The birth of the “Hybrid” Agent, It seemed, spelled doom for the High Street Agent – their low fees were going to ruin all Estate Agents everywhere – the knives came out and the mud slinging started, a bit like Westside Story but without the songs. The battle though, was not being fought in the streets but in the public domain of social media and even worse, in the home of the vendors.In the end, every Estate Agents around the world closed their doors and were never heard from again …. Oh wait … that didn’t happen!

I imagine ‘Ferrari’ must have gone into meltdown as they readied their new £200,000 Super Car as ‘Dacia’ introduced their cheapest vehicle at £5,995 and what about the folks at Moet Chandon? They must have considered closure as Cava and Prosecco hit the shelves – No and No!

There is room for both the Estate Agent and the “Hybrid” in the industry – why? Because they are two completely different beasts. Like the Ferrari and the Dacia both do the same job (get you from A – B), but both happen in very different ways.

It’s time for Estate Agents to stop worrying about the competition and start promoting themselves, enhance your customer service, understand your Client and Customer , educate them politely on the differences between the two different disciplines (do not criticize your competition) and above all LISTEN to what your client requires and explain how you will meet those expectations – All great Estate Agents know exactly how to deal with every aspect of the industry and have methods in place to cover every eventuality – They just forget to let the public know!

You may have to tear down every aspect of the business you built over the last 20 years and remodel yourselves accordingly, but believe me “If you build it, they will come”.