By Michael Erdman
AgentsCompared.com is a new Web site catering to prospective Chicagoland home buyers and sellers interested in finding, evaluating or comparing local real estate agents. Agents who register on the site can create a Buyer Package and a Listing Package, which let them distinguish themselves across a variety of categories important to prospective buyers and sellers. Categories include success stories, meaningful statistics, expertise, local market knowledge, service level, price, etc.
Consumers can search the site for free, and make direct contact with agents who stand out from the crowd. Agents can tailor a package for specific types of prospects such as first-time buyers, REOs, short sales, etc. They can also post referral fee offers on the site for buyer or listing referrals (only viewable by registered agents). Unlike most “find an agent” sites, AgentsCompared.com does not sell featured placements or broker advertisements in search results, or post consumer ratings or reviews.
The site’s premium offerings include a personalizable Profile Page (indexed by Google) to showcase testimonials, listings, links, etc., and access to average commissions, rebates and upfront fees being charged by competing agents. AgentsCompared.com is open to top producers, new agents and everyone in between, Agents can register for a Standard plan ($1/month) or Premium plan ($9/month or $99/year), and both plans can be cancelled at any time. The site does not charge any referral, lead or territory fees.
Michael Erdman is the president and founder of AgentsCompared.com. He can be reached at 773.972.1771, or by e-mail at merdman@AgentsCompared.com.