Bill for TV ads hits OnTheMarket’s profit figure, says CEO

Expensive TV ads partly explain OnTheMarket’s fall in profits, CEO Jason Tebb (main picture) has told The Neg.

The portal revealed interim results this week revealing adjusted profits of £1.3 million for the first half of the year, down from £2.1 million.

This reported fall was despite an increase in group revenue from £14.9 to £17 million over the same period.

There was a jump in expenditure on marketing of £800k from £4.5 million to £5.3 million in the six months to 31 July.

“This was our largest ever TV campaign, this year,” Tebb says. “We went for a new TV creative, as well as a new brand and website in December last year.”

“The TV campaign was a call to action to come to our website and find out how much your home is worth. It worked with valuation levels up 69%,” he says.

Tebb, who took over as chief executive early in 2021, says the television adverts (pictured) were part of a planned strategy, and the portal expected its profit to take a hit.

New suite

Cash spent on beefing up OnTheMarket’s development team also added to the overall costs the portal incurred.

But a new ‘suite of products and functionality’ on the website justifies the expense of an increased headcount in its development line, he says.

OnTheMarket reported that overall revenue and income per customer (ARPA) rose 14% and 9% respectively.

Valuation leads were up 69%, while traffic and average monthly leads per advertiser increased 11% and 6% respectively.

There was a 6.1% conversion ratio of site visits to leads, and average monthly advertisers listed were up 1%.

OnTheMarket also announced a new deal with Lomond Group, with the portal listing properties for all of the agency’s ten brands for the first time.