Who Buys Site Unseen?
There is only a small percentage of the economy that buys site unseen– we regular people down here in the middle group that actually make up the larger percentage of the economy can’t afford to make costly mistakes such as not seeing or touching the property.
This notion that a consumer will ever click “buy” and submit some kind of bank order number to complete the transaction in any great number with an email receipt is laughable. Would the top 1% do it? Sure.
Would it be cool as the kids say? Sure, but is it practical? No. Do I believe agents should multiply their reach online and offer great search tools? Yes, and should they provide the most outstanding offline service as well while creating new avenues of communication? Absolutely.
But Let’s Not Forget…
Those Mom & Pop 5/dimes went out of business, sure, but if you look really closely, only the name and size of the store changed- it just got bigger, and yes, it’s called Walmart. Is Walmart foolish for their billions in expansions offline? I don’t think so. They’re profitable.
They wanted Mom and Pop’s offline action. They do offer a shopping service online, but they spend major coin offline to complete that transaction, and they’re really not that inexpensive anymore when you factor in quality- try one of those offline outlet malls called Prime Outlets that are popping up all over the place.
Or how about the Saks 5th, or two new Nieman’s we have here in town- why didn’t they just stay online? The last I checked however, these babies weren’t reduced priced by any stretch.
Or how about Ikea? It was primarily an online player at one time, but today, they’re expanding big box retail all over the country.
As another example, banks tried to go online all together, but I swear it seems branches are popping up all over the place including Wachovia, Chase, Cap One, and Amp’d, to name just a few. The branch building got smaller and more nimble, but the numbers of box units have doubled in most cases.
I noticed the other day offline branches of those stock trading companies opening shop around the city too, and today we’re using a travel agent to book a hotel in a city we’re not familiar with (that also isn’t online).
We also have at least 6 new super targets btw, and they also have had an online presence, and the last time I checked their prices seem really high compared to two years ago…
Did the Little Guy Adapt?
But back to the top 1% and Walmart – same crap different day, only the name changes offline and the size of the store gets bigger and bigger. They roll in on lower prices, beat out the middle America guy, and then build a big building on his grave- that top 1% that buys luxurious homes online just made millions. It wasn’t that the little guy didn’t adapt, he just wasn’t in that top 1%.
Even Apple had to get offline to complete the transaction… Oh yeah, and what about Sprint… The list just goes on and on and on and on… and don’t forget those little ebay stores- we have one here in a 60 year old shop on Main, right next door to a mom and pop antique store.
The rapid expansion of commercial development is proof of the consumer’s demand for tangibility. What’s the lesson here?
