Jason Hall
Jason Hall from LJ Hooker Gungahlin understands the importance of innovation and strategic marketing campaigns for lead generation in real estate. ActivePipe helps him automate important customer touch-points, increasing brand awareness and getting his team get in front of their contacts on a regular basis.
“We get appraisals requests from people we haven’t spoken to in months or years. I think you’re crazy if you’re not on it!”
Chris Peeters
Overview:
The Colac office, jointly run by Chris and Wayne, has been operating in the small Victorian town of 12,000 for over 10½ years. The small 5 person team runs a large number of listings (currently 52) and a modest rent roll of 105 properties. The region has 8 agencies competing for a piece of the real estate pie and several are bigger than LJ Hooker Colac so Chris and the team have to be on top of their game.
How long have you been using ActivePipe?
We’ve been using ActivePipe since Sept 2016, so just a little over 12 months. When we first started using ActivePipe we were so impressed with it we both asked “Why haven’t we been using this for the past year?” It’s been fantastic for our business and I wish we’d been using it longer.
What is it about ActivePipe that you most value?
Wayne and I are really stretched for time. When you’re selling, running a business, looking after staff etc it seems there are never enough hours in the day. ActivePipe helps us cover our territory and maintain excellent contact with a large number of clients.
ActivePipe enables us to allocate our time more effectively because we know where to focus, who to call. No more throwing darts at a board and hoping for the best.
What do you think is the most impressive feature of ActivePipe?
It’s set and forget!
We have the confidence to let it do its stuff knowing that our contacts are receiving regular, professional communication from us and our brand is consistently promoted.
How have your interactions with clients changed since using ActivePipe?
Colac isn’t a huge town so you’re often bumping into clients and there are often remarks about this or that email and mostly they’re really positive. We consistently have clients thank us for the emails, they find them very helpful and look forward to receiving them. It’s a great form of marketing that’s not intrusive but it does get noticed and it’s especially valuable to our clients when they’re in real estate mode.
Being able to see what contacts are interested in means that when we do follow-up it’s a much more informed and valuable phone call – for them and us. We’re not wasting their time and we’re not wasting ours!
Is there anything else you would like to add?
We have competition just like everyone else but in a small town I think ActivePipe gives us an edge over our competition who are slow to embrace this sort of technology. Plus, when you’re a small office ActivePipe gives you big office technology and efficiencies without the big office price tag.
All offices should be using email marketing and ActivePipe is IT in real estate. My advice to other Principals is – Don’t overthink it! Email marketing is fantastic and when there’s a product that does it so well why would you do it any other way?
Paul Reed
How long did it take you to start seeing results from ActivePipe?
I’ve been using ActivePipe since the 9th of May. I’d heard that other PRD offices were using it and thought I’d find out what the hype was about.
We started seeing the benefits as soon as we started our free trial.
In the second week I’d identified a listing opportunity. New contacts added from OFI’s and Portal Enquiries are now engaged and many are volunteering valuable information – all as a direct result of ActivePipe’s automation.
The whole team is seeing the value and this happened almost straight away.
What’s the biggest advantage of ActivePipe?
ActivePipe is the best “stay in touch” technology in real estate. Without doing a thing I’ve sent over 11,000 emails to my database and been complimented for it.
It gives me confidence to know my contacts are regularly informed about our listings. The emails are so professional and personalised that as far as they’re concerned I’m sitting behind my laptop and writing them myself.
I’ve also noticed that it drives a heap of traffic to our website. I’ve had 1500 people visit it through the emails ActivePipe is sending on my behalf and I’m able to monitor that value as a direct advantage of this communication.
How do you apply the technology to your workplace?
Initially I was the only one using ActivePipe. I had a database of close to 1000 contacts and keeping in regular contact with every one of them just wasn’t feasible.
This product has helped me keep in touch with all my contacts and alerts me when they’re interacting with my emails. I have a 31% open rate which is more than double the industry average and unlike my competitors, I know when my clients are ready to list and sell.
ActivePipe has generated three appraisal requests for me to pursue. These are genuine opportunities that I wouldn’t have received if ActivePipe wasn’t sending the appraisal campaign on my behalf.
It really is made for real estate.
Would you recommend ActivePipe to other PRD Nationwide offices?
Of course I would. The brand awareness and opportunity to get yourself in front of your contacts is unparalleled. It’s not something you can overlook.
Deb Tucker
Overview:
Deb and Orian are ‘Team Tucker’ at the Rowville office and together they have become a prominent and successful force in and around the Rowville area. Deb has been an agent for over 11 years and has built an enviable reputation as a real estate professional who will work for the best possible outcome for her clients.
Ably assisted by Orian, the Tucker Team have an excellent grasp of the technologies that can improve their productivity and effectiveness. They’re also keen to innovate if they believe it will give them an edge over their competition and benefit their clients.
What is it about ActivePipe that you most like?
The Reporting. We receive a couple of really valuable reports each week, even this is automated, and the detail sent by ActivePipe in these reports is fantastic!
Deb –
it alerts me to the people I should be focused on and it makes us a lot more productive because we’re not wasting time on clients who aren’t going to deliver an ROI.
Orian –
our team has built a database of over 1500 contacts and without ActivePipe we couldn’t possibly keep in regular contact with all of them.
What are the key features of ActivePipe?
Deb –
There are a couple of features that I really like. ActivePipe provides regular communication with my clients and I don’t need to worry about it. People honestly feel they know me because ActivePipe has been sending the Weekly update every week and it follows up with relevant emails when necessary. I’ve had loads of positive feedback from the people I deal with. The other thing I like is that I’m alerted when old/er contacts all of a sudden start showing some interest in property.
Orian –
ActivePipe handles a lot of our client touchpoints without us having to worry about it. Using the data it provides means we can make WARM calls and not cold ones! This is a huge advantage and I think the clients appreciate it more too.
What are the highlights of your experience with ActivePipe?
Deb –
I know that my prospecting has significantly improved because I watch who is active. For example – I recently noticed a client who I’d valued a property for 12 months prior was clicking on properties. I got in touch, they were ready to sell, and it became a listing. It was no fluke, I could see from their clicks on the properties they were looking at that they were ready to be “on the move”! They loved seeing their home as “Property of The Week” too…..brilliant!
Orian –
There are many clients who understand the power of email marketing and there have been potential vendors impressed by how we use ActivePipe.
Is there anything you’d like to add?
Deb –
I love ActivePipe, it has given me listings. Seriously! I like not having to worry about it and I have confidence ActivePipe will always do a much better job of email marketing than we could.
Orian –
The emails look smart and it’s not a product that many of our competitors use. In a market as cut-throat as this it’s nice to have an advantage.
Anthony Steinberg
Overview:
Raine & Horne Mermaid Beach is a composite of 2 significant Mermaid Beach agencies and has combined the experience and professionalism of some well respected teams to carve a strong share of regional sales.
Anthony and Kae have 8 years experience in Real Estate and have an enviable reputation and a large, loyal client base.
What attracted you to ActivePipe?
I was using ActivePipe prior to joining Raine & Horne. I saw an opportunity to automate an important element of our client marketing – email.
There are agents who think they do a good job of email – they don’t! There are Principals and networks who think the CRM does a good job of email – it doesn’t!
There is this ridiculous notion that just because they can they will. Any process requiring an agent to regularly, consistently and professionally maintain good email touch points by doing it themselves is fatally flawed. Agents aren’t good at it and when they do get around to it the quality is poor and there’s no proper measurement.
We send to 3000+ contacts every week as REGULAR AS CLOCKWORK and we KNOW what our contacts are interested in.
How long did it take for you to start seeing results from ActivePipe?
The nice thing about digital communication is immediacy. You can see what’s happening straight away and this was the case with ActivePipe. We can promote a new listing via the platform and within a couple of hours we know who we should be following up.
The opportunity to provide outstanding service to our vendors is unparalleled with ActivePipe, and I know that with every happy vendor we’re a step closer to a new one.
How would you describe the impact of this business tool?
I love it because there’s continuous professional brand recognition, I’m not concerned about whether it’s happening and I can view all client interaction across the entire team.
The team really love it because they’re more effective. You can’t follow up several hundred contacts very easily but when ActivePipe flags the activity of 10 or 20 prospects in real estate mode that’s gold! Plus, they know that for every 4 or 5 buyers there is a potential vendor and they use ActivePipe to identify them.
How do you measure the ROI?
ActivePipe has given me listings and that’s all I require. The subscription is an investment NOT a cost and it’s tiny when you consider the benefits.
Does ActivePipe help your business in any other ways?
Look, it’s not magic and the old maxim applies – shit in shit out. So…..what I can say is that ActivePipe has definitely had a positive impact on CRM utilisation and the team know that getting the contact details right is important.
We’ve sent 170,000 emails to our clients, I know they appreciate it and it’s been completely automatic. In 18 months there’s been hardly any issues; that’s important because as a Principal there’s always stuff to do and I’m not occupied worrying about email marketing!
What was it like training your staff to use ActivePipe?
There’s not much need and ActivePipe are happy to conduct training at any time.
The fact that ActivePipe also automates the reporting is a bonus. It isn’t necessary to log in and the agents get emailed valuable insights into their contact activity.
Is there anything else you’d like to add?
ActivePipe is a wonderful product and they keep improving it. Pretending you can do this stuff any other way is a nonsense. There’s nothing like it out there.
I’m a fan because the team at ActivePipe have given me a professional way to touch our contacts, its personalised, it’s automated, it’s reliable and they provide an incredible amount of qualified prospects with a high degree of predictability.
Would you recommend ActivePipe to another Raine & Horne office?
Let me answer the question this way – Raine & Horne would be a better performing network if all our offices were using ActivePipe!
Michael Montano
Overview:
The Power of 4, Inner West Sydney, comprises a high performing team of 17 agents who have a very strong share of the region taking in Leichardt, Drummoyne and Annandale.
Since 2007 the success of The Power of 4 offices has been built on a philosophy of giving clients personal service, professional advice and support. Their clients appreciation for this approach and reputation for results have made The Power of 4 one of the most important real estate groups in Sydney. The Power of 4 personnel are chosen for their extensive knowledge, business acumen and passion for property.
The Power of 4 group has always been an early adopter of innovative marketing and technology and was one of ActivePipe’s first clients in the Raine & Horne network.
What was it that attracted you to ActivePipe?
The leadership team recognised that ActivePipe was a very advanced email marketing platform that could streamline some of our client touchpoints.
We’ve always had a significant database but marketing to our contacts wasn’t particularly professional or consistent and we had very little in the way of reporting and therefore couldn’t measure its effectiveness. The ad hoc email marketing we were doing was also enormously time consuming.
ActivePipe gave us reliability, brand consistency and control of message across all our offices and agents, and also presented an opportunity to build our presence in a highly competitive market. Importantly, everything that ActivePipe sends on our behalf can be tracked and the fine detail of client interaction monitored.
How long did it take for you to start seeing results from ActivePipe
From the very first send there were a few surprised faces among the skeptics!
We enjoyed positive client feedback that we hadn’t anticipated and we saw activity and opportunities we didn’t realise existed. It’s been a real eye opener because ActivePipe helped us exploit the potential of our database. In a sense we probably knew it was there but we’d never had a tool like ActivePipe at our disposal.
The results continue to flow to this day.
How would you describe the impact of this business tool?
The team really love it because it helps them identify prospective vendors before they’ve revealed themselves to the market and our competition. In this area we know we’re one of few agencies using ActivePipe and we can leverage this with our clients.
Some of the agents have thousands of contacts and it’s impossible to be across them all for obvious reasons, but ActivePipe will alert them to the people who are in real estate mode so that they can follow them up. They don’t waste time with people who aren’t serious buyers or sellers which makes them far more effective.
One of the great things about ActivePipe is it is ‘touching’ our database nice and regularly. Its maintaining the relationship in a soft way, it’s professional and personalised and non-invasive. When it comes time to sell we have confidence ActivePipe has influenced decision making and won us plenty of business.
How do you measure ActivePipe’s ROI?
First thing I’d say is that ActivePipe has paid for itself many, many times over. It is an inexpensive yet powerful business tool. Quite apart from the significant value of the listings generated there is also benefit in things like web traffic, brand awareness, agent productivity and so on.
Does ActivePipe help your business in any other ways?
It is a powerful listing tool because it intuitively identifies contacts as potential vendors and encourages people to formally request appraisals. These Potential vendors are impressed by ActivePipe too.
What was it like training your staff to use ActivePipe?
ActivePipe is largely set & forget and there’s not a lot of need for intervention by the agents and therefore little training required. Even the reporting is automated so the agents are supplied with lots of data by ActivePipe that they can use in their prospecting. They don’t have to do anything and our management team has confidence that ActivePipe is working away in the background.
Having said that if you ever need assistance our Marketing team think the world of ActivePipe. They have a wonderful support team.
Is there anything else you’d like to add?
We were one of the first to move to ActivePipe and their product remains relevant. They’ve given us no cause to complain, only reasons to be happy that we came on board.
Would you recommend ActivePipe to another Raine & Horne office?
Let me answer the question this way – Raine & Horne would be a better performing network if all our offices were using ActivePipe!
Paul Ellis
Overview:
Elders Rockingham has been around for 5 years and has built a strong reputation as a community focused agency with a combination of bright young talent and some very experienced practitioners. The result is a successful office with a high-performing sales division and an excellent Property Management portfolio.
Elders Rockingham appreciates the value of Social Media and the use of strong communication through emails and newsletters.
How long did it take for you to start seeing results from ActivePipe?
This was noticeable almost immediately. There has been a considerable lift in enquiry levels since our office turned on ActivePipe. People are calling in more often to ask about property. After less than a month on ActivePipe we had 3 contacts call and invite us to list their home, these were contacts we hadn’t spoken to in a long time and it is my belief that it’s because we have been front of mind from our ActivePipe. I am happy to attribute these listings directly to ActivePipe. These were people in our database whom we had not contacted for some time. I even had an email from a fellow business owner in the area saying the emails looked great.
What attracted you to ActivePipe?
When it was presented to me I thought it looked smart and pretty simple to use. I was particularly impressed by what they claimed in terms of reporting and how it could assist the team. I must say that I was initially sceptical but to their credit ActivePipe didn’t over-play their hand. It has delivered in spades and the team love it.
How would you describe the impact of this business tool?
I have more focused, productive agents because ActivePipe is giving them a call list of people who are in real estate mode, these contacts happily take our calls and the data is invaluable in forming really good conversations with prospective vendors and buyers. As a Principal I have a birds-eye view of contact interaction across the whole team, I know that ActivePipe is contacting our entire database every week and I can see the interest we are generating in our vendors properties.
What is this in dollar value to you?
Assuming we sell the 3 listings gained in the first month ActivePipe has paid for itself for 10 years! There is other value though:
- Time saved sending comparatively poor quality emails and newsletters.
- More effective coverage of our database
- Value added vendor marketing
- More productive agents
- Agents are understanding the opportunity that a good database can create
Does ActivePipe help your business in any other ways?
It is a powerful listing tool because it intuitively identifies contacts as potential vendors and encourages people to formally request appraisals. These Potential vendors are impressed by ActivePipe too.
What was it like training your staff to use ActivePipe?
It’s a simple platform and there isn’t a great need for training. ActivePipe even automates the reporting to our team so they don’t really need to do anything. However, we had a coaching session recently and we can really maximise the benefits of ActivePipe now.
Is there anything else you’d like to add?
ActivePipe is brilliant and our team love it. When you consider how little it costs its amazing that more agencies haven’t cottoned on! However, while I have a competitive advantage I’m going to use it.
Would you recommend ActivePipe to another Elders real estate office?
Yes, of course. I’ve seen great results in just 8 weeks and I can see the potential.
Christopher Jarvis
You’re part of a large Property Management team at Point Cook. What attracted you to ActivePipe?
I knew that the Sales team were using ActivePipe and it was really effective for them. They were winning business – listings and sales – using it and when Tony (Principal) suggested that it could be used for PM I jumped at it.
What are the key features of ActivePipe?
There are a few things. One, it looks much better than anything we can produce out of our CRM. It gives us a real point of difference and it is saving me somewhere between 30 minutes to an hour each week due to the automation. In the short time we’ve been using ActivePipe we’ve sent approximately 72,000 emails without lifting a finger!
How are you using ActivePipe?
We send a Weekly Rentals Update plus an OFI Reminder to our PM database. We get a really positive response on a consistent basis and its great for our profile in the market.
What are the highlights of your experience with ActivePipe?
We’re using Inspect Real Estate and adding to our database all the time and I have confidence that these people are being communicated with in a professional manner. Plus, the leads we receive as a result of the ActivePipe marketing are hot leads. This makes our team a lot more focused and effective. Its interesting because we also see people attending the Opens with our OFI Reminder open on their phones. ActivePipe’s mobile responsiveness is excellent!
What has been the most impressive feature of ActivePipe in your opinion?
I love the automation. I don’t need to worry about the next send or spend time doing it myself because ActivePipe does it like clockwork. Our updates look smart, people value them and it’s an effective way to communicate with a large database.
Would you recommend ActivePipe to another Barry Plant office for Property Management?
100% Why wouldn’t you use it? The time it saves makes it a positive ROI and I know we have built our rent roll as a consequence of using it.
Lyle Dean
Overview:
A fully Licensed Estate Agent since the year 2000, Lyle has successfully ran his own agency in Ballarat for almost 10 years before moving to Melbourne and establishing an enviable reputation for selling property in the inner-city suburbs. He has lead our Sales Team to being honoured with Award Winning triumphs, along with winning his own individual awards along the way.
How long have you been using ActivePipe for?
We’ve been using ActivePipe for over 2 years and as you can see from the number of emails they’ve sent on our behalf our business relies on it to communicate effectively with our clients.
ActivePipe features and benefits:
I am a big believer in the role communication plays in a great sales experience; and in sales success. More importantly, that communication needs to be professional, contemporary and relevant. This is what ActivePipe delivers. One of the great features of ActivePipe is that it is constantly adapting to meet the needs of the market. It is not just a plain old boring newsletter!
What are the factors that make you value ActivePipe?
ActivePipe is reliable and it is measurable. Try assessing the ROI of a DL Flyer campaign…it’s nearly impossible! However, ActivePipe delivers data in spades and helps identify prospective Buyers AND Sellers and significantly improves our client communication. It is easy to see the value just in website visitation alone. Our team has confidence that ActivePipe is sending really professional emails and it’s as regular as clockwork.
We really do know that it works too! We recently had a really lovely apartment for sale and we’d utilised all conventional methods to attract buyers to a VIP Viewing. On the night every single one of the 6 attendees came via ActivePipe, we sold the property pre-Auction, and for a record price. The vendor was ecstatic and it wouldn’t have happened without ActivePipe.
How are your agents responding to the information & insights into their database?
That’s an interesting question. I think what we’re seeing more of is that people will happily engage digitally via our ActivePipe emails but won’t necessarily do so at an Auction or at an OFI. So, for the agents, seeing contacts activity in the ActivePipe reporting is becomingly increasingly important.
What has been the most impressive feature of ActivePipe in your opinion?
You can’t manage what you can’t measure – so it’s important for me to monitor the activity of our team, the activity of our contacts and the interaction with our properties. The information that ActivePipe provides once the communications are sent is what is most impressive and most useful.
Do you see the value in efficiency and capacity created by ActivePipe?
We have stuck with ActivePipe for ages now and it’s integral to our business, so yes. In fact we’re in discussion with them about how we best utilise ActivePipe for our Property Management division.
Jamie Maynard
As Principal of Elders Real Estate Albury/Wodonga, Jamie leads a select team of highly motivated staff with a unique vision for the renowned Elders brand in the Albury/Wodonga area.
Jamie’s passion for the industry is contagious. His astute understanding of marketing a property and his ability to negotiate brings about outstanding results for his clients.
How long did it take for you to start seeing results from ActivePipe?
Realistically, it probably took us a couple of weeks to really embrace ActivePipe but it is now an integral part of our business. We use it in our weekly sales meetings and review interaction from the previous week. From early on, ActivePipe was telling us who is in property mode, what are they clicking on and how many times, indicating their level of interest. We have 124 listings so this is invaluable information.
How would you describe the impact of this business tool?
I’m a big fan and so is my business partner Dean. It is perfect for analysing new contacts and introducing the agent and our business. To be honest, we were apprehensive initially and thought we might be sending too much but this wasn’t the case at all. ActivePipe handles email marketing really well. It’s identified quite a few potential vendors which has turned into pipeline. In fact we have many clients who are responding directly to the communications.
What is this in dollar value to you?
Hard to quantify but as principals, Dean and I certainly place a high value on ActivePipe. It is a simple platform that helps us keep control of our stock and manage the buyers. The team members using it are seeing lots of opportunity and it has significantly improved the conversations they are having with their clients. Just seeing evidence of changes in buying patterns can be very powerful. We all know that what a buyer says they want and what they really want can be two very different things. ActivePipe tells us exactly what they’re interested in!
Does ActivePipe help your business in any other ways?
I mentioned that it’s perfect for new contacts who we haven’t even met and it gives us a distinct advantage over other agencies. It directs traffic to our website and creates a huge amount of brand awareness that is imperative to the business.
What was it like training your staff to use ActivePipe?
Simple! Dean and I are both users and advocates so that’s helped to bring the team along. Plus, it really is largely set-and-forget. You don’t need to tinker with it – brilliant. Once the guys started seeing the automated reports they soon realised that ActivePipe is alerting us with at-your-fingertips information. They don’t have to do much but once they log in they can get so much more background to their clients and they love that.
Would you recommend ActivePipe to another Elders real estate office?
In a heartbeat. The whole Elders network should be using it.
Andrew White
How long have you been in real estate for?
I relocated to Sydney from QLD around 2 years ago. I started the Ray White Brand in Balgowlah and we are really focused on growing a healthy and effective database. We consider ourselves forward thinking and ActivePipe is a match for our forward thinking model.
How long have you been using ActivePipe & how quickly did you notice results?
Since February this year & we saw results after the first email communications went out.
Right off the bat we noticed the spike in engagement from our database, more prospects were interacting with our emails and we were getting instant enquiry. Soon afterward we saw numbers through open houses rise in correlation with the weekly property emails and open house feedback coming in via ActivePipe. All these things enhance our visibility with prospects a really genuine way.
What has been the most impressive feature of ActivePipe in your opinion?
The answer is two-fold, firstly – to be honest – would be the automation. We don’t have time to spend on all the stuff that’s going on, we just go to an open home – we enter the data – they get communication from ActivePipe right away (OFI campaign) and then we get feedback directly to MyDesktop. After that the client is in our pipeline receiving weekly emails and we are making noise in our marketplace about how we operate – that’s a big point of difference over our competitors.
We haven’t really had time to invest in the customisation of ActivePipe, although we plan to. At the moment we are operating out of the box. Secondly, we are driving some serious traffic through to our properties for sale directly from ActivePipe.
Recently we brought two properties simultaneously to market, one listed on the portals and the other marketed direct to our database of buyers through ActivePipe. We had similar numbers, if not better, through the properties and SOLD the ActivePipe property quickly and with a great result.
Over time we have developed this into our listing pitch and pre-marketing program. We give each property a lead-up to market with a thorough database marketing program in which ActivePipe is integral in driving traffic to our stock.
What is the main benefit to your business utilising ActivePipe?
Again, the automation – we are not doing more work, we just have better goggles to see what is happening. Also, we now know that we can hit the market really rapidly without the additional expenses of REA or Domain. We can drive traffic infinitely faster direct from ActivePipe to our DataBase and we can see who and how people are interacting with our listings, which is valuable stuff you don’t get from the portals. We now know who to target.
Has implementing ActivePipe into your business changed your behaviours or increased your operating capacity?
Yes, yes it has. Marketing is all about layering for us, ActivePipe is a big part of that layering in our business – is it a safeguard against people being left behind – each week they get more information from us and each time they are getting an impression about how active we are in the market. It (AP) is working away in the background helping us to leave the best impression while we are busy doing other things.
Although you never know where 100% of your listings come from, we do know that ActivePipe is helping us attract new business, not only potential buyers – also pipeline and listings. Its consistent and reliable, which is key.
Do you think that ActivePipe will continue to be a part of your business in the future?
Absolutely, it’s part of our sales pitch and standard operations now. We see this as being a part of how we go the extra distance and create that all important noise around our brand and our stock.
ActivePipe is also building our database as well as helping maintain it. We have a hard and soft data base, the hard database we are calling weekly and they are at the front of our mind, they are people transacting now or in the immediate future and we like to stay as close to them as possible, and that is working really well for us. ActivePipe makes sure we don’t miss anyone else as they come to the front of the line.
Emma Howison
Overview:
Emma has been the BSO for this large Tamworth agency for over 6 years. She has become an indispensable member of the team managing the Sales CRM, customer engagement and contacts database. She was the administrator for the E2 system and now has responsibility for Rex. As Admin she is across the Office level reporting and Agent level reporting features of ActivePipe.
How long have you been using ActivePipe for?
I have been using the updated ActivePipe since Nov 2014 when we started with ActivePipe and we moved to the new platform in mid January 2016.
What do you see as the benefits of ActivePipe?
ActivePipe simply makes it easier to do all our email marketing. It also makes it a lot easier for the Agents to follow people up and they are more effective. There’s less cold calling because the reporting qualifies the contacts. With E2 everything would take way too long and I even did the emails in the afternoon because you couldn’t run them in the background. It could take up to an hour to send each and every email! I am saving approximately 3 hours each week which I can devote to more important tasks. With ActivePipe I have confidence that that the system is working away automatically.
What results have you seen so far?
They’re excellent. For example, our new guy Jeremy was encouraged to follow up all the contacts who were engaging with his communications and this resulted in a sale just recently. The insights such as interest in property is really useful. As for vendors there is also good reporting of prospects and I think Erin has 3 or 4 listings directly from ActivePipe. She loves it.
What do you think is the most impressive feature of ActivePipe?
It helps a lot to see what people are really looking for rather than what they say they’re looking for. The number of clicks is a great indicator of a person’s level of interest
How have your interactions with clients changed since using ActivePipe?
The ActivePipe emails are really easy to read and they don’t have the appearance of spam. Plus, even if someone unsubscribes it’s not a big deal because they can still be contacted. I’m finding that even the people who have bought or sold are happy to continue receiving our emails! The way the Agents interact with clients has certainly changed because they are having better, more informed, conversations.
What would you say to office’s not using ActivePipe?
It makes your life easier, the workload is almost nil and BSO time is better spent doing other thingsin the office. Sending emails isn’t very exciting or efficient.
Is there anything else you would like to add?
The Vendor Report is a great way to provide evidence of activity. This is useful for Vendors who may think we’re not active with their property plus it helps the Agents conduct a conversation with
the vendor about the interest the ActivePipe marketinging has generated.
Lyn Hughston
Overview:
Lyn has been the Sales Administrator in this Perth office of 30+ staff for 11 Years and she has an extremely strong management and training background. Working closely with the Principal, Paula Lagrenade, Lyn now oversees the Administration of a large 13 Agent team and helped position it as one of the leading Perth agencies. Lyn is responsible for the contacts database for the Sales team and they currently use E2. Lyn was voted the top LJH WA BSO for the past 2 years and with the expansion of the office is now responsible for 2 additional BSO’s .
How long have you been using ActivePipe for?
Our office has been using ActivePipe since late Nov 2015 and we’ve been very happy with how it works for our team. The support we have received from ActivePipe has always been exemplary too.
What do you see as the benefits of ActivePipe?
The main benefit is that it commences the communication between the agent and the client and it supports their relationship. It also makes them look professional, corporate and active. In Admin terms ActivePipe’s automation for things like the Weekly Updates and OFI reminders saves an enormous amount of time and we know that all the communications will be consistent and they all happen RELIABLY in the background.
What results have you seen so far?
As Sales Administrator I monitor the team’s dash and there have been numerous Appraisal leads. Since the new platform was introduced just a few months ago there have been 5 Appraisal requests plus of course we can observe property interactions which is really important for the team. 2 agents last week announced that they’d secured an appraisal simply by monitoring activity for their contacts and making some follow up calls.
What do you think is the most impressive feature of ActivePipe?
ActivePipe is really useful in our weekly 1on1 meetings with the Agents. The Dashboard in particular has been a bit of a light bulb moment for some of the team because it highlights what people are really looking for rather than what they say they’re looking for. The number of clicks is a great indicator of a persons level of interest. The activity the agents can view will often change the contact timeline with clients. They see the activity and can immediately engage. Clients don’t always do what say they’re going to do!
How have your interactions with clients changed since using ActivePipe?
I think they’re certainly more professional and more consistent. The emails look really smart and our brand and message is managed.
What would you say to offices and BSOs not using ActivePipe?
Talk your owners into getting ActivePipe! The time saved amounts to hours each week. It’s a great method of covering your market. It’s nice and broad, yet clever and Intuitive and the Agents will love it because it will improve their effectiveness and communication with clients.
Is there anything else you would like to add?
Trust ActivePipe to work in the background, not everything happens overnight, give it some time.
Colin Wallbank
Overview:
Colin has been involved with the L.J. Hooker Company since 2001, working in the hills South-East of Perth. Colin is a Multi Million Dollar Captains Club Member and is known for his attention to detail and community involvement. LJ Hooker Pemberton has also been awarded 3rd place in the national regional network.
How long have you been using ActivePipe?
The Pemberton office has been using ActivePipe since mid-2015 and has been recently migrated to the upgraded platform in early February.
What are the stand out features & benefits of ActivePipe in your opinion?
Really, the thing I like most is that it is set-and-forget. The emails just go out and they go out to the right people, the people who are looking at houses to buy. Also, it’s leaving a good impression with other would be sellers in the market, it lets people know that we are on the ball and that we are working hard for our sellers because they get an email from us promptly when there is a price adjustment, or a sale made. We had one fellow called in straight from an email and said “I like the way your office is marketing property, come and take over my listing” from another agent. ActivePipe is technology that is putting us right out there, in front of the competition.
How long did it take to see results from ActivePipe?
Pretty quick, the first thing we noticed was more people talking about our auction properties, we had 10 sales last month and 2 for this month already. Our auctions are improving and the open house elements we saw results from in the first week.
How does ActivePipe compare to other technology you have been using?
Well, it certainly is simple. Once ActivePipe is up and running, all the magic happens in the background and then the reports come in and you can see the results of who has been looking at your properties and you know who to call. Thats easy – no fuss.
Does ActivePipe enhance your efficiency and practices in your business?
Yes, yes. If you think about it – these emails are going out automatically plus you get the reports pm the Friday so you can call the hot buyers before the weekend. With ActivePipe you don’t have to go looking for them. ActivePipe has stimulated our database and helps us to remain top of mind to purchasers. It’s consistent, looks sharp and is a call to action for potential sellers to call in and list with us, so really we don’t have to dig as hard to find new stock – although we like to make sure we are still working hard – ActivePipe assists us greatly.
Is there anything else you would like to add?
Active Pipe is working really well for us and and I am personally an advocate, it is something that the entire LJ Hooker network should be using.
Julien Karolos
Overview:
At the young age of 22 Julien entered the real estate industry beginning in Property Management with the L.J Hooker network. Julien has remained with the L.J Hooker (Boronia) family for 12 years which shows the commitment and creation of lifelong friends, clients and customers that are developed in a position of trust and confidence
What are the stand out features & benefits of ActivePipe in your opinion?
Well, we all talk about databases, we all know that they need to be contacted – one of the best things about ActivePipe is that there is a minimum standard of contact with our new and old databases which ActivePipe handles automatically. I don’t have to worry if my agents are getting in touch with everyone and letting them know about our stock, or new stock – or even price adjustments – ActivePipe is happening all the time.
Do you think that ActivePipe is giving you a professional edge?
We have actually just listed a property through ActivePipe from a client who bought through us 5 years ago. Now, the best thing about that was the story behind him finding out about us again through our weekly ActivePipe emails. I knew that he was on our database, but we had no idea he was planning to sell until he invited us around “I get all your emails, and I was impressed” – all because ActivePipe brought us to the forefront of his mind to list his house.
Do you think your agents will change their behaviours to suit the new information on your clients available from ActivePipe?
Yes, it’s a great tool that we are using and we are still figuring out how to use it to the best of our ability. What we already know is that ActivePipe is going a long way toward connecting with our new database and our old database and that’s impressive because I don’t have to worry about any leaks in our communication plan. Everyone is kept up to date.
How does ActivePipe enhance your efficiency and practices in the office?
Well now I know that all our clients are hearing from us week in and week out, so yes. It is good to maintain the consistency of contact.
Is there anything else you would like to add?
I have been really happy so far with ActivePipe, it is proving to be a great contributor toward connecting with everyone we need to connect with.
Graeme Dimsey
Overview:
Graeme has been part of the LJ Hooker family in Cranbourne since 1992, beginning his real estate career in 1988. With a wealth of experience behind him Graeme is confident both he and his long established team can offer investors, buyers and sellers the best possible advice when it comes to any Real Estate matter, which has been invaluable to many clients over the years.
What are the stand out features & benefits of ActivePipe in your opinion?
Time savings compared to the old software we used where everything is manually done, also appraisals that will turn into listings directly from ActivePipe communication.
Do you think that ActivePipe is giving you a professional edge ?
It is – I mean we are already getting appraisal requests and we are kicking off some new campaigns, something that is a little more diverse and offers more for the readers to get their teeth into and no other offices are offering this. Plus we can see what they click and what they like in our emails. One thing I know is that more people are reading our emails, we had a few unsubscribes and now that is all smoothed out – it’s great…. plus it’s all automated.
How does ActivePipe enhance your efficiency and practices in the office?
This will in the future give us a greater advantage in time management and automation, I do not have to get in there and add any hard work to this, ActivePipe is all happening automatically. Compared to E2 I don’t have to manually create any emails or spend hours working on it plus we can see what is happening with our email recipients – like when they are clicking, or what they are clicking on – nothing else offered us that insight.
Do you think that ActivePipe is giving you a professional edge ?
Yes, it will give us an edge. I guess when you think that we are sending all these emails to people in our database ( a database that goes back years and years ) we’re top of mind to them. Even though they are not necessarily thinking about selling or buying, they are thinking about us when the time comes.
Do you think your agents will change their behaviours to suit the new information on your clients available from ActivePipe?
Well yes, for one – all the agents have to do is log in and they can see who is looking at what, secondly, they can see who they need to call and thirdly, all they need to do is actually call them haha.
It’s all laid out for them. We can tell who is clicking on what and then call them, that’s pretty easy for any agent. The intuitive guys will even get to know who is selling in the future.
How does ActivePipe enhance your efficiency and practices in the office?
Well now I know that all our clients are hearing from us week in and week out, so yes. It is good to maintain the consistency of contact.
Ben Jusufi
Overview:
Since leaving school Ben jumped straight into sales and has never looked back. Experience, service, skills and a passion for property – If those are your expectations for a real estate agent, then Ben Jusufi is your man. All of Ben’s hard work and excellent customer service skills have paid off being appointed Director of LJ Hooker Dandenong and Endeavour Hills makes Ben one of the youngest Directors in the country, something he is very proud of.
How long have you been using ActivePipe for?
I was one of the early adopters of ActivePipe and I have seen the product grow to become an essential part of my week to week busines. The information is integral in identifying who is active and which properties are hot.
How long did it take to see results from ActivePipe?
Straight away, I could see the reporting coming through – I could see who was clicking on what, I knew what was going out and what was coming back – all this happened basically immediately.
What are the stand out features & benefits of ActivePipe in your opinion?
I noticed that buyers that were in my database were turning up at open homes and thanking me for the invitations and reminders, this really impressed me because I know that this good quality information was reaching all the buyers, even when I could not get a hold of them.
I feel really confident in the fact that there is constant information going out to my clients and that they all are being kept up to date with what is happening with my stock & new listings. That is a good representation of me and my company.
Do you think you have changed your workflows to work with ActivePipe?
In one way yes, because each week I look forward to the Activepipe report arriving and calling the relevant prospects or prioritising the calls – I can see which properties are hot and thats brilliant. In another way it has created more time for me because this is all automated – so it has had a double effect – I do more work with active people in my database and I do less manual work because ActivePipe is happening in the background.
Do you think that ActivePipe is essential to your business?
Yes, I have found that this has become a regular part of my week to week practice, it allows me to see who is doing what and which properties they are all looking at. That is great for me and my company.
Is there anything else you would like to add?
I love it, I am really happy and satisfied with the results.
Richie Thornton
Overview:
Richie Thornton is a Career Real Estate Agent with 31 years experience and is Co-Principal and Licensee of L.J Hooker Tamworth.Richie has been integral in the introduction and development of several technologies within LJ Hooker. His decades of experience has enabled him to sift through the snake oil and spot a good product. He saw ActivePipe early in its introduction to the Real Estate industry and knew instantly that it was right for LJ Hooker.
How long have you been using ActivePipe for?
Since late 2014 and we migrated to the new LJ Hooker product in late December 2015.
How long did it take to see results from ActivePipe?
Oh, right away – from the first ActivePipe report my agents eyes were opened up to the opportunities that could be found in the information, they were rapt. We have recently converted listings from two leads that were a result of the new communications that we’re sending. This is fantastic and I’m sure there will be more coming soon.
What are the stand out features & benefits of ActivePipe in your opinion?
We have had some feedback directly from clients that is just great marketing, that means to me that this is working away in the background showing people how active we are. Also ActivePipe in my office goes to everyone, no exceptions – the recipient might not be buying right now, but they might if they see the right property – and then they are motivated to sell, it’s not just a buyer tool – this is a listing tool. How good is that! I think that the best feature is that it works for the agent and the seller and the buyer, everyone is better off for being involved in this. More buyers see the emails and open them, which is good for the sellers, and of course that’s better for agents and it’s all automated.
Do you think your agents will change their behaviours to suit the new information on your clients available from ActivePipe?
Yes of course! As soon as that weekly email comes in they are on the phone calling the High Value Clients and others that have interacted with their properties, all they have to do is log on and see. If an agent did not see the value in this, they should not be in the business.
How does ActivePipe enhance your efficiency and practices in the office?
It’s happening on its own, it’s automated. We just plugged it in and off we went – now we have feedback, we have buyers, we have found sellers – we are not doing anything extra – in fact we are probably doing less – but that just means that an agent will have more time to focus on the important stuff. We send it to everyone too, not just the buyers – we don’t even get many un-subscribers – maybe one or two a fortnight and we have sent over 100,000 emails – I had to contain myself when I realised how many, so if we get one or two people drop off, we don’t even argue.
Is there anything else you would like to add?
I have said to LJ Hooker recently that the whole real estate industry needs to come out of the woods and into the light, we need to adapt to the technology to move forward. Some agents hide behind the old way of doing things – but you can’t argue with genuine progress. It’s technology like this that benefits us as agents and offices and ultimately as a franchise. Like I said, we’ve had 2 recent listings that are directly from the ‘new’ActivePipe, which means it’s working – also we’ve had really great feedback from clients, one past client rang me – totally unprompted just to say “that’s great marketing, really valuable info” regarding our recent sales. That’s the image you want out there in the market, active, professional and doing the job. That’s what people want, they want to be up-to-date, and we have to give it to them, ActivePipe does that for us.
Erin Whitten
Overview:
Erin has been active in the Tamworth area and specialising in the sale of residential property. Erin has had extensive experience in the interior design industry and loves getting to see each new homes.
How long have you been using ActivePipe for?
We have been using the updated ActivePipe since mid January 2016.
How long did it take to see results from ActivePipe?
Wow, I think in the first few days I got an appraisal and then another within a week.
What results have you seen so far?
So far 2 appraisals, which I have converted to listings!
What do you think is the most impressive feature of ActivePipe?
The best thing is definitely seeing who has interacted with my properties, we could not see that before. The detail is extraordinary and E2 and Rex don’t do anything like this. Now I know who to call right away which means I can get straight to business with my important clients.
How have your interactions with clients changed since using ActivePipe?
Knowing what people want is such a head start. Not everyone tells you exactly what they are after, but now I can see what they are clicking and spending time looking at which tells me who is interested in what. That’s also a great listing tool – I can tell potential vendors that we have this system of identifying buyers – that’s a huge benefit.
Do you see your workflows changing as a result of using ActivePipe?
Yes – when I get the email update – I can see right then and there who needs a call, even if they have not called me or even replied to the email, I know that I can get on the phone and see what stage they are up to, which might mean buyers – or even more prospects (sellers).
Is there anything else you would like to add?
I am really impressed, this is good – I am already excited to see my next ActivePipe wrap up email so I can see who is new and who is active. I love that there are so many people looking at my emails and engaging with them, that’s making things much easier for me to see
Jen Smith
Overview:
Jen moved to Brisbane in 1988 and has lived in the “Redlands” for over 22 years where she began her property sales career in 2002, working with some of the top offices in Australia.
How long have you been using ActivePipe for?
We have been using ActivePipe for a few months now but in mid January 2016 our office was moved to the newest version of ActivePipe with the Appraisals landing page, the Sold Property report etc
How long did it take to see results from ActivePipe?
Straight away, appraisals were on day 2 and the benefits have been rolling in every day since.
What results have you seen so far?
So far two appraisals straight to me and more for the office, plus I can see exactly what my clients are up to, so I can spend more time working with the right ones – that’s a result right there, we never got that the old way.
What do you think is the most impressive feature of ActivePipe?
Ok, the best thing is that I don’t have to go sifting through loads of cold prospects, ActivePipe tells me who is a High Value contact and I can tap into their needs straight away. Obviously getting appraisals is the best, because if you get the listings the real estate world is yours. We are selling some in a day, so the more listing leads we get the better right now.
How have your interactions with clients changed since using ActivePipe?
Well I can see what they are looking at, I can call them and get right to the point. I can say right away that I can help you with this property type in this area etc etc – there is so much time saved in knowing what they want before the call.
Do you see your workflows changing as a result of using ActivePipe?
Yes, time saved! I always make a point of calling everyone back from the open houses but you can’t always connect, so it was great to see that the people added got the emails straight away and now they are in the database and actively clicking on my properties! This means that I don’t have to worry about missing a valuable contact and can stay focused on listing and selling.
Is there anything else you would like to add?
I love it, I really really do. It’s great.
Shane Broekman
Overview:
Over the last few years Shane has not only kept up with the rapid growth of the Internet and Social Media, Shane is actually at the forefront of his peers with leading edge marketing and technology across all advertising platforms.
How long have you been using ActivePipe for?
We have been using ActivePipe since mid January 2016.
How long did it take to see results from ActivePipe?
Our first Weekly Listings update only went out on the 21st January, so everything we have seen has been almost an instant response.
What results have you seen so far?
So far three appraisals, and tons and tons of highly active clients identified.
What do you think is the most impressive feature of ActivePipe?
I am amazed by the insights that ActivePipe provides, it’s like nothing I have seen in the industry before.
The automation is really good, it is allowing me the capacity to do more dollar productive activities, and in turn those activities are more productive because I have the time to focus on them. I feel like I can forget about worrying about email programs and campaigns – this is doing it all for me in the background.
How have your interactions with clients changed since using ActivePipe?
I can qualify the prospects better with the data ActivePipe provides and spend more time with good prospects and, of course less time with contacts who aren’t going to result in sales or listings.
Do you see your workflows changing as a result of using ActivePipe?
Definitely. Activepipe frees up all this time . For me it’s important to work with the people in my database and stay focused , ActivePipe is a tool that allows me to get more done.
Is there anything else you would like to add?
This is something that the whole LJ Hooker group should be on – it’s fantastic.
Roy Freeth
How long have you been in real estate for?
Roy has been selling in Bribie Island since 2002 and has become a known specialist in the area with great connections in the community.
How long have you been using ActivePipe for?
We have been using ActivePipe since mid November 2015
ActivePipe features and benefits:
So far we have had booked 2 appraisals however we have identified so many highly engaged clients that we didn’t know we had, ActivePipe is really delivering on the detail of who is looking and where – it’s invaluable to us.
What has been the most impressive feature of ActivePipe in your opinion?
Being able to see exactly who is looking at what. It really helps me to tailor my prospecting to each individual client and learn more about their needs.
Do you expect to get any listings from the appraisal requests you’ve received?
I have already converted one directly from ActivePipe, that’s a great result in such a short time.
Louisa Lanyon
How long have you been in real estate for?
I have been an agent for over 8 years. I previously owned my own real estate business, so I am committed to providing a high standard of service.
How long have you been using ActivePipe?
We have been using ActivePipe since mid December 2015.
How long did it take for you to see results from ActivePipe in your office?
Pretty much straight away! We saw our first lead in the first day or so and others came in soon after. We’ve converted many of them to appraisals, which are now on their way to being listed.
Are the interactions with your clients better as a result of using ActivePipe?
Well now that we can see what our clients are interacting with it makes it easier to identify their needs. We’ve also noticed that far more people are engaging with the emails, meaning we can spot more potential buyers and sellers. On top of that we’ve noticed that loads more people are actually opening and engaging with the emails, we were amazed.
What has been the most impressive feature of ActivePipe in your opinion?
We have been able to generate new listings from doing absolutely nothing!
What value in efficiency and capacity are you experiencing with ActivePipe?
The automation of emails is one of the features that we love, as previously we have had to manually do this. We also love being able to ‘group’ clients so that they only receive emails specific to their requirements (ie buyers receive new listings, home owners receive monthly newsletter, etc…)
Steve Morgan
How long have you been in real estate for?
Co-founder of Ray White Lincoln, Steve Morgan started his career as an agent in 1993. Steve took the reigns of RW Lincoln in November 2007 along with business partner and wife Leanne Morgan, Steve always strives to do the very best he can for both clients and employees.
How long have you been using ActivePipe for?
We have been using ActivePipe for about 2 weeks.
ActivePipe features and benefits:
So far we have had booked 4 appraisals from the ActivePipe leads, so that is a benefit straight up! We are also learning so much more about our database and their interests just by logging in and seeing what is happening in the background.
There have been several Loan Market Leads, Appraisal requests and Geographic conversions from Your database, are you impressed with the number of new leads so far?
Yes, we are thrilled!
There have been 40 geographic conversations, 27 potential seller interactions and 32 Loan Market interactions – and hundreds of clients highly active and clicking on our properties.
How are your agents responding to the new information & insights into their database?
There were some un-subs in the first few days, so we saw that ActivePipe was engaging with our database and cleaning it up. This made us a little nervous at first, but when we realised what was happening we jumped in and started making calls and felt loads better with the results we were generating.
What has been the most impressive feature of ActivePipe in your opinion?
The most impressive feature is the ability to see what clients are up to and get information from behind the scenes than enables you to act. There is heaps of activity that we can see that we might not have known about otherwise, and that enables our agents to take better, focused action.
Do you expect to get any listings from the appraisal requests you’ve received?
Yes! We have had 8 leads and we have appraised 4 of them already, at least one of those is serious about selling straight away.
Do you see the value in efficiency and capacity created by ActivePipe?
Of course, it’s a matter of making sure that the agents in our office be proactive around logging in and checking out the clicks – and then following up.
Any other comments that you would like to make?
I am thrilled with ActivePipe so far, we are really keen to see how this develops our pipeline and loan market leads. Its great.
Cliff Tarr
What are the results so far with ActivePipe?
It’s unbelievable actually. In just the past week, one of my salespeople has had four appraisal requests come in.
So she’s over the moon. And when I got into the office this morning I had an email request on my own ActivePipe report. Also, over the weekend, we had our weekly listings of open for inspections email go out to buyers, and we had a buyer actually send through an offer straight from that ActivePipe email. The buyer has actually sent through an offer on the property, attached as a forward-on from that email.
What do you think of those results?
They are fantastic, they are extraordinary. Mel, the salesperson that had the four appraisals come through in the last seven days, actually door knocked those people within the last three to four weeks. They obviously declined the appraisal offer at that time, but once we’ve come back and put those people in the system – because they were quite happy to receive information from us – they have obviously engaged the welcome email that goes out – and it has gone from there. As I said, four appraisals within seven days, so we are very happy.
How long did it take to start seeing results from ActivePipe?
The first couple of weeks we were learning how to use the system, but I think the most important thing was to get the customers’ email addresses into ActivePipe. Four weeks on, we are now seeing the results coming through. It’s just fantastic. Over the coming months I’m sure more results will follow.
Do you expect to get any listings from the appraisals that you have received?
Absolutely. I would say out of those four, they are probably more what you call a pipeline so they go into our pipeline. The customers obviously have some sort of interest as to where their property may sit, and then we have to go out there. I imagine that within 12 months we would expect to get one or two listings for sure.
What do you think of the ActivePipe emails?
I think if it’s by email, it’s more non-threatening, they are happy to click on it, because people are actually going to the internet to get information. And when that information is put in front of them, they are happier to take it up. Whereas if we are standing at their front door they don’t really want to engage face to face.
