Full Report: Property Buyers Go Mobile

Mobile Search for the Real Estate Industry Property Buyers Goes Mobile

In today's real estate market, listings are relatively easy to secure, buyers are not. In order to thrive, REALTORS® need to find breakthrough ways to unleash the power of the localized marketing tools available to them, beyond using the Internet. This paper will discuss a new concept called Mobile Search which will greatly enhance a REALTOR®'s ability to grow their business using traditional "offline" marketing vehicles. Mobile Search provides real estate professionals with an affordable method for dramatically improving lead capture and conversion rates while significantly improving the return on investment of advertising vehicles like print ads, yard signs, and real estate television shows.

Several studies have shown that consumers interested in buying a property desire more information than ever before from their agent. They demand real estate information and follow-up in real-time. The proliferation of real estate information on the Internet has trained consumers to expect information within seconds. They are frustrated with the lack of rapid response generated when they contact an agent using traditional means of advertising real estate. When a consumer pulls up to a home, or looks at a magazine ad, for example, they expect to be able to access information instantly or to talk directly to the listing agent.

Local Marketing – Missed Opportunities

When NAR asked consumers what marketing tools are important and relevant in their home search in the 2006 Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers, a real estate agent was the number one tool mentioned, followed closely by the Internet. It is important to note that "Internet" is a widely-used term in the real estate industry that refers to website marketing. One of the key reasons why consumers value getting real estate information from a REALTOR® and the Internet is that they get a rapid response. When a consumer asks an agent a question or inquires for more information on a website, they get an answer. They are both "interactive" tools. They both allow a consumer to connect with a REALTOR®.

Consumers in their home search also use yard signs, newspapers, magazines, and other localized marketing programs frequently. These tools are very valuable because they are uniquely targeted and localized and designed to stimulate response. If a consumer is interested in a home they see while driving by, for example, the yard sign has the opportunity to play a significant role in connecting the interested client with the REALTOR®. If a consumer is interested in relocating to an area and picks up a local real estate magazine, they are much more likely to be interested in purchasing a home than a person who is casually surfing the Internet. Real estate magazines can also play an important role in driving a consumer from the print ad to a REALTOR®'s website where the client can learn more about the unique capabilities of the agent. Newspaper ads also target the local client interested in timely dissemination of open houses available for the weekend.

What tools did you (the consumer) use in your home search?

Each of these localized marketing tools plays an important role in the real estate transaction, yet the relevance of these tools is significantly lower than the frequency they are used in the real estate transaction. According to the 2006 National Association of REALTORS® Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers, while yard signs, print ads and magazine ads are used frequently in the real estate sale, they are not deemed to be nearly as useful as the Internet. One of the main reasons for this lack of effectiveness is that there are no "interactive" feedback methods built into these marketing tools.

Information Sources used vs. Usefulness of Information

It is interesting to note, for example, that even though nearly 2/3 of consumers use yard signs in their home search process, only 31% of consumers say yard signs are "very useful." This data suggests that if yard signs were more valuable and mirrored some of the interaction delivered by the Internet, they could play an even larger role in the home buying process.

The same holds true for newspaper ads. While print ads are used by 55% of home buyers and sellers, only 20% believe they are a "very useful" tool in the real estate sales process.

Real Estate television shows and billboards could also be more effective if they could be more interactive and provide a method for a consumer to connect to a real estate agent in real time to accessed valued information.

Tracking the response rates of offline media has always been more of an art than a science. Both "impressions" in the offline world and "hits" in the online world suffer from the same problem of anonymity. An agent may know the circulation of a real estate magazine or the click through rates of a banner ad, but they have no idea who has read their ad and may be interested in the property. Agents also have choices of different publications. Knowing stated circulation and number of distribution locations is not necessarily an accurate measure for tracking response. Often racks don't get refilled or they are in mass market locations that are not very targeted. A method to track actual responses (with name and phone number) from offline marketing channels can help real estate professionals execute more effective marketing campaigns to build their brand, invest marketing wisely, as well as sell more real estate.

Mobile Search

There is a new category of marketing tools now available which can significantly improve the marketing value of "offline" advertising, such as yard signs, magazine ads, newspaper ads and other localized marketing programs. These tools, called "Mobile Search," allow each of these formerly passive marketing tools to become interactive and dynamic. Mobile Search allows a REALTOR® to connect to a potential client in real-time from any form of localized marketing where a phone number can be displayed.

The report goes on to outline four scenarios and solutions to market to buyers, how to measure marketing effectiveness and which solutions meet those needs.

To read and download the full WAV Group report, please click here.

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