Introducing a New ‘Market Leader’ for the Real Estate Industry

HouseValues, Inc. formally announced its new corporate identity, Market Leader, today as the company builds on its history of innovation in real estate.  

Market Leader, which will be celebrating its 10^th anniversary next year, provides real estate professionals with innovative marketing and technology solutions to help them grow and manage their business. With thousands of successful real estate professionals as customers, and millions of dollars in the bank, Market Leader is planning for the next generation of real estate services that will position the company and its customers for continued success.

“While many companies are re-trenching, Market Leader continues to invest in our customers and our products,” said CEO Ian Morris.  “We view the current market cycle as an opportunity to further enhance the services already driving the success and loyalty of the thousands of real estate agents and brokerage companies that we are proud to count as our customers.”

Founded by a second-generation real estate agent in 1999, Market Leader has established itself as an innovator focused on helping real estate professionals grow and manage their business. As the pioneer of online lead generation for listing agents, the company quickly expanded to serve thousands of real estate agents in the United States and Canada while establishing itself as the leading marketing partner to the real estate industry. 

In the decade since the successful launch of the original HouseValues product, the company has created a series of additional innovations and successes, including:  

• Creating a comprehensive business system that combines consumer inquiries with contact management tools, coaching, and training resources, which enable real estate agents to more effectively grow and manage their business.
  
• Launching JustListed, an online, results-driven marketing solution that enables real estate professionals to build their business by attracting a steady stream of home buyers.
  
• Providing individual real estate agents with cost-effective access to television and Internet advertising through the buying power of its entire customer base. 
  
• Ongoing enhancements to the company’s contact management solution which has enabled thousands of real estate professionals to grow their business in a disciplined fashion.

These and other innovations led to the company’s successful initial public offering in 2004, as well as to numerous accolades – including being ranked as the 4^th Fastest Growing Technology Company in North America by Deloitte and Touche.

More recently, the company expanded its product portfolio through the acquisition of RealtyGenerator, a leading provider of marketing and technology solutions to real estate brokerage companies. Market Leader also invested in real estate social networking site ActiveRain, whose membership has grown to more than 115,000 members since launching in 2006.

While the company has expanded its offerings, it has stayed dedicated to its mission of helping real estate professionals profitably grow their business.

“Our real estate agent and brokerage company customers all have one thing in common: they aspire to be market leaders, and all of our services are designed to help them achieve that goal,”  said Morris.  “The time has come for us to brand our company and our offerings with a name that reflects both the breadth and focus of our products and the success of our thousands of real estate professional customers,” Morris added. 

Customers like James Watson of Realty Executives in St. Robert, Missouri are convinced that Market Leader’s innovative edge is a key contributor to his success. “Thanks to our relationship with Market Leader we’re no longer experiencing the slow market everyone else is talking about. Instead we’ve increased our market share, and grown our sales by 200 percent,” said Watson.

Market Leader will launch two groundbreaking new products at the National Association of REALTORS® Annual Conference and Expo, November 7–11 in Orlando, Florida, attended by thousands of industry professionals. The company’s new products are both firsts for the industry and will join Market Leader’s growing lineup of results-driven marketing solutions for real estate professionals.

To commemorate the official launch of Market Leader, Inc., the NASDAQ stock exchange will feature Market Leader in its closing-bell ceremony at the NASDAQ Market Site in Times Square in New York City on Monday, November 24.