The Insider: Issue 032

Nothing’s really shocking anymore. But we can still experience moments of disbelief as we ponder happenings in our industry, and the tech and brand landscapes. We had a few of those this week we can’t wait to share with you. If you’re up for discussing anything that catches your attention here, head on over to the private Inside group on LinkedIn. Have a great week!

Last Week This Week

Side, the “invisible brokerage” powering hundreds of boutique brands across the country, has set up shop in New York City with the hire of a prominent managing broker. Things are loosening up in the NYC brokerage world more generally. Both Keller Williams and EXP have made gains over the last year, and new players are proliferating. Goes to show you: anything can change, even the clubby citadel of New York real estate.

Startups Divvy Homes, Halo, and Landis have met with success helping people attain homeownership by circumventing the traditional mortgage process (disclosure: Halo is a 1000watt client). But then there’s Home Partners of America, the Blackrock-backed “rent to own” company, that positions itself in similar territory, but is both bigger and more like a standard SFR play. Home Partners is also Realogy’s partner in its ibuying venture, RealSure. The Financial Times ran a piece last week with good context and history on the company. It’s worth tracking this space, because we think it’s going to get much bigger.

Redfin reported that 1 in 10 homebuyers cite climate risk is the #1 factor driving their move. Doom and boom, folks. Doom and boom.

 
Have You Heard About This?

Fakers and the Cool Kids
Synthetic media is here. Are you ready for it? Facebook has been talking about the opportunity for brands in AI-driven, essentially “fake” spokespeople. (They call them Virtual Influencers, or VIs.) The company envisions a not-too-distant future in which brands create their own online influencers to build audiences and promote their products and services. So if you thought social media influencers were already a bit fake, hold tight as things get quite literally more fabricated. Facebook acknowledges that synthetic media “has the potential for both good and harm” and says it is working with partners to develop an ethical framework to guide the use of VIs. Speaking honestly here, this has both a cool wave-of-the-future kind of vibe and a dystopian hellscape flavor.

What's Inside

Coming up in the next few days:

A new Smart Guide laying out the importance of a positioning statement, and how to write one.

We talk with a panel of Gen Z consumers about real estate in a new From the Source focus group.

Inspiration Point 

Well There’s a Big Question
Bank of the West has been on a tear lately with the slogan, “Where you put your money matters.” They start with a simple, yet big question: “What on earth is your bank financing?” We like how they lead with a strong point of view, pull no punches, and come out sounding… well, not like a bank. We imagine it’s difficult to differentiate in the banking space. This campaign does a great job at conveying action-backed messaging — so not just pretty words on a website. And some of the hooks like the headline above are like a punch in the gut to anyone concerned about big climate change issues.

Look, Cool Designs
Whew that was all a bit heavy, eh? Let’s close on a light note with the nifty matrix above pulled from Reddit that showcases six famous logos designed in six different styles. Weeeeeeee.

Quote of the week

 
“Positioning is the act of deliberately defining how you are the best at something that a defined market cares a lot about.”

― April Dunford