Generation Y Marketing: How to Appeal to this Generation of Homebuyers

In the last five years, Generation Y—more commonly known as millennials—have become the majority of today’s homebuyers. Whether you are a new agent or a seasoned broker, marketing to this group is vital for success.

The first step to appealing to this generation is understanding their place in the current market. According to the National Association of REALTORS® Home Buyers and Sellers Generational Trends Report 2020, millennials made up 36% of the buyers share last year. Boomers came in a close second at 33%, followed by Gen Xers at 23%. It was also reported that 86% of younger millennials and 52% of older millennials were first-time homebuyers, the largest of all generational groups.

When it comes to shopping for a home, this generation is tech-savvy, utilizing online listing services and social media in their home search. In fact, 83% of millennials used the internet to search for properties as their first step in the home-buying process. This is why your online presence and a millennial-focused marketing strategy should be your top priority.

For agents who are looking to build their lead generation and take on the most prominent group in the market today, there are many ways you can appeal to this new generation of homebuyers.

Keep Up With the Latest Technology
From video to virtual reality, millennials are obsessed with the newest and latest tech available. For those who are searching for new homes—and have every search option at their fingertips—finding a real estate agent who utilizes these tools is a priority. Though some older millennials will take a reference from family and friends, most young millennials will only reach out about a property after seeing it online, with photos being the most important feature. Be sure to hire a professional photographer and consider offering virtual tours of your listings, including aerial shots using drones. This will allow your potential clients to tour your properties anytime, anywhere and on their schedule.

Be Accessible On- and Offline
With a generation that depends on instant gratification, it is important to be accessible to these clients at almost any time of the day. Of course, social media is a great tool when it comes to constant communication, as you can respond to comments, questions and inquiries immediately. However, social media is not the only form of communication. Be prepared to respond to texts, calls and emails, as well as meeting on video calls. Because so many in this generation are shaping their work and home lives to fit their lifestyle, a traditional nine-to-five schedule may not work for them. However, realistically, being available 24/7 is impossible. Consider hiring a virtual assistant to help with overnight inquiries, use an AI chatbot to answer frequently asked questions or even put together a reference guide that clients and leads can easily download for reference on your off-hours.

Share Positive Reviews and Testimonials 
No matter how much you choose to boast about yourself and your business success, most millennials will only work with someone they can trust and who they feel is authentic. To showcase that you are trustworthy, consider sharing reviews and testimonials from previous clients who can offer these potential leads many reasons why you will be the right agent to work with. Of course, you want to be sure to grab—and keep—their attention. Because video is the most viewed form of content online, ask your former clients if they could record their testimonials and get permission to share across your social media or on your website. This will not only illustrate your ability as an agent, but will also come across to this generation as genuine and authentic, which, in this day and age, is vital for any business success.

Use Social Media Strategically 
Because many millennials aren’t sitting at home reading a newspaper, your online presence is essential. If you haven’t already, be sure to incorporate social media into your marketing strategy as soon as possible. Though many agents already utilize these platforms, there are still many who do not use it to its full potential. The content you share must be relevant, educational and entertaining to this group, and for this generation especially, it is important to understand the type of content you share on each platform. For example, Facebook and LinkedIn are both great platforms to share videos, especially those glowing testimonials, as well as educational articles, such as the content you will find through RISMedia’s ACESocial. Instagram, on the other hand, is all about visuals. Whether you post a virtual tour of a property or photos of a listing with superior staging and styling, be sure the post is visually appealing. When done right, social media can be your business’s best friend.

As millennials continue to grow as the top homebuyers in today’s market, so should your marketing strategy. Though you may have to put a little more thought and time into your online marketing strategy, it will be worth the effort to gain a millennial client base. This is a powerful target market who are constantly looking to connect and learn. So if you’re looking to take your business into the future with success, meaningful relationships and opportunities for more leads and transactions from the most prominent group in the market, be sure your marketing appeals to the millennial generation.

Thanks to our partners at RIS Media for this information!

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5 action items you need to do now to help people who want to migrate out of dense cities

When state governments ordered residents to stay at home more than a month ago, it triggered a wave of temporary migration.

“We immediately saw a pickup in our rental market, especially a pickup in our high-end market,” with some renting sight unseen, said Tammy Felenstein, executive director of sales for Halstead Real Estate in Stamford, Conn., close to the New York state border, via Housing Wire.

Some in the Northeast flocked to Florida. Others, wary of germs easily spreading in high-rise building elevators and through dense city life, rented homes in the suburbs. Still others, particularly young single adults, packed bags and moved back in with their parents. And even for those staying in place – whether in their condo, apartment or house – the isolation made the walls feel closer.

As states plan to reopen their economies, what changes COVID-19 will have on the housing market remain to be seen. Demographers and Realtors alike predict this is a tipping point for people who’ve already been dreaming of backyards, private pools and more space. It will accelerate trends that were already happening, they said, and bring a new level of consideration – whether people upgrade their apartments and condos for larger units or move out of dense cities altogether.

As a licensed Realtor, are you ready, willing and able to jump in and assist?

Most agents focus on trying to generate activity where they live: farming their local subdivision, creating + sharing content about their own neighborhoods, and helping people who want to move locally.

Which is fine...but in times like these, in a COVID world, do you know where the business is coming from? Are you missing opportunities to help outside of your normal business plan?

Staying on top of “Response Trends” like this, and being able to act quickly in order to serve an unexpected need, is crucial to surviving in this business.

Luckily, there are so many tools, so much data, almost unlimited resources available to you as a Real Estate professional…but first, you need a plan.

Personally, I’m betting that we are going to see an even greater number of people looking to move into Middle America…places like Denver and Oklahoma City that are holding up as well as could be expected in this time of crisis are sure to be attractive to folks looking to move out of crowded buildings and cities, to have a backyard and miles of open space and trails to escape to, where it costs less to live and is easier to navigate - less need for public transportation, bigger homes for less money which will accommodate working from home…the list goes on, and you should know how to market to serve people with these needs + wants, if you are a person who wants to attract these future clients.

Here are 5 action items that I’d recommend starting on immediately:

1. Re-work your business plan and re-set your goals to include relocation business - how many people can you reasonably expect to help move into and out of your town instead of around it?

2. Choose 5 cities where you predict migration will be prevalent, both to and from. Do some research. Gather some data about the differences in Housing Prices, Cost of Living, Unemployment Numbers, Vacancy Rates, and Expected Stay-at-Home Orders for the next few months in each of those cities, including your own.

3. Craft a marketing message that will speak to your target demographic: the people who are suddenly very unhappy with their current living situation who will likely want to move within the next 6-18 months. What do they need to hear? How are you uniquely able to help them?

4. Create marketing collateral with that messaging, and a budget for distributing it. The most effective marketing mix includes both online and off, and statistics show that people will need to see that same message seven times for it to stick - so, that likely means that you will need a strategic combination of postcards, targeted facebook and instagram ads, blog content and landing pages - all reaching the same list - in order to have an effective return on your investment.

5. Research, connect with + nurture Real Estate agents who work like you do in each city. Again, you’re going to need to do some legwork here, but it’s going to be more important than ever to have referral partners that you like, know + trust in the places where you are going to help your future clients move in and out of. Add them to your CRM and create a plan for staying in touch with your fellow professionals.

If all of that sounds completely overwhelming, but you’re feeling it and want to figure it out…let me know. I would be happy to hear about your particular situation + goals and help you figure out how to get started!

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Marketing Property During Stay at Home Orders

Over the years I’ve written a couple of posts about how to promote stale listings.

One was published by Inman News in 2014:

16 things you can do right now to maximize your listing's exposure

And then I updated it last year with a piece for Realtor.com Pro:

20 Strategies for Stale Listings

Having been through a few market ups + downs, I’ve learned that the key to successfully marketing a listing sometimes requires a quick pivot - and this time that we are experiencing right now is of course like no other.

Real Estate professionals, and their clients, are on a pretty crazy roller coaster ride…with changes to stay-at-home orders, guidelines, mandates, and directives being published, announced and changed on an almost daily basis, it’s pretty tough to come up with a Marketing Strategy and hope that all of the pieces will come together into a successful closed transaction…but all we can do is keep on trying!

I’ve been asked by agents both in my own Company, West + Main Homes, as well as agents across North America, how to best create a presence for listings in our current, ever-changing environment.

There are a few things that are absolutely necessary at this point…and if there is any little bright side to these boundaries, there are also some really creative and innovative actions and strategies that are helping folks that NEED to buy and sell right now do so.

The game has changed, and instead of getting as many people through the door as possible, it’s all about getting the right eyeballs on your property, online, and in a perfect scenario you will have a sight-unseen offer that leads to a smooth transaction thanks to your amazing marketing.

Let’s start with the obvious.

Properly set your Seller’s expectations from the very beginning.

With Real Estate activity being greatly reduced across the country, keeping up with the data and creating a flexible strategy is more important than ever. For example, my rule of thumb in a Seller’s Market used to be, 20 showings or 2 weekends on the market - and if we haven’t received a viable offer, then we need to drop the price. What is that rule now? It depends on the inventory in your listing’s area and price point, on the constraint on showings/stay-at-home orders, and on the overall activity in the marketplace which is unfortunately in constant flux.

Listing Your Property During Stay-at-Home Orders - What You Need to Know

Really great photos.

In most areas, photographers are still allowed to fulfill photo orders. If there are details about the home that should be captured, make sure to ask for those - and also ask for photos of areas that don’t typically get photographed…the HVAC system, the garage, and unfinished storage rooms are all things that serious Buyers are going to want to see.

When you are uploading photos to the MLS, try to put them in the order that a person would walk through the home - this is new advice from me, as I used to recommend that you put the photos in the MLS with the best photos first, but when folks can’t go out and see every home they are even slightly interested in, I think it’s important to create a “tour the home online” experience in every place possible. Homebuyers might also have a little more time to flip through all of the photos, so hopefully they will.

If you’re in a situation where your Seller needs to take the photos, provide as much guidance as possible and help them present their home in its best light - tucking away clutter, using the widest angle available, and making sure that they are seeing their home through a buyer’s critical eye.

At least one video tour…preferably several.

This is an absolute must at this point…and there are several different ways to create a showing experience for homebuyers who are doing most of their search - and possibly even writing an offer before touring a home.

3D Tours

These types of tours have been around for a while, but the technology has improved so much over the years, and now they can provide a really great way for buyers to take a thorough look around a property, check out the layout and details, and really get a feel for how the home might work for them. Many photographers offer this as part of their service, and to avoid having to use several different vendors, it’s a good idea to find someone who can do it all in one stop.

Traditional Video

It’s the expected user experience - press play and let the camera take the viewer on a tour through the property, usually set to music. Sometimes a photo slide show is done instead. To really make the property feel “alive” and to hopefully present a more life-like tour of the property, video is the better option…but do what you have to do. If a videographer isn’t available, there are tools that you can use to create your own slideshow video using the property photos, and any video is better than no video.

An Agent-Narrated and Filmed Video Tour

If you’ve never experimented with video or jumped into creating collateral for your listings, now is the time. You don’t necessarily need to be IN the video, but presenting the property from the listing agent’s point of view is a really personal and effective way to make a homebuyer feel informed and comfortable.

An Updated + Appropriate Listing Description

We’re living in weird times…but let’s not ignore the big fat elephant in the room by trying to market listings “as usual.” Your listing description will be more relatable, and frankly attention-grabbing and interesting if you just go for it. If, when we are finally allowed to leave our homes on an unlimited basis, your listing is still on the market, you can always re-write it…and you should.

Floor Plans

Another absolute must-have in your listing toolbox right now…and it’s always a good idea. If your MLS allows, upload the floor plans as jpgs right into the listing photos instead of adding them as a PDF supplement, which many buyers do not know how or care to access, depending where they are viewing the property online.

OK, so now that you have all of the expected assets to market your listing, what can you do with it all in order to make sure that your property is viewed online by as many potential homebuyers as possible?

Virtual Showings + Open Houses

Because in-person showings are absolutely out of the question in some areas, and are just not a safe way of conducting business anywhere during Stay-at-Home orders, Showing Time has now added the ability to schedule a “Virtual Showing.” The logistics around these video showings are a bit all over the place, with some Sellers doing a 4-way Facetime walkthrough session with the Buyer, the Buyer’s Agent and the Listing Agent…and other times with a Buyer’s Agent conducting the showing, in order to answer their Buyers’ questions and show them parts of the home that they might feel the need to see before writing a “Sight Unseen” offer.

Same thing with Virtual Open Houses - we have seen these evolve over the past few weeks, but it seems the most typical Virtual Open House involves the Listing Agent scheduling an event and promoting it, so that potential Buyers can view online, asking questions and requesting to see different parts of the property. Again, you need to follow your area’s guidelines and decide if these types of activities are allowed.

Reach Out to Your Reverse Prospecting List

Your MLS likely has a list that you can access of agents who have clients set up for an automated property search that matches your listing. These agents are now your new best friends.

Pick up the phone and call those agents. Text them. Email them.

Tutorial: How to Create a Reverse Prospect Email Campaign for Your Listing.

Ask them if they happened to see your property listing and if they still have a buyer that might be interested. Send them the property tour, ask them if they would like more information. Cooperation has never been more important, so take a step out of your comfort zone and start a conversation!

Also, ask them for feedback - if they have decided not to send the property to their client, what is it about your listing that they feel won’t work for their clients? This is valuable information that you can share with your Sellers, especially if there is a common thread, like “the bathrooms look too outdated” or “it seems overpriced.”

Rotate Your Listing Photos Every Day

By putting a new Cover Photo in the MLS every day, you might catch a homebuyer’s interest with the kitchen or living room, or even the backyard, who didn’t really love the front exterior shot. Of course, follow your MLS guidelines - but get creative, too!

Consider Virtual Staging

If your property is either completely vacant or could use some staging, virtual staging is another technology that has come so far since the early days of awkwardly sized furniture getting photoshopped onto a picture of an empty room. It’s also surprisingly affordable! Did you know that they can also create “twilight photos” green up the landscaping and bring your property photos to life so that homebuyers can better imagine creating a life for themselves in the home!

I know that this is a really hard time to sell Real Estate, but by doing absolutely everything you can from the safety of your sofa, you are literally saving lives. You’re also filling up your toolbox with new skills, platforms and ideas that will serve your clients not only now but in the future.

Hang in there, and let us know if there is anything that we can do for you!

Special thanks to Anna Domenico and Brandi Wolff for use of their wonderful marketing materials.