Online ‘Sold’ boards that help agents show their track record to go live this summer

A new online service is set to launch later this summer that will enable estate agents to ‘own’ an online Sold board for each property they sell, it has been revealed.

Although a name for the business has not been decided on, it’s being developed with the working title ‘SeenABoard’ and is likely to have a similar website address.

Rumours have been swirling around Twitter that the business, which has been developed over the past two years by industry IT stalwart Robert May’s Rummage4 business, will be a direct competitor with Rightmove, Zoopla and OnTheMarket.

But Robert has told The Negotiator that this is not the case, and that his brainchild will instead both be an alternative way for agents to drive traffic to their property listings and for consumers to search locally in a map environment, rather than the list format most portals primarily employ.

He says the difference between his service and the portals is that on his platform agents will be able to choose where to send people to view their property’s listings and that for example “it could be to their Zoopla one or their own website,” says Robert.

“When a Sold board is taken down any evidence of the transaction pretty much disappears, which means some online-only agents are able to claim success rates and market shares that aren’t always accurate… but we’ll put an end to that,” says Robert (pictured, left).

Sales and letting agents who sign up to use the service are to provide Robert with their historic sales and in turn this will be married to a map of the UK where, eventually, every house will have a ‘Sold board’ for the most recent agent to have achieved its sale.

“We’ve been working with several players in the housing market and so far everyone who has seen it has given it a good reception,” says Robert.

He says that unlike other digital property listings he won’t be ‘scraping’ properties off agents’ websites and instead will only use data given to him with permission.

“Although we’ve got a Beta product to show agents, we’re still some way off a full launch. I wanted to develop a lead generating platform that puts agents at the heart of the service; is affordable to use; and exists to benefit those who supply the data – i.e. the agents and builders – and not just to make the management/founders rich.”

Read more about Robert May.