“Constellation Real Estate Group announced Tuesday that it has purchased data analytics and lead generation company offrs, continuing a running acquisition spree that has seen the software giant pick up firms focused on everything from marketing to mortgage technology. In a statement Tuesday, Constellation said that offrs (yes, that’s how the company spells its name) “leverages big data and its proprietary machine learning algorithm to predict future home sales and transactions.” Offrs then provides that data to various real estate professionals, including agents and mortgage companies. Terms of the deal were not made public.”
Spoiler Alert!
I’m also hearing that Constellation is in the late stages of acquiring SmartZip too, which has been looking for a suitor for quite some time. That deal I’m told will be announced shortly. SmartZip had raised over $30M dollars according to Crunchbase.
I have mixed emotions when I hear of companies being acquired by Constellation, because they have a reputation as bottom feeders and founders rarely take any real money off the table.
We all have (had?) New Year’s Resolutions. The team at Flexmls had one major resolution in 2019, and that was to get their MLS system to shed a few pounds. And unlike me, they are keeping it up.
This video from Flexmls popped in my feed this weekend. It features Char Gust, Vice President of product at Flexmls. The video has some great examples of how Flexmls system is working towards a “less crowded” UI/UX to help MLS system users “streamline their everyday tasks”.
They highlight that they are using “usage data , user feedback and research” to drive these changes. This is exactly the right approach, and they feature some good examples.
BEFOREHEATMAP AFTER
Of course such changes don’t come without some peril. We know that people don’t like change, and it seems particularly strong when it comes to their MLS system. Flexmls knows this and promises steady, methodical changes paired with frequent communication.
With increased competition, Flexmls appears to be hitting the treadmill and dropping a lot of pixels, hoping they’ll be the one everyone is looking at when the next big dance comes to town.
Gavet spoke at length with Inman about the results of Compass’ technology push, her working relationship with Reffkin, the departure of multiple executives and what exactly Compass has accomplished. Her remarks have been edited for clarity.
Seems that the latest shakeup at Compass was a much bigger thing that I thought. Even some press on The Real Deal on “…tension between CEO Robert Reffkin and COO Maelle Gavet on how to run the company — on everything from decisions marketing strategy to product development.”
Yikes!
Maëlle Gavet:
“To be perfectly honest with you we both very much believe in the fact that a partnership requires some type of debate, this is very important. Robert and I are different people by background, by gender, by approach. We both spent a lot of time building this partnership.”
Translation: We hate each other.
Inman:
In the internal letter [Reffkin] sent out in January that announced this three-month push, he had said you’re ‘bottom line, responsible for the entire initiative,’ and [Malik] will take the point on product marketing. He also said [Seidman] and [Sirosh] will have delivered everything agents need to bring the core of their business onto the Compass platform. At the end of this push, two of those people are gone and you’ve had your duties shifted. Is it fair to say the push underdelivered in [Reffkin’s] eyes? Is that an uncharitable reading?
Maëlle Gavet:
I understand where you’re coming from, but that’s not exactly what happened. Let me start by talking about the results. I think the results have been good. We have hired close to 200 people in product and engineering since the beginning of the year, which is a big number. We acquired Contactually based out of Washington D.C., which was an important acquisition for us. We started displaying the listing agent on every listing whether or not its a Compass agent. We launched a new geo-agnostic search experience. We revamped entirely our iOS and Android app. We’ve done a lot of things. It’s actually more because Robert felt that the product and engineering team was on a good track and delivering that he decided he wanted to be more involved in the product.
Really? I mean, really? Since when does the CEO of any company shift their focus on divisions that are “on a good track and delivering” instead of areas that need the most help?
The interview is very revealing. You get a real sense that Compass is in trouble. Maëlle comes across as some sort of corporate robot, which is such the antithesis of the perception of Compass, CEO Robert Reffkin.
The sad part is it’s the same self inflicted wound a lot of leaders make in this space, “over promise and under-deliver.” I also have a feeling that more changes are coming.
The idea is simple. I go to a lot of conferences and meetings. And I learn a helluva lot and network with a lot of executives and vendors in the MLS industry. The relationships and learning have served me well throughout my career.
But, I don’t really see a lot of the people that are doing the real work. The support and trainers at MLS organizations and large brokerages that deal directly with agents. So I wanted to create an event just for them. A place they could learn about our products but also meet and develop relationships with other people in the industry that may be doing something similar to them. And I wanted to make it fun. That’s what Boost is all about.
So if you have any support or training staff members you want to show some love, have them join us in Huntington Beach!
The Work: 1. Immersive classes about all Cloud Agent Suite products 2. Presentations and Q&A with W+R support personnel 3. Presentations and Q&A with W+R Designers & Developers 4. Product feedback/enhancement session 5. Membership in online Facebook Group 6. Formal Certification (support/training) on all Cloud Agent Suite Products.
The Fun: 1. Welcome reception 2. Beautiful hotel steps away from the beach (included) 3. Food included (breakfast, lunch and dinner) 4. I heard a rumor that some point we might be on a boat! 5. Team building sessions 6. Cool swag! (of course!)
This event isn’t for CEOs or leadership, but for those in the trenches working with agents in the training and support departments of MLS organizations.
We have already sold over half the tickets. Click here and use the promo code “vendoralley” and save $100. Boost: MLS Staff Summit
“The trade organization announced its “Innovators Workshop” competition Friday, saying in a statement that it wants to solicit transformative real estate ideas from “industry gurus, engineers, software developers, and entrepreneurs alike.” Applicants to the program don’t have to be real estate professionals themselves, but their ideas should fill some unmet need in the industry and “have a value proposition that is easy to understand.” From the pool of people and groups who apply, C.A.R. will choose six finalists to present at “What’s Next – A Real Estate Tech Challenge,” which will be part of the group’s REimagine Conference and Expo in late September. The finalists will have to try to persuade a group of judges that their ideas are the best ones in the group.”
Inman News
I really love these live “pitch battles”. I did one last year at NAR iOi Summit. Almost like a Shark Tank they really force you to hone your message down meet the time restriction. Plus the questions you get from the judges really help fine tune your messaging. Perfect for a new or newer product you are launching.
Applications for C.A.R. Innovators Workshop are due August 28th. More information can be found here – > Workshop Application
Also if you are interested in NAR iOi Summit, it’s being held in Seattle this year, August 22-22. Deadline for the pitch battle submissions is July 7th. You can find out more information here – NAR iOi Summit
