e-Buyer: Understanding Real Estate e-Buyers & How to Market to Them A program by the Real Estate Buyer’s Agent Council, Inc. of the National Association of REALTORS®

Welcome to e-Buyer! Approved elective course for the Accredited Buyer’s Representative (ABR®) designation For more information, contact REBAC: Real Estate Buyer’s Agent Council

Table of Contents Introduction 1.Understanding the e-Buyer 2.Service and Value in an e-Buyer World 3.Web Fundamentals 4.Tools of the Trade: Advancing Your Business 5.The e-Buyer Transaction 6.Your Action Plan 3

Until the Mid to Late 1990s 4 Real estate agent was gatekeeper for everything: Property data Area information Mortgage

Fast Forward to Today Internet and e-Business have spawned: The e-Buyer! 5

Fast Forward to Today e-Buyer uses the Internet Find properties Research communities Preview properties Examine mortgages 6

Fast Forward to Today Internet and e-commerce have transformed e- buyers’ expectations. Transactions should be: 1.Easy 2.Quick 3.Less expensive 7

Fast Forward to Today Given current market conditions, there are fewer buyers than a year ago. Will Internet and U.S. economic ups and downs render the buyer's agent obsolete? Answer: No. 8

Learning Objectives Understand specific needs of today’s e-Buyers Explain how to bring service and value to e-Buyers Discuss how to leverage technology in today’s market Learn how to manage the e-Buyer transaction 9

1. Understanding the e-Buyer In this module: Profiling the e-Buyer Demographics of the real estate e-Buyer Generational differences 10

Profiling the e-Buyer Younger College educated Higher annual incomes Live in suburbs 11

The Real Estate e-Buyer Married couple Younger Earn more money Spend more time searching Visit more homes during search 12

Where Real Estate e-Buyers Look 13

Most Valuable Features of Web Sites 14

Power of Real Estate Web Sites One-third of real estate e-Buyers found online the home they purchased Emotional connection to property before contacting an agent 15

Discussion Question 1 1.Which 3 statistics are most meaningful to your and your business? 2.Which will cause you to change an aspect of your business? 3.What changes will those be? 16

17 Not All e-Buyers Created Equally Generations of e-Buyers use the Internet with different frequency and for different purposes.

18 Not All e-Buyers Created Equally As we discuss generations, consider: What is unique about their communication preferences? What specific ways can I market to these groups?

Intergenerational Market Traditionalists (1901 – 1945) Baby Boomers (1946 – 1964) Generation X (1965 – 1976) Generation Y (1977 – 1994)

Age Distribution of Home Buyers

21 Traditionalists ( ) Less likely to use Internet in home search More likely to rely on agent used previously Home-buying experience important. Previously owned 3 homes. Their word is their bond.

22 Baby Boomers (1946 – 64) 78 million strong (median 50 yrs.) Value convenience (e.g., one-stop shopping) and face-to-face communication Image is everything.

Generation X (1965 – 76) 50 million strong Grew up with instant- gratification & quick response conveniences Brought e-Business into the mainstream Time is of the essence. 23

Generation Y (1977 – 94) 60 million up & coming consumers Using all permutations of technology, Gen Y stays connected Instant gratification buyers, they like social aspect of shopping with friends Possible first-time home buyers 24

Exercise 25 Time for an Exercise