Today, I wanted to take a moment to reflect on the last twelve months of business and, more broadly, the journey we have been on for almost a decade.
When we started this adventure, we set out to solve a straightforward problem – painlessly searching for suitable development sites. Knowing that if we had faced that problem, then so have many others. Resolving one seemingly simple problem has led us on a relentless pursuit of innovation, resulting in disrupting the commercial property online sector, which had traditionally played it very safe for many years prior.
At the time of launching DevelopmentReady, we were certainly naive, challenging a sector that was traditionally dominated by two ASX-listed players. We soon discovered that the commercial divisions of both businesses contributed only a small part of their overall group revenues, and therefore, lacked the intent to innovate and dominate the commercial vertical.
Enter, Ready Media Group, the bespoke commercial media and technology business that stands on the shoulders of giants. As a challenger brand, we understand the overwhelming obligation we have to continuously push the status quo. Standing still simply won’t cut it in a rapidly changing landscape.
We understand our success is completely intertwined with the success of our clients: you, the commercial real estate agents. Without your support, feedback, and enthusiasm to back in the new kids on the block, means we can’t do what we do, and for that, we are enormously grateful.
In what seemed a daunting experience back in 2015, when walking into the boardrooms of some of the largest agency offices in the country, presenting ‘another’ new concept. We are grateful commercial agents were able to resonate with our core value proposition of delivering more targeted and qualified developer buyer leads when selling development sites.
As a company, we recognise the complex challenges our industry faces in the current environment, and we are more determined to provide solutions that genuinely add value to our platform’s client and user experience.
A long-term frustration with agents has been property enquirers who don’t include mobile numbers – this is very prevalent with traditional portals. Since launching our platforms, DevelopmentReady & CommericalReady have included a mandatory mobile number verification process. Therefore, 100% of our listing enquiries include a mobile number verification – meaning agents can spend more time with qualified prospects.
In March of this year, we launched InstaDocs V2.0, a virtual dataroom that allows Agents to share, track and manage property documents. Traditionally, Agents would share these documents via bulky email attachments, meaning there would be zero visibility after the email was sent. Through initiatives such as InstaDocs, we can empower Agents and Agencies alike to use technology to streamline and enhance their campaign processes. InstaDocs is exclusively integrated into all DevelopmentReady and CommericalReady listings and additionally can be used on a standalone basis for off-market and leasing campaigns.
As we look to the future we are excited about the possibilities ahead. Our ongoing investment in our customer service desk ensures our team are servicing our clients’ needs around the clock, with timely, best-in-class deliverables. We are not getting distracted by buzzwords such as AI, machine learning, or Web3 - we are simply focused on implementing enhancements paramount for our client’s business, pursuing our goal of becoming the most innovative, client-centric commercial property media business in Australia.
In conclusion, I’d personally like to thank you for your ongoing support, insights, feedback, and friendship. As we work together to climb new mountains and attack new challenges, we are grateful to be standing amongst some of the most talented commercial agents across the globe.
Wishing you all a successful remainder of the 2023 calendar year - we look forward to working alongside you and your team to achieve great results together.
Best Regards,
Nick Materia
