What sets you apart? 87% of buyers begin their home search online.

Your marketing MUST reflect this shift in order to capture these buyers & stay ahead of the game. Stick with us as we examine what YOU can do in 2009 to stand out from the crowd. We live in an age where information is cheap, and readily available. Consider the stat above for a moment. It is now a fact that most home buyers take an “armchair” approach to property selection. They research from home, gather information and conceive opinions long before they ever set foot in an Agent’s car. The information contained in the online version of your listings must not only be accurate, it must now be compelling.

Analysis of the new sales process shows that much of the decision to buy a particular property is made before the first viewing takes place. The information, content & imagery you post online for your listings is ESSENTIAL to getting the buyers off their couch, and in to view your property. As an industry, we must move past the “passive” approach of “post-it-and-they-will-come” listings. Your listings are out there online, fighting for their lives – please help them out!

So what then are the solutions? There are many ideas, many products that are out there to help your listings stand out. Professional photographers, virtual tours, talking homes, the list goes on. I feel that although these are important tools for an Agent to use, they fail to consider what actually makes people buy. What compels a buyer to get off the couch & actually move from the virtual world to the real world (and part with real dollars)?

(Statistics courtesy of National Association of Realtors 2008)