Many home shoppers use the Internet, but which of them actually take action on the real estate brand sites that they visit?

By Peter Ricci

As we’re reported on numerous occasions, the Internet is one widely-used resource, with 90 percent of homebuyers beginning their home search online.

However, all homebuyers behave differently when home shopping, and how they response to that online experience is no exception, as the National Association of Realtors found in a recent survey it conducted with Google.

The Age of the Internet Home Shopper

In short, NAR and Google found that the home shoppers who took action on a major real estate brand site were an altogether younger group:

• In 2011, 31 percent of home shoppers who took action on a real estate site were between the ages of 25 and 34.
• That’s an increase from 24 percent in 2010; interestingly, for home shoppers aged 18-24, the portion declined from 15 percent in 2010 to just 8 percent in 2011.
• But what of the older folks? Home shoppers in the two oldest age brackets, NAR/Google found, increased their online action; both home shoppers in the 45-54 and 55-64 brackets were a more active bunch, with their shares increasing from 18 to 19 percent and 10 to 14 percent, respectively.
• So with so many age groups increasing their share, which age groups decreased? Well, along with the 18-24 group, the 35-44 age bracket saw their share fall, from 27 percent in 2010 to 21 percent in 2011.

An Age-Centric Marketing Strategy?

So, what does this data mean for agents? Should real estate agents target their marketing efforts to homebuyers aged 25 to 34, considering that they make up such a large portion of Internet home shoppers. Well, not necessarily.

By all means, be an active, Internet-savvy agent, but ask yourself one question before you redirect your marketing efforts to that 25-34 age group – what kind of homes am I actually selling? You could have the most clever marketing approach since Tickle Me Elmo, but if you’re selling real estate that is not typical for that age bracket (a more rural property, for instance, or a more expensive luxury residence), all that work could go to waste.

For instance, though Bill Hahne, the broker/owner of Hahne Real Estate in Miami Beach, received plenty of Web inquiries, they are not from the 25-34 age bracket, but older homebuyers (predominantly from the East Coast) who are interested in purchasing second homes.

Miami Beach, Hahne said, is an ideal market for second-home buyers, and he’ll even market the properties online with that in mind.

“We’ll even say in the listing comments, ‘ideal second home,'” Hahne said.

So of course, market away, but keep in mind the characteristics of your market, as well.