There is an almost unimaginable amount of data generated every second.
Stop for a minute and think about the number of online interactions you’ve had over the past 24 hours, for example. Did you go to the doctor? Information was exchanged electronically. Did you make a purchase on Amazon? Another exchange of information about your preferences and behaviors. Did your clients sign the contract? Congratulations are in order, and, you and your clients just participated in another exchange of information between multiple parties.
In IT circles, the data generated as a byproduct of our online actions and choices is called data exhaust. For many years, that data has been set aside – the information not relevant to more than a handful of super-smart data people generating reports for a small subset of their organizations.
But there’s a shift afoot in how companies capture, consume and leverage their data. Today, companies like Keller Williams are using the power of machine learning and artificial intelligence to extract meaning and insights from that data exhaust to create better business and consumer experiences.
That shift was the topic of conversation during a panel at the Austin-based SXSW festival on March 12 titled “Collecting Your Data Exhaust Can Be Your Advantage.” Emily O’Halloran of Accenture Digital moderated a group of panelists that included Keller Williams own chief product officer, Neil Dholakia. Joining him was Ron Green, chief technology officer of KUNGFU.AI, and Dena Delic, enterprise sales executive of Meltwater.
How Data Empowers
While machine learning and artificial intelligence seem like trendy buzzwords to some, they are incredibly powerful mechanisms that can transform data into intelligent day-to-day tasks.
“We think of it in terms of sides in our ecosystem,” Dholakia explained. “For 35 years, our agents have been helping their clients buy and sell homes. Last year alone, 1.2 million sides were generated. What happens is, on each side of the transaction an offer is accepted or declined. Then what that gets registered as in the system is whether a house was sold. That equals just one data point.”
Prior to engaging with KUNGFU.AI, Keller Williams may have captured that single data point, but considered it only a measure of the financial health of the company and productivity of its agent base. But the data does so much more – it tells a powerful, actionable story. Which is exactly what the partnership between KUNGFU.AI and Keller Williams is doing.
“That one data point tells us what fell on the floor,” added Dholakia.
“If you can make sense of this information, the next time an agent advises their client and writes an offer, they become much more intelligent because they can see all of the offers and why they weren’t accepted. We want our agents to use that information to tell their clients:
Hey, if you change this specific piece of the offer and it sits well with you, we can increase the likelihood your offer will be accepted by 30 percent.
Access to Insights Is No Longer Impossible, It’s a Necessity
For years, Keller Williams had affiliated itself with technology companies who offered “bolt-on” products to their agents. This resulted in silos of their data, multiple systems that didn’t speak with one another, and an inability to access important insights that would move an agent’s business forward and allow the company to develop world-class experiences for consumers.
That changed with the Keller Cloud.
The Keller Cloud is a very specific cloud service ecosystem that leverages the collective power of its agents, transaction and client data. Agents have access to this data through their AI-powered assistant, Kelle. With simple voice and text commands, Kelle scans information across the Keller Cloud to get agents what they need in seconds. Information like:
- Hyperlocal market snapshots
- Agent-to-agent referral requests and opportunities
- Listing information
- Key business metrics
And this is just the beginning.
As Keller Williams grows its data sets with partners like KUNGFU.AI, agents and consumers alike will reap the rewards.
“At KUNGFU.AI, we work with companies who see their data as a unique competitive advantage,” said Green on his company’s work with Keller Williams.
“Keller Williams is all in. They’re pushing the envelope in many fronts using several techniques. Capturing offers that are turned down is an example of information that had previously fallen on the floor. But with these new tools and techniques – even things you don’t think will be important can turn out to be gold. Keller Williams is unlocking decades of latent value and is positioned to be a world leader based on the data it has access to.”
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