Companies to Watch: Hammond GMAC Real Estate

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Tod Beaty has launched what he and technology developer Stephen Randall say is the first interactive window display for property listings in the world.

Thanks to the same technology that lets you control your TV from your recliner, pedestrians strolling past Beaty’s Hammond GMAC Real Estate office in Cambridge, Mass., can use their cell phone to scroll through property listings displayed on a large flat-screen monitor in the office window, order up property details and travel directions, and leave a message for the listing associate.

“StreetSurfer is a tremendous bridge for people who want to browse homes without having to take the big step of going inside to speak with a sales associate,” says Beaty, broker-owner of the Cambridge and Belmont offices of Hammond GMAC.

Sellers love it, too. “They can’t wait to have their properties in it,” he says.

And well they might. With his Cambridge office located just off Harvard Square, popular for dining, shopping, and entertainment, hundreds of strollers walk by Beaty’s storefront each day and night, promising the kind of exposure that sellers dream of. “We generate about 10 percent of our customers through foot traffic,” says Beaty, whose two offices closed about 400 transactions in 2004.

Now all that’s needed are some early adopters. Since May when the system was launched, many shoppers have interacted with the display, and several have sent word to Beaty to have an associate follow up. But by October, Beaty couldn’t tie any sales to the display. Even so, he sees a future in it.

“Once people realize the display is interactive, they smile, get out their cell phone, and try it out,” he says. “But there’s a familiarity hurdle to get over. Many people have been walking by our storefront for years and are used to seeing our listings on monitors. Even though the instructions are displayed right by the listings, many people continue to look at the display the way they always have.”

To beef up response, Randall, whose Somerville, Mass.-based company LocaModa developed StreetSurfer, and Beaty are considering

• Offering a prize to shoppers who interact with the system and leave a message with the company.
• Moving the monitor to a side window where shoppers aren’t used to seeing a display, and where the daytime sun doesn’t bleach out the screen.
• Limiting operation to nighttime when screen visibility is better, and so that people can shop after hours.
• Installing monitors off-site in kiosks, possibly in a supermarket, which would extend the company’s reach without having to open a new office.

For Beaty, the system is relatively user-friendly. LocaModa hosts the service (though Beaty uses his own Mac computer and monitor), manages the listing content, and generates traffic reports. Since Beaty is beta testing the system for LocaModa, he has no cost. However, the typical user would pay a single monthly service charge of $399. Users can either supply their own computer equipment, based on LocaModa’s specifications, or purchase a system from the company.

“It’s just another arrow in our quiver,” says Beaty. “And once it gets going, we’ll know what buyers are looking at thanks to a tracking report. We just need people to cross that threshold of interactivity.”