Is it Time for a Syndication Bill of Rights?
The MLS industry is a buzz about syndication, especially after Clareity Consulting’s MLS Executive Workshop in March teed up the topic and a vibrant discussion among MLS executives ensued. Matt Cohen, the Chief Technologist at Clareity, gave an overview of syndication today and blew up the myth that “Listings Everywhere” may have as much value as some people think. Matt showed that the traffic to many sites is so negligible, that one has to question whether that exposure has any measurable value for the broker or home seller, especially if the leads are being intentionally siphoned off and monetized, and potential buyers are left confused about who the listing agent is, and sometimes are annoyed by multiple agents contacting them who know little or nothing about the property they inquired about.
Remember the good old dot com days when MLSs were paid a dollar per listing? Today MLS staff spends time dealing with syndication accuracy and data proliferation complaints and the MLS gets little in return – and brokers receive less and less unless they spend money to feature the listings they provide. And, there are more sites than ever leveraging the listings to extract money from brokers and agents while deriving profits from the listings in other ways as well. How did we get here? Is there a way back – even partway back? Let’s explore some of the problems in more detail and discuss potential solutions.
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