Add Value, Then Dollars

I was reminded today of one of the most interesting technology companies that grew out of the recent real estate bubble. The company is called House Values, and they grew to a market cap of around $1 billion at the peak of the market.

I pulled a quote from their website:

“House Values recognizes that our success as a company is always measured by the success of our customer and partners.”

Based on what I have heard from the real estate agents that I have talked with and the general consensus on the world wide web, the “success” achieved by House Values' customers has been less than spectacular.

A real estate agent and blogger in Utah speaks out:

Look, here’s the thing about HouseValues. It is a lead generation tool that deceives the public into thinking that they are getting free information about the value of their home, but really just collects their information and sells it to the highest-bidding real estate agents. And it’s not like they give the consumer’s information to a highly-trained and qualified Realtor that has passed a thorough screening process. No, they just sell it to whoever will pay.

The point of all this is that it is easy to lose sight of meeting the needs of our clients long term. Why? Sometimes it’s easier to make more money in the short term. That’s why banner ads still exist, despite the fact that most of us them find them more than casually annoying (yeah, I’m the lucky 1,000,000th visitor yet again!).

Focusing on short term sales techniques may work for a company that is pushing for a quick and large initial public offering (IPO) exit via the stock market. However, it’s not sustainable for service providers.

Focus on adding value to your clients and your business will grow...with sustainability and momentum.