"Love it, But Don't Share it": Unpacking Gatekeeper Dynamics in Real Estate Proptech

Products for Competitors

In the world of proptech, Archer strives to deliver tools that transform the way our clients do business - primarily around automating commercial real estate analysis.

However, we've stumbled upon an intriguing phenomenon. Even when clients express extreme satisfaction with our product (high CSAT scores), they're sometimes reluctant to recommend it to others (low NPS scores).

Why? Fear of giving their competitors an edge.

Take this recent NPS survey quote after a strong CSAT Score:

"I don't want anybody underwriting the number of deals I'm underwriting, at the speed that I'm underwriting them."

What are NPS and CSAT? (And Why Measure Them?)

• Net Promoter Score (NPS): A key metric that measures a customer's willingness to recommend a product or service. It's based on a single question: "How likely are you to recommend this to a friend or colleague?" (scale of 0-10).
• Customer Satisfaction Score (CSAT): Measures a customer's satisfaction with a specific interaction or experience. Typical questions include: "How satisfied were you with our product today?"

The Value of Tracking Both: CSAT reveals how well your product functions in the moment, while NPS gauges overall sentiment towards your brand and its potential for long-term loyalty and growth.

The Competitive Matrix

Let's break down this phenomenon with a simple matrix, visualizing the intersection of customer satisfaction (CSAT) and Net Promoter Score (NPS):

• The Misers (Low CSAT / Low NPS): Unsurprisingly, no one touts bad products.
• The Evangelists (High CSAT / High NPS): Happy users become powerful advocates.
• The Networkers (Low CSAT / High NPS): Products with network effects gain value with more users.
• The Gatekeepers (High CSAT / Low NPS): This is the proptech paradox! Users love the competitive edge, but don't want to share their secrets.

Archer's Experience

While we do have solid word of mouth, and we have a number of clients with high NPS and who make referrals, we've also seen this "Gatekeeper" dynamic most strongly with features like Deal Sourcing with Seller Propensity and our Automated Parsing and Underwriting tools. These directly empower users to outpace their competition, creating a reluctance to share the very tools that give them that advantage.

Implications and Takeaways

Validation of the Product: The Gatekeeper Effect

The very fact that users are reluctant to share highlights the profound impact these tools have on their workflow and success. It's a testament to the competitive advantage they believe they've gained. This phenomenon, while creating marketing challenges, ultimately serves as a powerful validation of our product's effectiveness.

Historical Parallels: Embracing Technology's Edge

Many industries have undergone similar transitions. Early adopters of new technologies often enjoy periods of outsized gains due to their competitors' hesitancy. Examples include:

Financial Trading: Algorithmic trading pioneers kept their strategies a closely guarded secret.

Marketing Automation: Early adopters could scale outreach more efficiently, keeping their tools under wraps.

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As technology seeps into a sector, the "secret weapon" eventually becomes the industry standard. In real estate, we are witnessing this evolution play out in real time.

The Inevitable Shift: Fostering Adoption

For proptech providers like Archer, navigating this transition requires:

Emphasis on Value, Not Just Novelty: Demonstrating tangible ROI and building case studies.

Trust Building: Emphasizing security and showcasing collaborative use cases without compromising confidentiality.

Tiered Offerings: Allowing access to 'lite' versions of competitive tools to demystify the technology and drive broader adoption.

See what you may be missing

If you want to explore for yourself - please reach out for a demo.