Zillow’s Opening Moves in the Exclusive InventoryBattle

Zillow’s Opening Moves in the Exclusive Inventory Battle The exclusive inventory POWER MOVES are a masterclass in strategy, focus, and execution. Zillow’s Opening Moves in the Exclusive Inventory Battle As the deadline for compliance to its new Listing Access Standards approaches, Zillow has started to execute its strategy to stop the proliferation of exclusive inventory. Why it matters: The opening moves in the battle over exclusive inventory will affect the nation’s largest brokerages, thousands of listings (and thousands of homesellers), and shape the industry’s power dynamics for the next decade.First up: Zillow has clarified its definition of public marketing to include any buyer-oriented marketing that private listings exist. This is broad treatment: it’s not just a specific listing being marketed publicly (yard sign, social media post, email) that is in violation, but the mere existence of a private listing.   So, in the case of Compass, simply advertising that there are private listings on its search results page means all of those listings are in violation and subject to a potential Zillow ban. Setting policy and issuing statements will only get you so far – to be truly effective, Zillow needs to reach out to every single agent that is in violation of its policy. To change behavior, agents need to hear the consequences of listing privately directly from Zillow, not their own brokerage.   To that end, Zillow has begun calling agents with a listing in violation of its policy – example below. Zillow then follows up with an email that outlines its policies and clarifies that after June 30, non-compliant listings will be banned from Zillow for the life of the listing agreement. Zillow has been described to me as “ruthless” – a characterization with negative connotations which may be unfair.  Instead, what I see is “maximum effort” (or “concentration of force” if you’ve sat through my Pacific War analogy at a Hub event).   There are no half-measures nor compromises; if Zillow believes in something, it’s all in, and applies the maximum effort to achieve its goals.  Where the rubber hits the road is a single metric: the number of Compass exclusive listings. Since July 2024 this has increased from 3,000 to nearly 10,000 listings, a number which, given Compass’s intentions, Zillow would prefer to be closer to zero.    If Zillow’s strategy works this number will go down; the plateau over the past two months is likely due to seasonality. Keep in mind: Zillow just started calling agents. The bottom line: Personal opinions aside, these exclusive inventory POWER MOVES are a masterclass in strategy, focus, and execution. Over the preceding nine months, Compass has demonstrated the power of disciplined focus and strong execution, and now Zillow is countering with its own “maximum effort.”   The stakes for the industry are huge and we're still in the beginning stages of this battle. Catch up on the exclusive inventory POWER MOVES with my research: The Exclusive Inventory Power Play The Business Case for Exclusive Inventory Zillow Strikes Back Against Exclusive Inventory Smart, data-driven insights — I publish actionable intelligence that is clear, timely, and informs real estate industry leaders. To see more, check out my website, my podcast, or join my mailing list. Contextually yours, Mike Publications | Consulting | Podcast | Aboutwww.mikedp.comUnsubscribe