Auction.com has rebranded at the corporate level to Ten-X, as the company begins to grow other segments beyond its auction-based platform.
The new company name was chosen from among 500 possibilities and was evaluated for trademark research and URL availability. The company chose the brand name in collaboration with Lexicon Branding and designed its new logo with the Indicate Groupe, Ten-X Executive Vice President Rick Sharga told National Mortgage News.
"What appealed to us about Ten-X is that it's an easy name to remember," he said. "More than that it was aspirational, almost like a rallying cry. We're trying to make the real estate experience 'ten times better.'"
Choosing a new name became a company prerogative as it began to move away from auction-based real estate transactions, Sharga said. Under the Ten-X brand, the company will operate three transaction platforms: Ten-X Commercial, which is geared toward commercial properties; Ten-X Homes, which will offer more traditional residential properties; and Auction.com, which will continue to serve residential real estate investors.
"We came to the conclusion that we needed to change the name because fundamentally we're changing," he said. "We're in the process of getting ready to launch new online transaction products that don't involve auctions. So to have a name that said we were all about auctions would have been somewhat limiting going forward."
Additionally, the Irvine, Calif.-based company announced its plans to launch and demonstrate its new commercial and residential platforms in March at the South by Southwest Interactive Festival in Austin, Texas.
"It was a perfect venue to launch what really represents what we think is a significant behavior shift in how people go about buying and selling properties," Sharga said.
Ten-X Commercial will initially launch nationally, while Ten-X Homes will first roll out in Dallas, Denver, Miami and Phoenix. Sharga said that these markets were chosen because they appear to be strong heading into 2016 and were similar to other markets nationwide, making the lessons learned applicable to a broader range of potential markets for expansion.
Sharga said Ten-X hopes to implement the platforms with real estate professionals. The company already has plans for programs with the National Association of Realtors and commercial real estate brokers this quarter.
