Question on Featured Listings

[FredLight]

Most of my real estate clients want a "featured listing" section on their website. They insist that it's necessary - they want to highlight their personal listings.

I think it's totally redundant in most cases, and it goes back to the traditional form of advertising where in the newspaper all a realtor HAD to advertise was their own listings. But the internet is different.

But these guys have the ENTIRE MLS available on their websites and each listing LOOKS as if it was theirs! So essentially, in the eyes of the customer, they are ALL 'their listings'.

Many of them show "their featured listings", which are essentially a subset of the entire MLS. It's exactly the same listing sheet - just on a different page with a title "Featured Listings".

What exactly IS the purpose of that? I do understand you all want to sell your own listings (of course), but for the CUSTOMER, what is the point? I especially think it could hurt someone inexperienced in buying real estate... they go to one website and they have 5,000 listings to look at... and the next site they go to they click on the 'featured listings' and get only four! CLICK! They don't know the difference! This is the first time they're looking for a house! It looks as if the last guy only has four houses to sell... And what if you have a particularly slow time and you have NO listings.... THAT doesn't look very good! I'm going back to the guy with 5,000!

The only time I see that highlighting YOUR listings makes sense is if you do it BIG... a huge showcase on the home, with dozens of photos, virtual tours, floor plans, blah blah... really, a true FEATURE, that sets it apart from the run of the mill MLS listing sheet. I see that can possibly help sell the home, and definitely help you get the listing.

But if your featured listings are just a subset of the entire MLS.. just segmented out on another page, what really is the point?

I'm constantly fighting with people because I really do think it's redundant unless you go all out. Websites need to be about what the CUSTOMER wants. And the customer honestly doesn't give a hoot about YOUR listings!

Comments? Am I crazy? Am I missing something?

[SanDiego]

Let me try this one: (one possibility)

You have a listing. someone else sells it for you= $
You sell your listing. Listing sold and other side bought = $$

You have your featured listing up in front, hopefully people buy those first and from you = $$

You sell someone else's listing from the 5000 mls = $


Note the different dollar signs.. Thats probably how your agents think... If not, It may look good for to their current clients that they are UP FRONT or ON TOP... Help sell your listing = making clients happy = more repeat clients= good business.

Plus those ones are their (the agent's) showcase... present them good and make those agents happy, you'll do well in media design sales...

[FredLight]

I understand the dollar signs. I understand how it all works. The point that I'm trying to make is this:

If you WANT (and I think you should!) have a featured properties section on your site. I DO think it's an asset for sellers (moreso than buyers). But you must do it BIG and BOLD. If you don't, and it's just a subset of your more expansive MLS listings, its (1) confusing to the customer who doesn't understand the difference and (2) Redundant!

Big and bold? Yes... Lots of BIG photos, more descriptive information, floor plans, plot plans, bigger pictures, slideshows, blah blah... a SHOWCASE.. a FEATURE... as the name implies. It must be bigger and better and DIFFERENT than the straight MLS listing page.

THEN it will impress your seller. THEN it will stand out as a "FEATURE", not merely another place to put the exact information as they already saw in the MSL search.

So.. my issue is not over the benefits, because I know the benefits. It's over the presentation. And you still have to design your site for your CUSTOMER. And they need to understand what's going on. I think having featured listings as merely a subset of your MLS data is confusing to most.