02 Jun How to Market During the 3 Stages of Buying

In an industry that once used print media as its primary form of delivering the marketing message, there is now an urgent need to employ the Internet to reach today’s homebuyer. A recent study by the National Association of REALTORS found that 94% of homebuyers are using the Internet when they buy a home.

Many real estate companies are “advertising” on the Internet, but they are failing to understand how to really reach their potential customers.

We already know that homebuyers go through 3 distinct stages during the prolonged process of buying a home. In fact, the average person shops a minimum of 12 weeks before purchasing. They start out seeking information about the types of homes that are available. It’s important to remember that they are not yet buyers, so as you lure them to your site you must also be able to answer their questions and provide real value, or they won’t return when they are more serious about buying.

Several weeks into the process, they begin comparison shopping and looking for information about neighborhoods, local market analysis, map-based property search engines, and using many tools and resources. The more resources and tools you have on your site, the more comparison shoppers have a reason to return to you for information.

Finally, these visitors are ready to buy. After months of researching they merely need the emotional trigger that will push them to make a move. It is imperative that your site is updated regularly, and that you have just the right devices ready to assist, but only when this buyer is ready.