Nick Neill, Head Shepherd at Ewe Move, has written up his learnings from a recent mystery shopping exercise of agents in his local area. The mystery shopping was carried out by his wife.
In this article, Nick shares his findings and thoughts.
Learnings from a mystery shopping spree
One agency proudly said it was an independent ‘with 70 years’ experience’ and declared themselves as ‘market leaders’ but when questioned couldn't validate this point any further.
Yes, experience counts. Yes, having the biggest market share can be helpful (more often to the agent than the client). And yes, being independent can mean things matter more to the owner of that agency than to staff in a big corporate business. But before you say, ‘Nick, isn’t EweMove part of The Property Franchise Group, which is one of the biggest PLC agency businesses in the UK?’ Let me explain further.
The fact EweMove, Martin & Co and our other brands thrive under TPFG’s umbrella, is the benefit that comes through the provision of expertise, strong infrastructure and buying power, to help the people who matter most to us – our franchisees. This support benefits the people who matter most to our franchisees – their clients.
As a franchisee, EweMove’s model is set up to only profit when our franchisees make a profit. For us to do well, our franchisees need to do well, which’s a huge motivating factor for us.
During the same mystery call, the agent added: ‘Franchise businesses don’t know what they are doing. After you see them on the valuation, you never see the same person again.’
He’s simply wrong when it comes to what we do at EweMove. Our model is built around the agent being part of the client’s selling or letting journey from start to finish. It’s this personal service that fuels our glowing reviews, award wins and high customer referral rate.
The mystery shopped agent may have been getting their wires crossed and incorrectly applying the term ‘franchise’ to other models in estate agency.
The key to unlocking his and other people’s understanding may be this simple question:
What’s the difference between EweMove (including its sister brands in TPFG), and the likes of Purple Bricks, Yopa, independently owned high street agents or any of the other models out there?
One is a franchise model, and the others aren’t.
I speak from experience when I say that franchising is (in my opinion) the best way for anyone thinking of ‘going it alone’. There’s a real value to that collective brainpower that other models or independent agents can’t provide. And for me, that’s just one of the reasons that a well-run franchise is the best set up for sustained success.
Thanks for reading.
You can find out more about Nick by reading his key influencer bio here.
