DPG Backs ABCe Audits for UK Portals

Last month we reported on the UK’s Digital Property Group (DPG) claiming the title of the fastest growing property portal group for its four property portals combined (primelocation.com, findaproperty.com, homesandproperty.co.uk and findanewhome.com). This month DPG says it claims the title once again.

DPG says that comScore has confirmed it to be the fastest growing website within its category for month-on-month and yearly growth in absolute visitors, which it says is the most effective gauge when measuring increased traffic and consumer traction.

Absolute figures measure the net gain or loss in unique visitors. During September the four DPG portals attracted an additional 185,000 visitors month-on-month. This outstrips rightmove.co.uk’s 83,000 by a large margin. DPG says that the combined and de-duplicated figure for Zoopla and their entire network of portals was 73,000 new visitors.

Year-on-year DPG had 735,000 additional visitors versus September 2008. rightmove.co.uk was only slightly behind with 729,000.

DPG is promoting the measurement of month-on-month growth in absolute terms rather than as a percentage. It says that using percentages means neither of the industry’s leading two portals is in the top five month-on-month ‘fastest growing’ – despite attracting the most unique visitors within the time frame. By measuring absolute growth, the top three portals (by unique visitors) all figure in the top three, with DPG at the helm.

Andrew Smith, Head of Research for DPG, said:

“We are interested in fair and transparent figures which reward success. The analysis of absolute figures underlines that The Digital Property Group has grown its audience faster than any other over the last month and year. It is an essential element of the value we deliver.”

“As I’ve warned previously, taking a month-on-month percentage increase rather than more quantifiable analysis of absolute growth provides far less clarity; this measurement often benefits portals with low consumer traction that are starting from an already low base. It is equally misleading to add the visitor figures of individual sites to provide a total as it will only deliver an artificially high and misleading group figure. Consumer behaviour dictates that they will visit more than one property site, so it is imperative that a de-duplicated total figure compliment the individual statistics.”

“The figures circulated should help estate agents make the right decisions when selecting an advertising partner, not add further noise within a market that’s filled with irrelevant data.”

DPG is also pushing the use of ABCe as an independent assessor of portal performance, and urges its fellow portals to become more transparent, with Smith saying:

“We advise estate agents to question the data presented to them and our fellow portal publishers to start the auditing process and allow organisations such as ABCe to verify performance and substantiate claims. In most industries it’s a basic requirement and so it should be in property.”

The Digital Property Group says that it conducts its ABCe audit twice yearly with the next audit set to be complete by late-October.

With UK portals both within and outside of the “big 4? intent on proving their growth and strength by claiming the coveted title of “fastest growing” perhaps ABCe or a similar independent audit could halt – or at least settle – the arguments?

Let us know what you think – have your say by commenting below.

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