The McGill Group: a review of the first 6 months
Opening their doors with confidence just two weeks before a pandemic lockdown seemed crazy, but six months in and The McGill Group is not only succeeding but thriving.
A registered architect and celebrated agent, Mark McGill had been identifying changes in consumers’ needs long before the world saw the challenges of an oncoming virus. Off the back of a national win and perfect score from Realestate.com, the ‘Excellence in Customer Service Award’ recipient had the confidence, credibility and grounding to launch and hit the ground running.
“We’ve focused on a new approach to real estate. Lockdown was a blessing for us to focus on setting up the business without distraction. We’re working with the right people for the right reasons and we enjoy it. Laughter is our KPI.” said Mark.
In less than a year, the group is lifting the standard for real estate and is set to expand from the Sunshine Coast to North Brisbane and Central Queensland with prospects to go state wide.
“There’s no reason we can’t expand across Queensland and Australia with the technology we have now. We’ve gone away from traditional open homes and it’s a big benefit to our business – and stopping infection for starters,” said Mark.
Not one to settle for doing things the way they have always been done, Mark had steadily been compiling new initiatives that would soon become the envy of the property industry.
“We’ve built our business around a modern consumer, pre-empted the change in consumer behaviour prior to COVID and now COVID has forced the trend we saw happening for the last two to three years.”
Shaking up the way buyers and renters interact with agents and property managers, The McGill Group has taken online property shopping to the next level.
“The industry had normalised the fact that we invite unannounced strangers into homes on weekends. It’s not an efficient use of time, and it’s all based on hope. There’s a lot of effort put in to stage a home for sellers which can be disappointing if nobody turns up,” said Mark. “Similar to a restaurant, we have an online booking system that reminds buyers of their appointment, meaning we have more inspections than ever and a greater understanding of who is coming into the sellers home”.
“Buying properties sight unseen is becoming more common. We’ve plugged those holes for online shopping for properties. I’ve built my systems around making it easy for a buyer to be informed and buy with confidence. The traditional agents place too many unnecessary roadblocks and sometimes just get in the way or slow down the ease of purchasing, which can frustrate buyers meaning lesser offers. Our point of difference ensures buyers are prepared with all the information they need before seeing a property, so they are ready to buy the moment they turn up.
“For example buyers from Melbourne who are unable to see a property in person: we package up all you need to know about it. It’s virtual, convenient, easy information that most agents aren’t prepared for.”
The rest of the industry has been forced to follow suit.
Shaking up the way buyers and renters interact with agents and property managers, The McGill Group has taken online property shopping to the next level.
“The industry had normalised the fact that we invite unannounced strangers into homes on weekends. It’s not an efficient use of time, and it’s all based on hope. There’s a lot of effort put in to stage a home for sellers which can be disappointing if nobody turns up,” said Mark. “Similar to a restaurant, we have an online booking system that reminds buyers of their appointment, meaning we have more inspections than ever and a greater understanding of who is coming into the sellers home”.
Most importantly, in a hot market, “The new booking systems avoid disappointment and time-wasting, meaning other invested parties can be advised if there has been an early offer. It’s often led to an increased offer for the seller, and a better sale.”
Saving time and offering a better service, virtual property inspections are another plus for renters and property managers with The McGill Group. There are no intrusions and the inspections are recorded for the owner, allowing better transparency of their property, Property managers can typically do around 6 routine inspections per day. With our new system, we’ve increased that to more than 20 in just an hour and a half. Meaning we can spend more time, more regularly, managing people’s investments”
Partnering with E-View, The McGill Group has blazed the trail for virtual property interactions for both buyers and renters alike.
Also used weekly as a platform for discussion by a national network of agents, the E-View service provides a perspective on the market across Australia, This is truly an Australia wide collaboration of agents, its what people expect of the national franchise groups, but in reality most of the franchises share the same colours and marketing and that’s where the collaboration stops. Eview is a collective of 42 (and growing) independent agencies that talk and share with each other.
Proving the value of these new initiatives, both Mark and founding partner (? Maybe another word?) Alana Luchetta were nominated for REIQ Salesperson of the Year and Support Person of the Year, respectively, just one week into business. And they’re soon to add a fresh face to the table. But their efforts are not just for fame and glory.
“We’ve focused on a new approach to real estate. Lockdown was a blessing for us to focus on setting up the business without distraction. We’re working with the right people for the right reasons and we enjoy it. Laughter is our KPI.” said Mark.
