There have never been more digital solutions for the real estate industry than today. Marketing software alone can manage email, SMS, social media and websites. With all these choices, the challenge is knowing the strengths and weaknesses of each, and the real differences between them. Harder still when we’re forced to compare two systems that appear to offer the same service.

Take iRealty and Mailchimp. On the surface, both offer email marketing that can engage your database, showcase your properties, and identify your next buyers and sellers. But there are key differences that agents need to know before choosing the right email system for their business. To make this clear, we decided to dig down into the key differences between them.

iRealty:

iRealty is Australia’s leading digital marketing platform for Real Estate professionals. We achieved this by focusing solely on the property industry, and delivering three key features.

1. Stunning emails – iRealty’s tailored email designs offer the personalised branding and superb quality that real estate agents require.
2. Simple campaign builder – Our builder simplifies the creation process, and gives agents more time to list and sell.
3. Smarter insights – Our patented leads identify market movers, and notify agents the moment they reveal their intentions.

However, it is not just iRealty’s software that sets us apart. Our in-house marketing, design and support teams offer an unmatched level of quality and personal attention.

Our software subscription pricing is based on subscriber count, and our marketing services cost is based on the level of required outsourcing to industry experts.

Mailchimp:

Mailchimp is a world renowned email marketing and CRM platform. From their inception in 2001, they have offered clients a simple email builder with a platform to upload and manage contacts. Instead of focusing their product on a specific industry, Mailchimp’s generic design functions for many different businesses. While they have been successful in cross industry adoption, they are unable to deliver a personal, high quality level of support.

Mailchimp features include: an email builder, marketing CRM, and nonexclusive templates that allow their users to send email marketing. Their premium package, comparable to iRealty’s standard subscription, starts at $299US per month.

Now, let’s take a look at the specific differences between the two platforms.

iRealty’s Real Estate focus:

iRealty exclusively focuses on marketing service for the Australian Real Estate industry. This niche allows us to provide industry specific integrations, features and reporting. iRealty’s Real Estate features include…

Property integrations – 

iRealty integrates with industry leading property uploaders to ensure users can automatically insert property details and images into templates and landing pages. Users can access a personal property portal to showcase all properties on a single web page to optimise lead conversions and user experience, while reducing redirection to competing agent properties. Every client can access call-to-action forms and buttons to generate appraisals (sales and rental), property enquiries, homeloans, refinancing, auction invitations and private inspections.

In comparison Mailchimp offers integrations requiring the user to set up linking software like Zapier. However, without integrations with local property CRMs, Australian real estate agents must manually add property images and details

Automated Property Campaigns –

Our property integrations not only make building campaigns easier, they make our automation software possible. Our automation system requires a one off set up to send automated open homes, price changes, recent sales and new listing alerts to people who have demonstrated market interest.

Again, without local property integrations, agents are unable to setup automated property campaigns.

Statistics and reporting –

Our reports go beyond metrics like opens, clicks and bounces. We have those too, of course, but our real estate centred analytics focus on property interactions and subscriber’s property interests. They will uncover contact’s real estate market intentions and interests using our property interest surveys and our interaction monitoring algorithm. This dual profiling system informs iRealty users which contacts are ready to buy or sell before anyone else.

Non Real Estate marketing platforms offer insight into typical click and open rates, but lack the high level profiling and analysis needed for Real Estate professionals to easily identify the market movers.

Leads –

Our reporting is taken to greater heights with iRealty’s patented lead generation software. Users receive leads instantly on any device based on their own personalised settings that match their marketing goals. Each lead alert includes contact property interests so agents can have informed conversations with their contacts.

Our technology was created with Real Estate in mind. Mailchimp’s software provides reporting but lacks the instant lead tool that iRealty provides.

Tailored designs –

Don’t settle for generic templates that you have to adjust to match your style. Our in house design team tailors templates to fit your brand. We work with you to ensure brand integrity while still allowing you to demonstrate your personality as an agent. This tailored approach is available across email templates, our web pages and social media posts.

While Mailchimp allows users to choose brand colours and insert a logo, having a design professional work with you ensures marketing campaigns remain flexible without compromising quality.

Simplified campaign builder –

We have streamlined the campaign building process by allowing users to import their properties and industry-related articles directly into email template cards that include; Images, titles, video, property feature icons, call to action banners (book an inspection/ add auction to calendar) and event dates (auctions/ inspections). iRealty’s portal integrations and simple builder allows clients to create a property newsletter in minutes, there is no copy and paste required.

There is no denying Mailchimp’s email builder is simple. However, it’s generic design features will require more effort and time for agents that value a high quality design.

Industry experts –

Our industry expertise goes beyond an in-house design team. iRealty offers local support and guidance from Real Estate digital marketing experts that manage hundreds of Australian agents marketing. This is our real competitive advantage. It ensures our software and service is up-to-date and always the industry best practice. Professionals wanting to outsource their marketing workload can trust iRealty’s experts to deliver, and often see improvement with their contact nurturing, property insights, and appraisal requests.

As Mailchimp is a solely a software platform the additional support feature include online technical support, a chatbot and a marketing tips blog to assist their users. However, do not provide Australian Real Estate expertise.

Conclusion –

iRealty is the leading marketing platform designed for the Australian real estate market. We provide better-looking emails, a simpler user experience, smarter analysis, and local expertise. With combinations like this, even Mailchimp can’t compete with iRealty.