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The housing industry has entered an era where technology is significantly influencing the way consumers search for and purchase homes. Instead of hopping in a car to seek out “for sale” signs or filling out a paper 1003 application, today’s tech-savvy buyer is hopping on the internet. That means the role of the real estate agent, and the loan originator, is evolving. Now more than ever, you have to be available on-the-go in order to keep pace with today’s consumer, who is quickly emerging as the Millennial generation.
This group of digital natives makes up 42% of homebuyers and they heavily rely on technology in their day-to-day lives. Connecting with this modern-day buyer means being found in the places where they are searching, which is online and on their mobile devices. Therefore, real estate agents and loan originators have to learn to use today’s technology to their advantage. Not only will it help build your book of business, but it will keep you relevant in a changing marketplace.
Build a social media brand
Using social media to build your brand is vital in this digital age. Nearly 80% of Americans use some form of social media so it’s essential that real estate agents and loan originators have a solid presence on these platforms if they want to connect with today’s buyer.
Succeeding in this arena means positioning yourself as a credible industry expert who adds value to the consumer. Since there’s an enormous amount of competition inundating social media channels, you have to separate yourself from the fray. Whether your skill is working with veteran housing consumers or you’re a knowledgeable veteran with years of experience in the industry, you have to understand what makes you stand out amongst the competition so you can showcase it effectively.
By building your brand, you add a greater level of continuity to your social media channels, which in turn makes you memorable in the marketplace. When you have an established brand, you have an expanded capacity to reach your target audience because consumers start identifying your niche market, which makes it easier to generate the right leads and attract new customers.
Establish online reputation
As your social network expands, it’s important to already have in place a solid portfolio of online reviews that reinforce your offline services. That’s what homebuyers today want – honest, helpful reviews. They’re making decisions heavily influenced by the feedback of other customers. Even though they may initially encounter you on social media, they’re still going to do their research before engaging in business.
In fact, 84% of them will look to online reviews and will trust what they read as much as the personal recommendation that they receive from a friend or family in their social network; so not having online reviews is like closing the door on business from the vast section of the buying population who rely on them for transactional purposes. That’s one of the reasons it’s essential to provide exceptional service and to build good customer relationships because satisfied and unsatisfied customers alike share their experiences online.
Generating positive reviews begins with how you close your customer transactions. When you provide excellent service, your clients are more inclined to write a favorable review when you seek their feedback. To continue producing a steady stream of reviews, you have to initiate customer contact every time you fund a loan or close a home and make it as easy as possible for them to share their experience; in conjunction with this, you have to have a solid process in place to handle any negative reviews.
It’ll be difficult to remain competitive in the vast field of loan originators and real estate agents without a good online reputation. Since customers care about these reviews, so must you, if you expect to win with today’s consumer.
Use third-party apps
More than any other generation of consumers, today’s homebuyer uses the internet and mobile devices to connect with businesses. When buyers look for homes, they’re turning to real estate apps like Zillow, Trulia, or Redfin. These resources can be a key avenue to market yourself because they put you directly in the line of sight of potential buyers.
Another option is to align yourself with a mortgage company that provides apps so you can manage your business on-the-go. For example, New American Funding’s suite of apps – GoGo LO, GoGo Partner, and GoGo Home – give loan originators, real estate agents, and consumers access to instant information in the palm of their hand.
When you’re armed with real-time information on your handheld device, it gives you the ability to do your job wherever you go. Whether it’s sending a prequalification letter, pulling credit, or managing your pipeline, as a loan originator you need modern technology that equips you with everything you need even when you’re not in the office.
It’s essential that lenders have the ability to keep their real estate partners and clients updated anytime, anywhere; and the same goes for real estate agents. You should have the ability to give your clients real-time MLS access that’s exclusively branded to market your services to your buyers and you should be able to take your book of business wherever you go. Having access to these types of third party apps is necessary when you want to stay ahead of the competition.
Mobilize your marketing
Since more than 80% of Millennials regularly use their smartphones, remaining relevant with them may require modernizing your email and website platforms. Making simple changes can make you more relatable; such as upgrading an AOL email address to a more modern provider for business purposes. Also, since consumers are inundated with emails, services like BombBomb, which allows you to send personalized video messages and track client engagement, can help your messages stand out in their inbox.
Now that it has become more common for consumers to use their tablet or mobile device over a personal computer, you have to make sure you have a consumer-facing website that can be easily accessed from a variety of sources. It should be a user-friendly design that’s responsive to all devices. Developing a mobile-friendly website not only leads to a better user experience, but it also increases your website’s performance on search engine results.
Embrace automation
We’re in a day and age where people like on-demand information, so it’s important to be available when customers need to reach you. Yet, it’s impossible to be everywhere all at the same time. Since you can’t answer every call, but can’t afford to miss important customer messages, services like YouMail can help you manage customer expectations. YouMail sends an automated reply to a customer’s call when someone can’t pick up the phone. It’s useful technology for today’s professional that can enhance communication and can help you better serve clients.
Always essential
Succeeding with buyers today looks different than what it did before modern technology existed. Despite changing times, real estate agents and loan originators will always be an essential part of the homebuying process because purchasing a home is one of the biggest transactions consumers make. The key is learning to use technology to your benefit so that you’re the expert they find and turn to when they’re ready to buy.
