5 New Digital Buyer Insights from NAR/Google

Have you read the joint report from NAR and Google on the digital house hunt? It's chock full of exploration and Google-provided insights on how consumers are using different combinations of web, mobile, and tablet to find their new homes. Some of the report echoes what we have been saying for years: today's digital consumer (which includes 90% of those buying homes today) does their homework ahead of time.

What did surprise me from the report was just how much real estate-related local searches have grown. Consumers "switch devices to suit their needs at any given moment" and search carelessly, bouncing back and forth "to look at ratings and reviews, styles and prices, and then search[ing] again."

Click through to the next page for five insights you don't want to miss.

1. Real estate related searches on Google have grown 253% in the past four years.
2. 69% of home shoppers who take action on a real estate brand website begin their research with a local term.
3. 89% of new home shoppers use a mobile search engine at the onset and throughout their research – wow!
4. It's not just Gen Y: 75% of senior home buyers go online to search for a home.
5. 52% of actions on a real estate brand site directly from a local search on a search engine.

Another point that stuck out is that most internet browsers use multiple sources while researching a home. Is it because they're not getting what they need from the brand sites?

Ask yourself: Do you have Community, School, Points of Interest, Neighborhood-level Content, and Home Sales Trends buyers demand? Are they engaged on mobile and tablet with continuity?

Read on below for a great depiction of why you should be thinking about enhancing your brand experience across devices. It might be the best five minutes you invest today.

See Digital House Hunt: Consumer and Market Trends in Real Estate.

To view the original article, visit the Onboard Informatics blog.