google
2. Mobile Marketing and New Homes – A Perfect Fit
3. Its 2010, Do You Know Where Your Listings Are?

EDIT: This image was added in November 2009. Post originally published November 2008.

Early in September [2008], I wrote an article about the how mobile marketing and the evolution of mobile phones was going to impact new home marketing. If you have not read it, it can be found here:
Mobile Marketing & New Homes – A Perfect Fit

In the article I discussed how Google’s new cell phone software, Android, was going to be a game changer for the mobile industry. It’s free and open source model means it will likely be the fastest spreading mobile system in use for new phones, and its software developer friendly nature will make it easy for millions of Google-loving programmers to enhance it with useful applications.

Why do you care? How does this impact homebuilders?

I recently had the pleasure of speaking with a programmer working at Google, Dmitri Plotnikov. In case you’re not aware, Google allows all of its employees to spend 20% of their paid time at work on whatever project they choose… don’t you wish? We can all thank Dmitri for using his 20% time to create the greatest little real estate application for Android phones. Simply titled “Homes”, this simple download available for free from the “Android Marketplace” enables fully featured searches on homes for sale or rent. It allows users to search within a radius from a specific zip code, or their current location. You can read more about Dmitri’s creation here:
http://homes-android.blogspot.com/

Can you imagine the family that’s relocating using a tool like this?

The husband and wife are driving around in their rental car alone after an agent showed them a few properties they were less than thrilled with. They drive through a random neighborhood that really appeals to them. They take note of a school they just passed. They use their Google phone to quickly search for the school and find it rated highly in the key areas they value. They stop the car and, using the “Homes” application, perform a search for houses for sale under $400k within a 3 mile radius of where they’re parked. They narrow the initial list of five results down to two possibilities based on the photos and descriptions. One of them is a new home community. From within the application, they email the two listings to their agent and request that he schedule an appointment to see them immediately. The new home sales center is already closed for the evening, but the listing within “Homes” contains a link to the builder’s website. The couple is able to view floor plans, virtual tours, and photos of the model homes all from their phone. How powerful is that?

What do you do now?

First – Be aware. Understand how this is going to change consumer behavior. Understand how this is going to change how people shop for homes.

Second – Make sure you’re a part of Google Base. Google Base is Google’s database of pretty much everything on the planet (eventually). This is where applications like “Homes” retrieves its search results. If you’re not a part of Google Base, you’re not a part of the search results. You can submit your listing there for free, but if you’re a homebuilder, the better way is probably through a listing distributor service like Builder Homesite (BHI, http://www.builderhomesite.com/listings).

Third – Try this out for yourself. If you don’t have a TMobile G1 (the first phone running Google Android), borrow someone’s for a few minutes or go to a TMobile store to try one out. Just like you need to drive your weekend directional signs to make sure people can find you, you need to follow the same digital paths consumers do to ensure you can be found that way also.

Related posts:

1. Mobile Marketing and New Homes – A Perfect Fit
2. Location, Location, Foursquare. How the Game will Jolt Mobile Real Estate Marketing into Prime-time
3. Mobile Real Estate Marketing Just got Awesome… thanks to Trulia

The cell phone has evolved from a device we thought we originally needed “for emergency only” to one that causes a panic attack if we leave the driveway without it. Today’s breed of cell phone, often referred to as “smart phones”, can still communicate with simple phone calls, but also include text messaging, picture and video messaging, instant messaging, email, and internet access. They’re used to store passwords, calendars, notes, to-do items, music, television shows, movies, and more. For many users, worrying about going over the plan’s minutes has been replaced with dreading the data charges from accessing the Internet. Many cell phone users are switching over to unlimited data plans so they can access the Internet without worrying about those sky-high bills.

So how much does mobile traffic really impact the web? Consider that Google recorded its largest spike ever in traffic to its mobile site on Christmas day of 2007, when everyone opened their new iPhone and went straight to Google.com. The iPhone’s approach to mobile access has changed what consumers expect. The phone does a spectacular job of displaying full size web sites, instead of the rough view most other smart phones have, and it offers hundreds of downloadable applications that access the Internet seamlessly in the background. If you still think the mobile Internet space is not that big of a deal, consider that Google is entering the arena in a big way with a cell phone operating system called Android. Android will not be a hardware product, but a free software platform for cell phone manufacturers to pre-install on their phones. The first cell phones running Android are expected to be available by the end of the year. Android will offer built-in seamless internet accessibility and a huge network of programmers who’ve already been busy developing applications to run on the new Android powered phones. And because it’s Google, they’ve got the largest advertising network on the planet built right into it.

So what does all of this mean to homebuilders? The power of mobile platforms is that they are… well… mobile. They travel with the user on the way to their destination. The industry has always focused on location when describing the value of the new home. What better way to reach and follow prospects than in a locally relevant method? Today, there’s a free iPhone application that searches and maps available homes on the market. It’s a bit limited, but it’s the first of its kind… just give it time.

Soon will come the day when a user can seamlessly jump from a new home search website on their desktop, carry that search to their mobile device (or start there), and then leave the house with automated directions on how to reach each sales center. Along the way, they’ll be prompted when they’re passing the local schools, shopping centers, and other communities that meet their search criteria. They will be able to choose the communities they’re interested in and have a voice-prompted guided tour of the areas, attractions, and places they’ve marked as important.

What about that prospect that hasn’t returned your phone calls for a month. Wouldn’t it be great to have a message pop-up on their phone when they’re within a mile or two of your sales center reminding them to stop in and pick up their free gift? This and the previous solution are not available today, but I’m positive someone’s working on them.

So if the really cool technology is still coming, why bother getting involved now?

Consider the builders who are just today embracing the Internet. I would expect everyone to agree that they’re behind the curve. They’re not in a place that makes it impossible for them to catch up, but their competitors are definitely taking business from them. The builders that embraced the Internet early on have been reaping the benefits of their experience and market position for some time, and still are today.

The same holds true for mobile. Builders who recognize the power of the mobile medium today will be a step ahead of their competitors tomorrow. Wouldn’t you like to have experience that your competitors do not have? Wouldn’t it be comforting to know your competitors are just now making the mistakes that you learned from years ago?

As with every marketing effort, you need to know your audience. I don’t expect mobile marketing would have the best penetration for an active adult market. If, however, you’re selling an urban project to young professionals, you’d be crazy not to have some mobile initiative.

There are good mobile options available today… mobile websites, text messaging, among a few others. Starting to experiment with applicable buyer profiles is just smart business. That experience will give you the wisdom and confidence to leap in big with both feet when the right opportunity appears.

Related posts:

1. Homebuilder Mobile Marketing with Google
2. Mobile Real Estate Marketing Just got Awesome… thanks to Trulia
3. Location, Location, Foursquare. How the Game will Jolt Mobile Real Estate Marketing into Prime-time