I attended Luxury Connect last week in Beverly Hills. If you are not familiar with the event, it was expertly delivered by the team from Inman News that is host to the Real Estate Connect conferences held annually in New York City and San Francisco. I don’t think that anyone really appreciates how difficult it is to put on a great event. This group does it with ease and grace even when pitted against seemingly insurmountable challenges.
There was so much fanfare about this event, it is speculated that the original property selected for the event was sold! A week before, they had to move the conference to a new location – another $100MM+ listing in Beverly Hills. It was as perfect as possible despite a few logistical challenges that everyone quickly forgave.
Luxury is different, and this Luxury Connect highlighted just how different. One quote that put it all together for me came from my friend Mark McLaughlin, CEO of Pacific Union “We develop lofty strategies that are different and difficult, and that nobody else will do.” It took me awhile to understand how profound this statement was. I did not fully internalize it until I watched Steve Ozonian of Carrington look at a new product from Matterport – “a 3-D virtual tour.”
I had seen the Matterport product in the past. They have signed up a number of large and progressive brokerages. I naturally put them in the category of a very fancy virtual tour. What I learned from watching Steve Ozonian look at the 3D Showcase product for a few minutes is that it is so much more. It is what Mclaughlin was talking about. It is a product that stops you in your tracks. It differentiates home marketing. It provides firms, who want to offer elite services, the ability to translate excellence into something that stuns affluent clients. There is not much that Ozonian’s has not seen before.
The dollhouse view is what caught Ozonian’s attention. It delivered a view that added spatial context to the property.
As he drilled into the property he was able to experience a truly three dimensional walk-though of the home – looking up, down, left, right, moving forward, backwards, even floating through walls, ceilings, and floors. It’s a sensation akin to being a ghost with x-ray vision.
I could hear McLaughlin repeating in my ears. Matterport is one of those things that most firms will not invest in or execute effectively – making it perfect for an elite firm that looks for offerings that differentiate them from their competition. If a buyer’s agent wants to show his or her client a subject property in a way that nobody else possibly can – this is it. If a listing agent wants to differentiate their marketing, this is it.
I was able to reach out to Matterport this week and arrange for some of the WAV Group broker clients to see what Matterport is launching at NAR. It is in partnership with some other Silicon Valley hardware developers that are on the cutting edge of delivering virtual reality experiences. It will knock your socks off – but more importantly – knock the socks off of your clients. If you want a private viewing (avoiding the chaos of the NAR expo floor) and want to meet the principles behind the company – drop me a note – victor@wavgroup.com.
Matterport is not a client and we do not benefit from you working with them or buying their stuff. I am a fan and want to help our clients get access to something that will be a great differentiator in luxury marketing.
Here is a link if you want to learn more http://realestate.matterport.
