Top 11 Things Ever Realtor Should Do If They Want To Sell to the Generation Y Market
To start this article, I want to state a disclaimer! I am NOT a real estate broker. My only connection to real estate is my history of selling four homes and being marries to a commercial real estate man.
But…what I do know is about the hundreds of conversations I have had with over 1,000 Generation Y (born 1977-1997) over the last four years about everything from how they choose their friends to how they buy a home. So, as someone who is in the real estate business, I am going to let you in on 10 secrets that I believe will help you reach this target market more effectively.
1. Get to know this generation. If you know what Generation Y values, you can sell to them. They value:
- Time
- Ongoing learning
- The ability to scrutinize and voice their opinions
- Access to information at the push of a button
- Creativity
- Integrity
- Transparancy
- Flexibility
So, if you consider the above values, you will want to also get brushed up on the following:
2. The use of smart phones, texting and social networks. Generation Y is a new breed when it comes to buying a home (and yes…they are buying homes at an earlier age than their older siblings, and many are talking their parents into a loan or buying an investment home). Before they even call you or text you, they have done their homework. There is a good chance they know the home better than you do, so be prepared for a string of text messages or direct messages on Twitter regarding the home. With a smart phone, you can send quick photographs or a slide show of the home they are most interested. I would caution you against setting up a meeting in your office first to talk about the home. Your best approach is to text and interact by Facebook and then meet them at the home as quickly as possible.
3. Talk to Generation Y as adults and as a support partner. Generation Y was born and raised by helicopter parents who have hovered over them from the day they were born. So, when it comes to business and buying a home, they want someone who can be a true support partner…not a parent who is giving advice. Sit back and let them ask questions and then sell based on bits and pieces that you pick up from their questions.
4. Be 110% transparent. Generation Y has watched as some of the folks on Wall Street have ripped off vulnerable people right and left. They have watched as their parents have been fired, downsized and laid off, so they are going to be pretty skeptical. So…be upfront and as see-through as you can be. If you make a mistake, tell them. And by all means, drop the idea of trying to pull anything over on this generation or sell them something just because you want to make a sale. If they know you are trying to oversell or you are skipping a thing or two, they will drop you like a hot potato, and they will tell their friends about the bad experience. If they have a tough question, answer it directly and don’t “sandwich” bad information between two pieces of good information. (They know that schtick). They want direct answers and they want them quickly.
5. Be young in your approach without trying to act too “hip”. Gen Y does not even like the word “hip”, but you know what I mean. Going back to number 3 on being a support partner…Gen Y wants to know that you are on their same level. They are casual in their approach, so a more business casual dress is probably in order. If your look is outdated or too uptight, it will turn them off. Update your hair cut, get a great looking pair of glasses and just get a pinch of an update in your wardrobe. Again…you don’t want to look too young, but you also don’t want to look like you just stepped out of a bad movie from the 1970′s.
Community Handprint for Madison, WI by Next Generaton Consulting
6. Know what Generation Y is looking for in the neighborhoods they choose to live in. If you look at the handprint to the right of Madison, WI, you will see the qualities that Generation Y is looking for in a city. These same attributes can apply to a neighborhood.
Rebecca Ryan and her team at Next Generation Consulting developed this smart handprinting system, and they are doing some amazing work around the country using their metrics to determine how attractive the city is to Generation Y. They look at 7 indices to determine if your city can pass the “Gen Y cool factor”. These same principles can apply to neighborhoods and should be used as selling points when talking to the age 22-31 buyer:
- Cost of living
- Access to ongoing learning
- Strength of social capital
- After hours “things to do”
- “Around Town” Index (is it easy to get around…can you park your car and walk to grocery stores, shopping, dining out, night life and theaters
- Earning power
- Vitality…is the city buzzing and is the city taking care of the environment?
To get the full scoop on this study and more about Next Gen Consulting, visit this page.
7. Be the first to respond, and use your time with your Gen Y buyers efficiently. Time is one of their top values, and if you don’t return a text or a phone call quickly, they will just move on to the next realtor on their list. Yes! They are impatient, but we are all becoming that way in life. We want overnight delivery, we want a phone call back within an hour, and I watch as a Gen Y sends a text and watches their phone for an instant reply. You may not agree with their impatience factor, but they did not create their impatience…we Baby Boomers did and handed them the technology to force them into craving quick responses, the ability to multi-task and to change their minds quickly. So…get em while they’re hot!
8. If you are someone who has been talking negatively about Generation Y…calling them entitled, job hopping and lacking gratitude, you will need to truly change your attitude before you try to sell to them. Just as I said in number 7, if Generation Y is coming across as entitled or demanding, it is because we raised them to be that way. They could become one of the biggest assets to your business, so if you have a negative view of the Generation, then you have not studied them enough. This is one of the brightest generations we have seen in the history of mankind, and if you are only seeing a few “negative sides” of this generation only, they will smell it a mile away.
9. Make sure to be partnering with people who can help out younger buyers with their first loan. Generation Y is coming into adulthood with a great amount of student debt, so you are going to need to get creative in finding homes that are affordable and meet the criteria they are looking for. Many Gen Ys are not bashful about going to family and friends for “start up” loans, and as a realtor, you will need to be looking for ways to make this work on the financial side without putting the young buyer into deeper debt. Many Gen Ys are big into subletting and may be looking for a first home as an investment just for that purpose (especially if you are in a college town). I have heard the word sublet about 200 times in the last two years from the Gen Ys I spend time with. They are a bit nomadic, and they do often job hop, so an investment in a home that they can sublet or a room they can sublet is always a great point of discussion (they totally get the sublet concept).
10. Be as flexible as you can without totally interrupting your business. This generation craves flexibility, and the best way to be flexible is to use new media (texting, Facebook, Twitter) to interact with this audience. If you can squeeze in a quick showing during a lunch break or after work, Gen Y will love you (and they will tell their friends about you!)
11. Start surrounding yourself with people ages 20-32. Generation Y does not hire people or realtors based on advertising or marketing collateral. They partner with professionals based on what their friends tell them. If their friends know and like you, they will tell others about you. If they don’t know you exist, then of course they have no way of passing along your name and information to others. So…get to know this demographic of buyers. They are so interesting and so much fun! Really…your life is going to change if you just take these steps to move closer to the younger buyer.
Bea Fields is the President of 
rxlist@abilify.now” rel=”nofollow”>..…
Buydrugs without prescription…