It’s 2013, Do You Know Where Your Listings Are?

Are you confused about the difference between re-syndication and powered-by sites? Don't worry, you are not alone! The topic of "re-syndication" and how it's different from websites 'powering' other sites seems to keep popping up year after year, but many are still learning about this distinction, so we're going to break it all down right here.

First of all, ListHub does not allow its publisher partners to re-syndicate the listings they receive from ListHub. Why? Because if the listings get re-distributed then the third party websites down the line who receive your listings would have no rules or terms around how they can use the information. That means your listing data could be a) sold, b) left online indefinitely resulting in stale inaccurate data, c) repackaged into derivative products, and other problems that will cause other unintended damage to you. Obviously this is a problem, which is why ListHub prohibits publishers from re-syndicating ANY of the listings being syndicated via ListHub.

ListHub has strong contracts in place with each and every publisher that protect your information from unintended use. To review these protections click here, but in short, they ensure that your listings are used for consumer display purposes only – no more, no less.

Now, what about the "extended network" of ListHub publishers? How do they receive and maintain the integrity of the listing data? The answer lies in how the technology works.

Publishers in the ListHub network that "power" other sites show up in your dashboard with a red PLUS sign, indicating an extended network. These publishers power the searches for secondary publishers. For example, HomeFinder.com powers search on hundreds of smaller local newspaper websites across the country. Here is an example of site "powered by" HomeFinder.com:

The defining part of this model is that the listing data never leaves the primary publisher's database. The secondary publisher displays the primary site in a framed or branded experience much like a smart framed IDX solution.

Furthermore, all of the publishers in the ListHub network are required to disclose their powered-by sites. That way, you have access to the complete list of places where your listings are searchable.

In fact, you can login to your ListHub dashboard and type in the name of any site to see if it's a part of an extended network. Here's an example. If a listing is found on www.mankatofreepress.com, you can type in a keyword like "mankato" and quickly see that this site is a legitimate part of the extended Zillow network. And as such, the data resides on Zillow's servers, safely protected by the ListHub agreements from any sort of re-distribution or non-consumer display use.

Now that we understand that each and every publisher (and by definition, their 'extended networks' of powered-by sites) is subject to the same set of data protections, let's review the different type of publishers in the ListHub network:

1. National Publishers are websites that geographically cover the entire United States like Zillow, Trulia, HomeFinder, etc.
2. Regional Publishers are local websites that only include specific geographic areas. For example, NJ.com is only available to handful of MLSs in New Jersey.
3. Affiliate Publishers are publishers that require a paid subscription or pre-existing relationship in order to use their service. For example, Listings-to-Leads is an affiliate publisher that creates Craigslist and social media ads for each of your listings. To utilize their services you can enter a code in your ListHub account, enabling your data in ListHub to auto-populate their system.
4. The Real Estate Network (REN) includes several websites operated by franchise organizations and other membership-based broker networks, including remax.com, coldwellbanker.com, century21.com, and realtyexecutives.com.
5. Extended Network of Sites are websites that are "powered-by" other publishers.

On ListHub's homepage it states they have "over 117 Participating Publishers Reaching Home buyers On More Than 800 Websites." This "800" figure includes national, regional, affiliate, and REN publishers, and the websites that those publishers power.

But rest assured, whether you choose to distribute your listings widely, or whether you choose to narrow your selections to specific sites, the additional reach provided by extended networks of these sites come to you at no additional cost, and with no additional risk.