I am rather worried about the trend of some agents in reacting to the PB threat. By talking about PB model, with their logos or the colour purple, hundreds and hundreds of times a day, I'm sure no vendor or landlord is going to remember them when it comes to booking a free val.
Spending your time CONSTANTLY advertising someone else's business instead of your own makes total sense, doesn't it?
Do you really believe landlords and vendors will understand what you are talking about when you mention upfront fees and alert them to the big boys in town?
I bet most of them haven't heard of PB; but at least your having that discussion 24-7 on social media with the funny posts and videos etc is going to make sure they know which agents you have about your insecurities about.
IN THE PAST, if you had a competitor who only had 3% to 4% of your market after a couple of years in your town with their cheap fees .. would you completely change your model or marketing?
Purplebricks will end up winning - not because they are awesome, brilliant, etc etc .. its because high Street agents are too worried about them. I see it all the time - you are being paralysed by them. Stop focusing on them and focus on your own $h*t