2020 Subscriber Trends: The COVID-19 Effect

As we examine the results of this year’s Subscriber Satisfaction Survey, it becomes clear that COVID-19 has had a tangible, if not surprising, effect not just on home viewing, buying, and selling, but also on how our industry learns and interacts. 

In 2019, most RMLS™ training took place at either one of our facilities (40.1%) or one of your offices (30.5%). The number of classes offered were limited this year due to the pandemic, and those figures fell to 13.8% and 18.1% respectively. With in-person options less available due to safety concerns, our subscriber community successfully adapted by adopting online alternatives.

The use of online webinars jumped an impressive 16.4%, with nearly one-third of subscribers who sought training opting for this format. The use of online tutorials also rose 8%. The data from the survey doesn’t show similar increases for all methods of distanced communications – email use stayed at 14%, while the use of the phone to speak to our Help Desk and Training Staff actually decreased by 3%, suggesting that our subscribers recognized a need to utilize online tools across their business practices. 

With additional communication formats increasingly available online, such as our live chat option within RMLSweb and Paragon or our ‘Real Talk’ podcast, it will be interesting to see if these trends are a temporary reaction to the current pandemic, or the beginning of a broader shift to online channels for our community training and communications. If you have any questions, or wish to learn more about any form of training or help available to you, please give us a call at 877-256-2169 or email helpdesk@rmls.com.