Allan Dalton, president of Realtor.com, is personally alerting the Realtor public to a new rate card available at Realtor.com in which members and potential members can go online for a peek at what their online marketing packages and/or renewals will cost.

The Rate Card, explains simply, easily, and anonymously, what rates are for Realtors according to their MLS market and the number of listings they may have that are shown on Realtor.com. Basic ads are free, standard ads include listing enhancements such as the Realtor's photo and contact information (including agent's Website of choice,) and showcase ads include links to Realtor.com premium Websites designed for the Realtor.

Realtor.com's new campaign is called "Real Value," and it is designed to illustrate the rationale behind Realtor.com's new pricing structure, known as Realtors' Choice. The new pricing structure has met with mixed reviews from Realtors so far, which explains Dalton's intervention.

"The primary role of Realtor.com is to present basic listings to consumers online at no charge to you and then direct consumer traffic to you with no referral fee attached," explains Dalton. "Our rates, including our recent and researched adjustments, are significantly lower than newspaper classifieds, magazine, radio, TV, or outdoor advertising options, based on the actual number of consumers exposed to property and personal advertisements."

Dalton also points out that the option to enhance the listing belongs to the Realtor, and that Realtor.com's "pricing for the Realtors who choose to enhance their property and personal advertising is based upon the advertising industry standard, the cost per thousand consumers reached by the advertisement.

When he explains it that way, the pricing makes a lot of sense. Why shouldn't Realtor.com charge what other advertising mediums charge - especially to deliver a more targeted audience to Realtor advertisers? But Realtors who don't understand why their lead generation packages may have doubled or tripled in price may still be confused.

Last year's version of lead generation was Websites attached to listings. "I-LEAD" Website lead generation packages came in silver, gold and platinum price categories. Realtor.com's new strategy is to provide listing enhancements, and to separate Website packages from Realtors' photos and contact information. Pricing for enhancements is based on the desirability of the Realtor's market (traffic) how many times the Realtor's listings will be viewed by consumers, and how many listings the Realtor projects to have on Realtor.com annually. Websites no longer come in silver and gold, but are now "standard" or "showcase" versions.

A lot of misunderstandings arose when Realtor.com stopped selling Website packages and switched to selling ads in a listings enhancement strategy. Many Realtors simply didn't understand that what they were paying double the renewal price for was no longer the same product.

Dalton addresses the communication breakdown by suggesting that "Realtors and Realtor.com face a similar challenge in communicating our value proposition to the clients we serve."

Sellers want to know why they should pay six or seven percent commissions and pay as much as 10 times more to get a $1 million home sold than a $100,000 seller pays. Realtors must respond to such objections by outlining their value. "For example, if a Realtor's Internet marketing skill is worth 1% more to a home seller, then the owner of a $1,000,000 home gains $10,000 in increased sale proceeds, while the owner of a $100,000 home gains only $1,000," writes Dalton.

"Realtor value definitely exists, and your challenge is to educate consumers,” reasons Dalton to Realtors, and "in order for the Realtor.com Marketing System to be fully appreciated, it too requires a thorough understanding of the following:

• Every Realtor-generated listing provided to us by more than 800 MLSs is posted to Realtor.com at no charge to Realtors.
• All buyers are passed through to real estate companies and Realtors with no referral fee.
• Realtor.com pays the cost of circulation.
• Realtor.com pays the cost of content aggregation."

Dalton also supplies Realtor.com with a Q & A that follows his cover letter which explains what Realtor.com is and why Realtors need it in their personal marketing efforts. According to Dalton, Realtor.com provides five million unique users per month, displays more than two million homes and provides directory information to over 900,000 Realtors.

"In fact, 50 percent of all home buyers and sellers begin their search for a home on Realtor.com," he says. Site changes on Realtor.com were designed to "further help Realtors by making changes that will keep our more than 5 million visitors coming back and staying longer. Each month, these unique visitors come back to Realtor.com several times,spending more than 43 minutes looking at properties and searching for a Realtor. This allows us to reach them early in the home buying process and keep them until they find their Realtor and the home of their choice."

Realtor.com is on the right track with its pricing strategy, and kudos to Allan Dalton for addressing its customer issues. Realtor.com needs to continue to be more pro-active and sensitive in its communications with its Realtor customers to make sure they understand the reasoning behind Realtor.com's change of strategy.