Hi Saturner, I think HomeOpen is in a very good "sweet spot" at...

Hi Saturner,

I think HomeOpen is in a very good "sweet spot" at present to capitalise on growing industry dissent with current online incumbent advertising options in the real estate industry.

Don't agree with your view of real estate agents (I am not one). Real Estate agents like all other businesses must be mindful of expenses, having brought and sold houses I can say that some agents are more amenable than others in coming to win/win arrangements and as a seller or buyer you have a powerful card to play as in which agent you choose or what deals you make anyway.

"Ask one of them to spend money on advertising and they will run a mile". HomeOpen have publicly stated they have takeup on their paid white label version, this would seem to discount your theory. Agents will of course be weighing up the ROI from any expenses on HomeOpen or any other site or media but advertising is their industries lifeblood.

Homeopen offers one good option to both Real Estate agents and sellers in addition to any others they may use.

"Real Estate is a formidable force, you cannot compete against it" - No it is not and yes you can.

The real estate industry is made up of thousands of companies, franchises, individuals and small offices all in competition to varying degrees for your dollar as a seller or buyer, some offices would even have less than the staff at Applabs which by the way is primarily involved in app design amongst other things and having rooms full of people doesn't necessarily make a business successful, just ask Nokia.

I take your opinion on Aussiehome, don't know what the website was like, but don't forget the HomeOpen concept centered initially on a specific purpose made build for mobile devices which most people have on them when they are out and about on the weekends driving around the suburbs checking out what homes are open/for sale and updating on the go (Much easier than carting a laptop in the car) and as a consequence adding a normal website is an extension of this original concept.

"4 directors with very little sales experience or marketing experience in the real estate area". Applabs is not a real estate company, the directors have skills in other areas relevant to starting companies and in the end there is nothing stopping them from getting expert advice or assistance relevant to the real estate industry at any time.

I think you may be putting too much emphasis on TV sales etc, a lot of marketing has already been done via conferences, networking, targeted marketing and even via having the HomeOpen app up there to look at even in it's testing phase. Most of my news I find out on the internet well before I get to see it on any TV.

I'm invested in a company that I think has good potential who amongst other things have a specific real estate app I think has great potential. If there are any lessons to be learned I'll review at the end of the year and get back to you.