Vylla Home & Constellation1: The Power of Partnership

Overview

Leads are the lifeblood of every brokerage, fueling revenue growth and agent retention. So, what happens when lead management is less effective than it needs to be? Underperforming lead management tools can either sink a weak brokerage or keep a strong one from becoming superpowered.

“It took the right partner with the right skills to do what we needed. Constellation1 has bright people with the tech chops to do exactly what we were looking for.”

Learn how Vylla Home tapped into a partnership with Constellation1 to bring their vision for tailored tech solutions to life. Today, Vylla’s tech isn’t just some necessary expense, it’s a real revenue-generator.

The Problem

Vylla Home was having lead issues. As a member of the Carrington family of companies, Vylla already had remarkable internal lead generation capabilities. The problem was that its previous vendor lacked a CRM to effectively route leads. Manually assigning hundreds of leads per week simply wasn’t feasible.

Vylla needed a seamless way to manage leads from multiple sources, including its website and its Microsoft Dynamics ERP software, which handles all its internal lead flows from various divisions and ancillary services. Its lead wish list had three key things:

• Two-way data integration for internal tracking, reporting, and insights
• Tailored lead routing strategies
• A way to manage leads from anywhere

Vylla also wanted to generate more leads from its customer-facing brokerage, office, and agent websites. To effectively do so, it needed:

• Seamless customer relationship management (CRM) integration
• Improved search engine optimization (SEO)
• Eye-catching listing presentation
• Customizable tech

But most of all, Vylla was looking for a partner. When Chad Ruggles, Senior Vice-President Vylla Home, took his needs to Vylla’s previous vendor, he felt like he was last on their priority list. “We were looking for a real partner, someone who was interested in helping us grow and succeed, not just cashing our checks,” he said. With about 850 agents at the time, Vylla was already big, but surprisingly not big enough for their previous vendor to take them seriously. By opting for Constellation1’s industry-leading real estate technology solutions, Vylla Home got even more than it asked for, including a vision fulfilled for a customized dashboard for accessing all its essential tools in just a few clicks.

Vylla’s Top 3 Needs

Finding the Right Partner

Vylla asked its consultant, T3 Sixty, for vendor recommendations. Vylla had several non-negotiable criteria:

Constellation1 was the first recommendation Vylla received. From the very first demo, it was clear that a partnership with Constellation1 would be different from anything Vylla had experienced before.

The demo wasn’t the only place Constellation1 stood out. From sales to implementation to support, Constellation1 was always there, day or night, to overcome challenges and find creative solutions together.

“Constellation1 makes us feel like they’re part of our internal tech team, not a vendor. I can call any time and have a direct line to the right person to find a fix. I have as much support from Constellation1 as I do from the Carrington IT Department. We never had that level of service with our previous vendor.”

Scaling Lead Routing

Vylla’s leads primarily come from two sources: internal leads generated through its mortgage and title business, which are handled through Microsoft Dynamics, and organic leads. Vylla’s critical need was to find a way to funnel these leads to agents as efficiently as possible—and at scale.

To address this need, it onboarded Constellation1 CRM, the most customizable CRM in real estate with seamless desktop and mobile interfaces. Vylla even opted for its own branded version of the mobile app, which it dubbed Vyllocity.

Vylla worked closely with Constellation1 to create two-way integrations between its ERP, which captures its internal leads, and the CRM, which captures organic leads. When other tech providers said no, Constellation1 took a different approach, asking Vylla: “What do you want to be able to do?” The expertise and versatility of the Constellation1 team allows for collaboration in ways other providers can’t to help brokerages make their visions a reality.

Today, Vylla seamlessly routes 1,000+ leads to its agents every week. This has become a key part of its value proposition for both new and existing agents. Before switching to Constellation1, Vylla wanted to be able to recruit on this value proposition but lacked the tech solution to make it possible. Now, when recruiting agents, Chad has the data to show agents that they’ll get business.

“I need to be able to stand in front of my agents and say, ‘We’ve got first-class tech.’ And with Constellation1, I can.”

Sustainable Growth

Since onboarding Constellation1 CRM, Vylla’s agent growth speaks for itself: in just one year, it increased its agent count by 23%, from 893 to 1,100 at the end of Q3 2021.

Lead routing has had a major impact on Vylla’s bottom line, too. Now that its had Constellation1 CRM for a year, it has revised its three-year projections upwards significantly. Vylla also added a brand-new revenue line to its income statement: Vyllocity revenue, which it is estimating at 14% of total revenue for 2022.

Boosting Organic Leads with a Better Website

The formula for brokerages is simple: no leads, no business. Paid leads are good, but organic leads are great. Given that nearly every consumer begins their home buying or selling process online, agent and brokerage websites are often the best place to generate organic leads.

To improve website performance, Constellation1 completely revamped vyllahome.com. By combining design, data, and SEO expertise with dedicated people work, Constellation1 achieved astounding results: before Constellation1 Websites, vyllahome.com received an average of 15,000 visitors per month. Now, it’s averaging 350,000 visitors per month, an increase of 2,233%.

In addition to vyllahome.com, Vylla agents now have highly customizable branded websites for their own listings, allowing them to generate qualified leads locally and follow up fast using Vyllocity.

Inside Vylla’s Dashboard

“When I meet with an agent and I pull up our dashboard, the first thing they all say is, ‘wow!’”

To make life easier for the entire team, Vylla envisioned a customized dashboard with shortcuts to essential resources. It’s a one-stop-shop with everything agents need. Using Vylla’s vision, Constellation1 implemented the dashboard on Vylla’s website platform to bring the idea to life.

To be effective partners, tech vendors need to know what their clients do, how they generate value, and what their future goals are. Constellation1 aims to have a crystal-clear understanding of where its customers see themselves in the future. This allows it to streamline, scale, or grow with them. The Vylla dashboard is the perfect example of a solution that was born by melding minds and imagining what the tech could do to serve Vylla’s goals. The result: hundreds of hours saved per year.

Putting Data to Work

Data is the driver behind every real estate deal. One of the most powerful things businesses can do is harness the data they already have to gain strategic insights. Vylla already used Constellation1 data for its websites, and by opting to purchase Constellation1 Data Services, it will have access to even more data for predictive analytics and targeted marketing.

“At Vylla, we have zero hesitations about actioning our growth goals thanks to our relationship with a reliable partner like Constellation1.”

Conclusion

The right technology—and the right provider—make all the difference. By opting for a partner that invests in and is invested in its growth, Vylla was able to grow its team by nearly 25%, add a brand-new revenue line to its income statement, and generate a return that more than covers the cost of its investment.

“Before Constellation1, our tech was just an expense with no revenue generation. Now, we’ve got real ROI.”

With even more ambitious targets now than ever before, Vylla is ready to meet its challenges head on and overcome them with Constellation1 in its corner.