Industry First Off-the-Plan Ecommerce Tool Debuts

Since debuting a beta launch of its innovative platform in 2021, proptech player Release.Me has commercialised its initial offering and unveiled new features, including an industry-first e-commerce tool.

The ‘Buy Now’ tool, which serves as a simple e-commerce add-on to any developer or agent’s website, allows purchasers to secure an available property at any time, from anywhere in the world.

Release.Me national manager Amber Keogh said: “Meeting the market is where it’s at—buyers can shop online when and where it suits them and the platform offers a fair, convenient and stress-free experience.”

While customers benefit from the convenience of being able to purchase property without waiting for call-backs or dealing with multiple offices, sellers are the real beneficiaries of this latest tool—generating passive property sales while they sleep or when the office is closed is an advantage that no other provider offers, Keogh said.

Early Release.Me adopter YourLand Developments passively sold land lots over their annual office shutdown, with one eager home buyer even making a purchase on Christmas Eve.

Not exclusive to land sales, the platform caters to apartment and medium-density property also.

Release.Me allows property developers and agents to release and sell off-the-plan property to the market entirely online.

Sitting between sellers and buyers, the platform presents a fair playing field for buyers by shaking up the “first come, first served” model of traditional property releases, using an algorithm to allocate property to buyers fairly and equitably.

Increasing demand for off-the-plan real estate means many buyers currently spend every weekend lining up or camping out at sales offices, while a spike in interstate and regional migration has also led to issues where buyers are unable to travel to make the purchase.

“Off the plan real estate is ripe for a digital facelift—few developers or agents are adopting simple and cost-effective tools that can substantially enhance their profits and performance,” Keogh said.

Release.Me not only allows developers to increase their available buyer market and conversion rates, it also creates efficiency and cost savings.

From the time the release goes live until contract signing all touch points and communication are automated and there is no direct involvement by the sales consultant.

The platform conveniently takes care of buyer applications, property allocations, particulars of sale, payment of holding deposits and more. This significantly reduces the workload for the project sales consultant and eliminates the need to find temp support or a full-time sales associate.

This automation is crucial in a hot market, where developers struggle to keep up with demand, and buyers get frustrated at a lack of transparency and communication, often directing their frustration at the sales consultant.

The new Buy Now feature takes this to the next level, making sales possible when the sales office is closed.

In Australia, e-commerce experienced 32 per cent year-on-year growth during the 2020-2021 financial year—customers now expect to be able to make purchases big and small on their devices.

Buyers value convenience and fairness, and when it comes to off the plan, there is simply no need for customers to spend weekend after weekend driving long distances to stand in line with the hope of purchasing a property that won’t physically exist for another year or more.

With Release.Me all buyers, no matter their location or schedule, can participate and have the same chance as anyone else to secure a property of their choosing.

For sellers, the platform is incredibly simple to use. Unlike many software solutions it requires no integrations or ongoing subscriptions. In fact, sellers can create a free account and launch a release in under 10 minutes, Keogh said.

To see how it works in action, Release.Me provide on-demand live demonstrations. Find out more and book your spot here.

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