3 important lessons learned at Proptech Symposium 2021 by Proptech Denmark

Impact, people & servitization

Because Ziggu wants to be ahead of the innovational changes in the real estate industry, we were at the leading PropTech and innovation event in Denmark. The event gathered top decision-makers, innovators, and PropTech aficionados from all parts of the real estate industry. To get your company prepared for the future, we listed 3 lessons learned from the Proptech Symposium.

1. Space-as-a-service: a new era for real estate

As the first keynote speaker, Anthony Slumbers (Real Innovation Academy), talks about Space-As-A-Service and how it opens a new era for real estate.

During COVID, we all learned that we don’t NEED an office anymore. We might be more productive when surrounded by colleagues, there is more room for serendipity, but we don’t need to be in the same building for our businesses to run.

If that doesn’t impact the business plan of commercial real estate, what will? Developers today need to make us WANT to be in an office. They need to create a desire for employees to work in an office, they need to create a unique space that helps us to reach our goals, and fulfill our dreams. An office needs to be more than just an office, it needs to be a space where everything is possible. Therefore, the office market that was very much B2B is moving rapidly to a B2B2C environment where you have to put the actual users on top of the priority list.

In the end, according to Anthony, it comes down to building a strong brand and recognisable experiences that users love. We might have certain views on WeWork as a company, for example, but they have it right in that regard.

2. Data is everything

More and more customer-centricity is key for different organizations. To outperform your competitors, you need to give the best customer experience to the client. But how to go about it? How do you know what the customers need? With data!

Data is everything, that’s for sure. But where do we find the right data and how do we transform that data into relevant and useful information? Real estate companies gather a ton of data themselves, besides this, there is also a lot of public data.The challenge is thus to collect all the necessary data and draw meaningful conclusions to make the right decisions. For a layman in data, this can be quite a handful. But luckily, you’re not on your own!

Partnering up with tech companies helps you use the right information and find the best solutions for your clients. What do they need and how can you give the best customer experience to your clients in the most efficient way possible? You can start experimenting with data. Implement a solution, check your data, adapt where necessary and evolve quickly, just like your tech partners.

The real estate market is evolving rapidly, and it’s time for your company to evolve together with your customers!

3. Experimentation in a fast-moving environment with tech partners

At many tech companies, such as Ziggu, fast experimenting is the basis of our culture. We don’t talk weeks about making a decision and going for option A or B, we pick one based on the facts at hand, our gut feeling and implement asap. After a while, we review. Based on data and customer feedback, we adapt where needed. It allows us to work with actual use cases, instead of assumptions.

Build, measure and adapt is how proptech companies work. This is different than in real estate, Anthony Slumbers put it nicely: “In real estate, we stop at build”.

Even during the design phase of a project, this mentality could make a huge difference for the rest of the project. Spacemaker cofounder, Havard Haukeland (now acquired by Autodesk), explains how their solution allows developers and architects to experiment and iterate on the design, based on 3D analyses and connected databases.

Learn how environmental factors impact a set of different designs, pick one, adapt and keep testing and iterating. The result? A combo of more living units and better lighting.

By considering all these factors from the beginning, you avoid “oh, shit” moments that cost time and money.

Rapid experimentation is key to stay ahead of the competition. That’s true in tech, but equally so in real estate. Gather as much data as possible and change this into valuable information.

“Build, measure and adapt is how proptech companies work. This is different than in real estate, In real estate, we stop at build.”

Antony SlumbersCo-Founder at Real Innovation Academy

Final words: Impact, people and servitization

The real estate market is changing rapidly. From working in a B2B market where the location was key, we are moving into a B2B2C market where customer experience is key. We don’t have to sell a space or office. We need to sell a dream. Besides this, data is our partner. Collecting data makes sure that we follow the evolutions of the market and react to the customer’s wishes and desires. At last, find yourself tech partners that help you make the right decisions at a fast pace.