
Most of your future customers will find you online — be sure you're making it easy!
Millennials are the #1 generation in the housing market. At the peak of the pandemic, with interest rates at historic lows, Generation Z made a showing, too. That cohort has returned to an "old-fashioned" approach, seeing homebuying as an important path to growing wealth.
They'll be ready to work with you much sooner than you might think.
And they're looking for you... on their phones.
Yes, just about everyone has adapted to the smartphone era. Pew reports 97% of Americans have cell phones and 85% of those are internet-capable smartphones. But no other generation has the same level of technical savvy and "always-on" connectivity as this up-and-coming young group.
To win their trust, you need a polished, professional online presence.
Turn Your Online Presence Up to 10 with These 10 Tips
Even if you work in a niche that skews older, Millennials and Gen Z will be part of the decision-making process before you know it. So, there's never been a better time to take a close look at the way you present yourself online and ensure your digital brand is compelling.
Here's how to do it right:
- Make Sure Your Website Is Mobile-Friendly
Google now looks at the mobile version of your website first to decide where it should rank in search. What is it finding? Be sure your real estate website has a responsive layout. Responsive means it adjusts to the display size and input available to the user, making it easy to navigate on phones and tablets.
- Incorporate Texting into Your Marketing Plan
Millennials and Gen Z alike love text, maybe even more than talking. Research shows young people prefer to avoid voice calls, but they are overwhelmingly favorable to texts. They're even willing to get texts from businesses, as long as they consent first. A text message marketing platform makes it easy.
- Use Integrated Live Chat
Of all the different options you can use to connect with website visitors at the moment they're paying full attention to you, integrated Live Chat is the fastest and most effective. It can appear on any page of your website. Highly enticing, it may motivate prospects to ask you a question they might otherwise skip.
- Be Selective About Social Media
You don't need to be on every social media platform — just the ones where your customers are found. For most real estate pros, that means Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn. Instagram is the most popular platform for real estate photography, and it links directly to Facebook for easy sharing.
- Make It Simple to Get in Contact
Texting and social media are helpful on their own, but they're most powerful when they give your leads the chance to connect quickly. The faster you can respond to first-time inquiries, the more likely you are to get a customer, so configure and monitor notifications during work hours.
- Once You're Set Up, Use Automation
Once your social media profiles are fully set up — with every form filled out and brilliant, branded images in every space — set realistic goals for posting each week consistently. Social media automation lets you plan your posts in advance and send out instant, event-driven updates in less time.
- Set Up an Email List to Capture New Leads
Most first-time visitors to your website aren't ready to do business — with you or anyone else. But that's okay if you use email marketing. Email marketing automation means you can stay in contact with leads for weeks, months, or years, building trust along the way until they choose to take action.
- Boost Your Best Listings with Targeted Social Ads
Social media ads can get eyes on your listings in a hurry, but it's crucial to go in prepared. Not knowing the ins and outs of setting up their ads, business owners often lose money. Ad Wizard is a self-service tool that helps you launch ads for your listings and track their performance at a glance.
- Be Consistent and Purposeful About Your Website Content
Content marketing is a method of attracting targeted visitors to your website by answering the burning questions they have about the homebuying process. This helps raise your visibility in online search, so be sure you are posting at least one 800-word article a week aligned with your audience's interests.
- Use Website Analytics for Continuous Improvement
A real estate CRM suite brings together the data from your email, social media, and website so you can focus your attention on what really works. Total visibility in one location enables you to understand where visitors are coming from and what they do once they reach you.
Contact us at Delta Media Group to learn more about digital marketing in real estate.