Some of our more astute readers have noticed that amongst the images used for our front page, one is a screen shot from HMT.co.uk the home page of well established Cheltenham agents HMT Lettings & Management. The question has been asked of me as to just what is the link between MHP and HMT.

 Actually a number of pertinent questions have in fact been raised during the last few weeks. Amongst the most pressing are these: what does the business do? How do we use the services? What makes it different from other property companies? How can we contact the team?

 Now that Must Have Pads is officially open for business, as of 01/09/08, it is high time to do some quick explaining to all our visitors, and indeed the potential clients amongst them.

 Although Must Have Pads is for all intents and purposes perfectly able to operate as a stand-alone business, it actually functions rather like a company division or partnership. HMT offers many integral aspects of the framework, a physical office location, a long respected name in the county, property management facilities, and indeed a number of high-end properties that appeal to MHP’s rather selective clientele.

The way in which the two entities function, and indeed benefit, within this symbiotic relationship is as follows. HMT offers the familiar face of the Lettings industry as well as the logistical faculties for the day to day requirements. MHP however, fully embraces Web 2.0 technologies, operates on the cutting edge of E-Commerce marketing strategies and utilises all of the optimisation methodologies available. The two then feedback loop with each other ensuring that a full package can be offered to clients, whether they pick up the phone looking to talk to MHP’s or indeed HMT.

Many UK agents, and indeed some of their clients, seem unaware that whilst the UK property market has sadly languished in an internet marketing rut for many years, the US property market has seen agents embrace the massive potential of correct web technology implementation. American agents have also used the web as a place to meet with their clients, talk with them and indeed Blog for them. Through this online activity US agents further assist customers and potential clients, becoming a friendly face in their customers lives.

 The continued existence of the faceless agent in the UK has led to a culture of hostility, both against estate agents and lettings agents. Agents have become commonly thought of as little better than money grabbing pond slime. Anyone who operates their business in the shadows is likely to find a negative image will inevitably form (just look at solicitors!). Transparency is key to deep relationship building, whether in our personal lives or in our business concerns. The bottom line is that every customer likes to know what it is they actually pay a company to do, and that they are visibly getting a good value service.

 It is for all of the above mentioned reasons that MHP centres its business model around the tried and tested methods used by our ‘Real Estate’ (that’s property to you and me) agent cousins in America. The days of cobbling together a web site and simply hoping for the best are finally over. We see ourselves as being where all of the UK property market will be in about five years from now.

 One of the major differences between MHP and any property agent web site is abundantly clear. At our core is the provision of local property information to a very wide, very eager, Gloucestershire public. As an addition to this service we are able to offer them a selection of properties for sale or let, and links to related property services provided by respected firms in the county. This is radically different from simply the posting of a selection of properties on a web site, linking it to a few major property portals and sitting back waiting for a bite.

  For too long Gloucestershire has been reduced to trying to best guess what is happening in the local property market by reading the occasional newspaper article or watching television shows focussed on London or somewhere even less relevant to us. In my opinion it is high time for a local hub for information that serves landlords and tenants, buyers and vendors. MHP has the added bonus of being a platform for related services to make their importance to the industry known, and indeed get their names more widely recognised (no more need for a random ‘Yellow Pages’ selection). Oh yes, and of course we do provide properties as well!

 After all this I am sure you are wondering how you get involved with all this change, how do you get your business mentioned or your property listed. Well whatever your query, no matter how big or small, please just fill out a query form on the Contact section of the site. We will endeavour to reply in a prompt fashion!

I hope that we enjoy a long and happy Web 2.0 relationship.

Bruce & all of the MHP team

tags: cheltenham, cheltenham lettings agents, cheltnam lettings, contemporary, cotswolds, estate agents, gloucestershire, hmt lettings, letting, lettings management, property blog, property market