JONATHAN ROLANDE: AI is inevitable but here is how to use it properly

IT’s very difficult to predict anything in the property sector.

But one thing I can predict with total certainty is we will be talking and writing a lot more about AI, tech and robots in the future.

The recent CrowdStrike outage underlined, again, the hold technology has on all of our lives.

From airport lounges, to coffee shops to hospital wards - the chaos impacted millions.

I had to smile at the government ministers who later toured the TV and radio airways to say we are now too reliant on tech.

It’s far too late for that. Tech is here, it’s here to stay. And it’s going to become an even bigger part of the property sector.

It’s certainly going to be a bigger part of operations at Zoopla.

This week it announced how they are aiming to deliver more quality buyer and vendor leads for estate agents.

They aim to do this by providing additional property insights at scale to consumers through new onsite content and personalised emails using AI.

The property portal hopes to empower would-be vendors with personalised property information, giving them more control and confidence to plan their next move. This, in turn, will generate more business for agents and, of course, more loyalty to their brands.

Call me old-fashioned, but I firmly believe that a bot will never be a better option to help buy or sell a home than an estate agent who is good at their job and knows their area inside out. And AI-generated emails in property are, at present, generally pretty appalling. You can spot one a mile-off. And you should run a mile from hitting send on them unless they read exactly like an actual human wrote them.

But AI can definitely support the sector and enhance the level of services we offer.

And it doesn’t matter if you are a one-man band or a giant like Zoopla; the rules around implementing AI are the same.
Five things should be kept in mind. 

One, never lose sight of the fact that AI is only a tool, generating outputs based on your inputs. You’ll get out what you put in – good or bad.

Second, it’s not foolproof. AI makes mistakes, so your job is to carefully review and verify the accuracy of the information and the way it has presented the property. You’d be a fool to just go live with AI-generated information.

Third, take time to choose the right AI tool for the job. There are many platforms out there, and it is vital to have the right model for the problem at hand.

Four, check the legals. Ensure that any AI systems you use always comply with legal and regulatory requirements, this includes data protection and privacy laws.

Finally - make sure you secure yourself. Invest in cybersecurity measures. Protecting AI systems from potential threats, such as hacking and data breaches is vital, especially in an age where attacks are soaring. Ironically, AI is helping criminals scale up attacks and more elaborate frauds.

In the end, tech cannot be fought and if you are to embrace what lies ahead, you must future-proof yourself, your business, and your customers. If you haven’t already started, experiment with AI, the results of this relatively new technology might astonish you.
 
Jonathan is the founder of House Buy Fast. 

For more information visit www.housebuyfast.co.uk