Millennials are now entering the world of home ownership, are you ready for it?  There are now almost 73 million Millennials in the United States, making them the largest age demographic and a core age range of 18 to 34 years old.  They are graduating from college, entering the job market and wading through the decision of renting or purchasing a home. Understanding Millennials is one thing, but knowing how to market homes to them is another.  Our last blog post was geared toward Millennials waiting for the next recession to buy a home and why that might not be in their best interest. This time, we’re speaking to agents in hopes of helping them market to Millennials more effectively.  Are you a new or seasoned agent wondering how to better connect with and cater to this vastly growing population? We’re here to provide you with some tips for marketing to this unique age demographic!

First, we’ll dive into some statistics to better understand what’s inside the minds of Millennials.  According to an article by Real Estate Express, we must start by “gaining a better understanding of the demographic trends of potential buyers and sellers in your area—especially Millennials. Then learn how to connect and build relationships with these important real estate prospects.”  In order to better understand these demographic trends, take a look at these statistics below by Inman and the National Association of Realtors Home Buyer and Seller Generational Trends Report 2017:

• 89% of Millennials would use a real estate agent. Yet, they may be harder to please compared to other generations.
• 63% of Millennial home sellers would use their agent again, or refer the same agent to another. These are the lowest percentages of any generations surveyed.
• 70% of Millennial home buyers would hire their agent again, or refer them to another.
• 45% to 50% of Millennials originally found their real estate agent through a friend or family member.
• Partly due to outstanding or delinquent student loan and credit card debt, the average Millennial credit score is 625 (per NerdWallet). As such, they are more likely to qualify under more flexible FHA-insured home mortgage loans.
• Millennials are more into social media and texting than any generation ever. Yet, 75% of Millennials polled also like to be contacted by telephone calls.
• Millennials love the internet for communicating and finding real estate opportunities. Upwards of 94% of Millennials use online websites for home searches. 51% of Millennials later found the home they eventually purchased online first.
• Millennials do love their high-tech gadgets but still rely on the wisdom of real estate agents, as noted by 87% of them eventually going to agents for assistance.
• Millennials now make up 32% of all home buyers nationally, which is the largest proportion of any generation. The Gen X home buyers make up 27% of buyers. Younger Baby Boomers are reported at 16% of buyers, and older Baby Boomers account for 15% (31% combined).

Now that we have a better understanding of the demographics, let’s discuss how to effectively connect with Millennials as real estate prospects.  It’s no secret that Millennials love technology. Because of this, digital communication like social media, email and text might be more useful than newspaper ads, flyers or postcards when communicating with this age range.  Let’s not forget that the power of social media and sharing posts is limitless! Realtors who readily post video tours or home listings on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram will gain traction when Millennials “Like” or “Share” their posts with others.  Since word of mouth is so important, especially in this industry, this raises the potential growth rate and helps grow a business as well!

Since Millennials are known to have a shorter attention span, something else to consider when marketing to Millennials is a sales technique called the AICDC, developed by the Dale Carnegie Professional Sales Course.  AICDC stands for Attention, Interest, Conviction, Desire and Close.  The technique is as follows:

• Attention: First, you must grab or capture your prospect’s attention as quickly as possible.
• Interest: Once you’ve sparked their attention, kindle their interest by asking them lots of probing questions to uncover their primary needs and interests before offering them solutions.
• Conviction: Next, gain the customer’s conviction, or strong favorable opinions, by offering them evidence supporting beneficial claims, such as testimonials from past clients or exceptional housing price comps.
• Desire: Then continue fueling the client’s “fire” (or desire) by showing them solid housing data numbers, inspiring videos, or beautiful open houses that support your claims.
• Close: A high percentage of sales professionals are hesitant to ask for the close from the customer. But if you don’t ask, then the client can’t give you a very favorable “Yes” response after showing their significant interest, desire, and conviction in the product or service that you’re offering.

Millennials can appear to be some of the most informed and connected group of people because of technology, but they could also benefit greatly from your help and guidance in the real estate market.  Though it may seem hard to reach this demographic, remember that it is a powerful target market and worth your time and energy. Knowing how to connect with millennials through online presence and utilizing technology, while also maintaining genuine face-to-face connection, will benefit you greatly! Simply put, figure out how and where to find your millennial target market online, then learn how to connect with them in meaningful, creative and relatable ways.  At The Southbound Group, we love getting to know each of our clients to find a home and situation ideal for them.  Whether you’re buying, selling or need advice from one agent to another, we’d love to help!