British commercial brokers realize power of Internet

By Kenneth V. Smith

LONDON A group of top British commercial real estate brokers concluded recently that there are only two types in their profession. One group includes those brokers who have realized the power of the Internet and are going to reap the profits. The others are those who will learn too late.

Estates Today, a leading British commercial real estate Web site, held a symposium entitled "How the Commercial Property Industry Can Profit from the Internet" at the Institute of Directors, Pall Mall, London.

"The aim was to investigate how the Internet can be used by property professionals to increase their business and profitability," said Antony Slumbers of Estates Today. "We looked at the effects of technological developments on the demand for commercial property, how the rapidly increasing availability of information is changing the way business is conducted, and put forward some strategies for harnessing on-line tools to stay ahead of the competition."

Steven Bryant, director of Applied Property Research, asked the meeting rhetorically how fast real estate companies should be moving to the Internet. "It is a question of 'when' not 'if' companies need to get involved in the interactive age," Bryant said, "and if they want to prosper, the time to get involved is now."

As information has become increasingly open on the Internet, Bryant said, new strategies are needed to continue to add enough value to maintain one's position in the market. "Information overload is a real threat unless information professionals provide higher levels of interpretation and analysis."

Bryant said the openness of the Internet and "the ability to make external connections and the small costs involved in setting up an Internet connection mean that information is moving out of its traditional position as the preserve of the few and onto the desktops of whoever has something to gain from it."

The new interactive market on the Internet provides "nowhere to hide," Bryant said. "The much talked about paradigm shift has emphatically taken place and individuals and companies will have to adapt to the new realities of a networked world, or any competitive advantage they currently enjoy will be destroyed."

Robert Thompson, research partner at the commercial brokerage firm of King Sturge & Co., said his company suffered from a stodgy image before it developed an Internet presence. Among the benefits seen by King Sturge have been global reach, inexpensive and easy-to-change electronic brochures, increased feedback from clients, and strong branding.

More importantly, King Sturge's clients expected the firm to be on the Internet, Thompson said. "Quite simply you have to deal with clients on their own terms, and more and more are expecting to be able to transact business electronically," he said.

Thompson also said the Internet raises the brokerage vs. consultancy issue. "In a world of 'open information', the added value derived from owning information that no one else has will disappear," he said.

Derek Jones, director of Estates Today, said businesses already have available the necessary tools for exploiting the Internet. Commercial real estate can begin to use the Internet "by adding value to information, by identifying vertical and niche markets, by interacting directly with the customer, by marketing competently and using the Net practically, but to its full potential."

Anticipating the critics, Jones said, "The Internet is not going to go away. It is an entertainment, education, information, sales, conferencing, secure and personal medium. It will become part of our daily lives. Probably the most important feature of the Internet is its ability to allow your company to interact, on a one-to-one or one-to-many basis, with your customers."

Jones told the group that the Internet can lead real estate brokerages to finding new areas of business. "Leverage your existing information," he said. "Companies are awash with data that is unused. Look at new services, new products, new sources of revenue."

Estates Today provides a database of available United Kingdom office, industrial and retail properties, along with a directory of commercial real estate sites around the world. The Web site also has a growing collection of news, research and reference material. Proceedings from the Internet symposium are linked to the Estates Today home page.