Looking forward to Inman Connect New York
I’m thrilled to represent Nila June at Inman Connect New York, from January 24-26. With a slate of strong speakers and a host of social events, the conference is the industry’s first major gathering after an eventful 2022. As agents continue to adapt to changing dynamics between buyers, sellers, mortgage rates, WFH, and the relentless march of technological advancements, at least one fact remains unchanged:
Real estate agents don’t like to write property listing descriptions
That’s where Nila June comes in. Inman’s Craig Rowe calls Nila June “as simple as software gets.” Agents respond to an online form to “brief the writer.” Try it, and you’ll see that we ask all the right questions to establish the benefits of the home’s location, yard amenities, and interior features. (Some agents like to use our form just to help them touch all the bases!) Ordinarily this kind of “knowledge transfer” between agent and writer might take place over the phone, email, or coffee. Our form takes five whole minutes, and Nila June returns descriptions instantly. The descriptions are polished, and include language that Inman calls “creative” and “engaging.”
Nila June’s product is the writing. Sure, we use technology to get there, but all that matters to the agent, the seller, and the potential buyers is the writing on the page or screen. If the technology mattered, then descriptions would long ago have begun with a technical statement: “This property description was created on an electric Smith Corona typewriter featuring a state-of-the-art eraser ribbon!” No one cares. All that matters are the words on the page (or MLS screen).
Nila June’s year of collaboration with agents
That “knowledge transfer” interaction between individual agent and individual real estate writer is something that we have replicated at the product development level. Throughout 2022, we enhanced our product in consultation with our customers, adding new questions to our survey form, and new variety to our output. Our recently launched condominium description option, which in heavy use in major cities (especially in Florida!), is a direct response to customer feedback.
Nila June has been shaped by our conversation with agents nationwide. We absorb what is important, what to say, what not to say, and we return great descriptions. Yes, we do that instantly, and for only $19.99, but the only thing that matters to buyers and sellers is that Nila June descriptions are great.
One thing our customers share in common is a belief that the property listing description is not merely something that has to be done, a mere box to be checked, but an opportunity to do something very important very well.
Why doesn’t Nila June offer a subscription option?
We run it like a lemonade stand. Buy only when you’re thirsty. We’re not charging your credit card during months when you don’t need a description. Why not? Two main reasons:
1) Agents told us they’re tired of companies dinging their credit cards once a month regardless of the agent’s workflow. No one wants to pay a monthly fee during months when they don’t need to write a listing description.
2) We want honest revenue that is directly tied to an agent’s pursuit of a particular commission.
“Much better than ChatGPT”
ChatGPT is fun. But ChatGPT doesn’t know anything about your listing. Through a series of prompt refinements and/or manual editing, you might be able to use ChatGPT as a writing assistant to help you get to a passable property description. You could just as easily Google up a few descriptions and start cutting, pasting, and editing. Both methods take time, and you have better things to do. We think it’s best to go straight to Nila June, and we’re not the only ones. None other than Dustin Fox of The Fox Homes team in Northern Virginia—a top notch shop—recently tweeted this:
“For listing descriptions I recommend starting with @NilaJuneRE We’ve found it to be much better than ChatGPT. It’s a great frame work and then we use Chat to expand on specific areas – I.e. describe living in a townhouse with an elevator for a real estate advertisement.”
Dustin and his teammates—including Shruthi Shyamala, Leah, Molina, Devon Fox, and that bunch of sharp professionals in the photograph higher up in this post—really have raised the bar on property descriptions in Northern Virginia. As happy was we are to be associated with them, we have to admit that we are just one component in a holistic go-to-market strategy that also includes professionally scripted videos and lots of personality. Their slogan “Fox sells faster” is like our “Every customer is a repeat customer”–both are true.
A Nila June property description is as much a calling card for the agent as it is a promotion for any one house.
So, I’ll see you at Inman Connect New York!
I’ll be the guy listening to you and taking notes, and maybe trying to convince you to give Nila June a try!