AI helps Zoopla invest in areas guides to boost estate agency interest

Zoopla has invested in new online content and personalised emails using artificial intelligence to drive demand for estate agents.

The portal said its area guides are now using machine learning to recommend other areas that users might be interested in. 

For example, viewers of the Brighton area guide will be recommended guides for areas such as Worthing and Eastbourne as these are places with similar characteristics, population size and within a certain radius.

Almost half of Zoopla users who view an area guide (44%) then go on to view a listing on Zoopla, demonstrating how they are creating additional interest in an area for potential buyers, the portal said.

Zoopla’s monthly House Price Index is also received by 1.2m active buyers every month. In addition to this, AI is used to create 375 localised versions of the report, educating buyers on the market where they live.

Its monthly estimate email informs more than 2.3m homeowners when the value of their home has changed. This drives over 300,000 users back to Zoopla.co.uk to check the value of their home, creating more educated sellers for agents.

Zoopla said it also building a suite of informational content designed to educate homeowners about the selling process. This content will launch over the coming months with pieces already live on topics such as remortgaging and equity release.

The portal suggests having access to quality information will ensure sellers are better prepared and help reduce fall-throughs.

Rich Hayes, chief operating officer at Zoopla, said: “Every 1.5 seconds a key home decision is made on Zoopla and a key reason for this is the unrivalled market insight and guidance we provide to Zoopla users. This is a key differentiator for Zoopla and we’re constantly looking for ways to improve this and drive more high-intent buyers and sellers for agents as a result.”