Blog articles - Start ups

The story begins 

Julie O'Donohue and the Next Address Story

It was a cold August later afternoon and as usual, I was walking my dog, Tilly. I was reflecting on a friend's real estate experience: it wasn't a really good scenario - poor service, minimal communication, no control or trust and high costs. 

One other major problem had been the property valuation- the property had been overvalued by more than 20% and then marketed by three real estate agents at this original price and then slightly lower. This had resulted in the home being on the market for over 6 months. 

I was pretty angry on her behalf.  She was stressed, anxious and had bought another home. All this made me reflect on how the real estate industry should look ...

I had an idea and was driven by these thoughts. What if you just connected people directly? How many people would consider this idea, to "sell my home without an agent".  And if there were a lot asking this question then how could you streamline the sales processes making the concept of  "selling my home privately" an easy and affordable choice. 

As I walked the idea grew.  How could this idea

• Essentially give buyers and sellers control and save them loads of money and time?
• Use technology to streamline all the processes? 
• Ensure the right valuation was provided on the home at the start?
• Greatly increase the real estate customer satisfaction rate?

By the time I got back home,  I announced to anyone who wanted to listen (just the dog listened) that I thought I had come up with a pretty good idea.

What if there was a website focused on clever technology, like virtual tours and automated processes for both real estate buyers and sellers.   

And this clever technology matched and connected these customers. Essentially a dating service for home buyers and sellers.

I registered the domain name www.nextaddress.com.au that very night.

I continue to be very excited about what we are and can achieve for buyers and sellers with Next Address.

Where do you find your passion? What motivates you to do the things you do?

In my case, coming from a small business family was a contributing factor to my work and life journey. My parents owned and successfully operated, then sold two interstate transport companies.  The "Wettenhalls" family name still adorns trucks to this day. My father was involved in importing the first Peterbilt (Kenworth now) trucks to Australia with his brother. He was also one of the first water skiers in Victoria. 

Mum and Dad were "start-ups" before we had start ups. It was just called running your own business to them! I think it is in the gene pool as the extended family, including my children, all aspire to self-manage!

"well-developed egos."

It could also be well-developed egos as you do need one to go it alone: to have faith in your skillset to take it on.

In the case of Next Address, when I first thought of the idea I knew it had the potential to change the real estate industry and therefore the world. I knew the idea was BIG, and I knew I needed to surround myself with creative thinkers who were excited by change and a challenge. 

The first action was to come up with a name: some say that's the last worry but being a marketer this was the first action. On that wintry August Friday night, I harassed my gorgeous family, and Next Address domain was registered, and the adventure began.

"contributing shareholders."

After this, the research began. I started and completed the Blue Chilli 14 week startup program - it took me 24 weeks! Christmas did fall in the middle of this time, though! This program was vital in creating a thorough business plan and validating my ideas. It was such valuable learning and has set the path for being flexible, pivoting when we need, embracing ideas and working out how to creatively fund Next Address. 

The story continues with the team now consisting mainly of contributing shareholders who are all as excited as I am about the journey we are on and the change we can make to this industry. There are 50 shareholders and with more investors soon to join.

"Peer to Peer"

Join our journey, stay in touch, spread the word about a tech-based peer to peer real estate community marketplace which empowers people to buy and sell themselves.

Brief Resume

I have always aspired to be a highly respected, valued and creative contributor who brings major and long-standing results to an organisation. I have:

• Business development experience and knowledge
• Marketing and communication management expertise
• Stakeholder and client relationships management expertise and skills
• Strategic planning and implementation background
• Strong interpersonal and written communication skills
• Management and leadership ability

Before I began work on the Next Address concept, I operated a small boutique communication and event management business. I was focused on delivering great outcomes for my business clients - this ranged from implementing change processes to reviewing business marketing plans to managing stakeholder networking. I used my expertise to implement appropriate strategies that met their distinct business needs and characteristics.

My listening skills are well developed, and I can efficiently review and assess needs and then develop the correct and appropriate responses and strategies. My written communication skills are strong and reflect well in the various communication mediums I utilise, including the web, brochures, presentations, reports, and publications to social and general media.

My strong background in relationship management and communications across a variety of different sized organisations, plus extensive social media knowledge, allows me to find the point of difference and then deliver the most appropriate strategies.

For more information visit my LinkedIn profile: Julie O'Donohue.

Refreshed 10th May 2020