It is an understatement to say that the real estate industry has undergone a profound transformation over the last decade. That transformation has necessitated a change in how real estate professionals reach and interact with potential homebuyers and sellers.
Buyers used to have time to tour two or three houses daily. Now, they can see hundreds without leaving their current home. They can go on immersive tours using augmented and virtual reality. Sellers can now effortlessly reach buyers halfway around the country (or the world) through targeted marketing.
In a broader sense, 63% of marketers use automation to assist their email marketing, 50% manage their social media through automation, and 40% automate their paid ads (Statista, 2023). It is becoming apparent that real estate professionals must incorporate new technologies into their processes to effectively reach their desired audience.
Indeed, digital platforms of all types now serve as essential tools for everything from property listings to virtual tours, target advertising, and beyond. They help expand outreach efforts in marketing and sales and enable superior accessibility.
The Insight of Data Analytics
In a general sense, “data analytics” just refers to a solution that helps you take the massive amount of data generated by professionals and consumers in an industry and approach it to make sense of it. You’re wading through a seemingly endless amount of information in a way that helps cut through the noise and get at the insight underneath.
In real estate, data analytics generate valuable insights into consumer behaviors, for example. Based on past purchasing data, professionals can understand how trends are evolving and where the industry might be headed. That way, they can proactively change their strategy to take advantage of those trends.
That same insight can also be applied to social media platforms offering direct engagement opportunities with potential buyers. If you see someone in your area post on Facebook that they’re looking for a new house and are frustrated with the process, contact them directly and offer to help. That’s the opportunity to establish a relationship with an already “warm” prospect that didn’t exist 20 years ago.
Emerging Technologies in Real Estate
Augmented and Virtual Reality
Along the same lines, it’s important to note that emerging technologies constantly change how we think about what it means to conduct a real estate transaction – sometimes overnight.
Augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) were not necessarily new concepts in 2020. People had even been experimenting with them in real estate. But suddenly, with in-person real estate tours and showings being essentially impossible indefinitely, they changed what was possible regarding immersive property exploration experiences.
Just because you can’t visit a house in person doesn’t mean you don’t want to see it before you try to buy it. AR and VR helped create 3D tours that people could take from the comfort (and safety) of their homes. Augmented and virtual reality proved to be so beneficial that they’ve even outlasted the pandemic and will continue to be used by real estate professionals to market homes to potential buyers for years to come.
Skip Tracing
Skip tracing is a handy sales and marketing tool for building out contact lists for outreach. This tool has been around for years and involves collecting data from various sources, such as public records, databases, online directories, and social media, to locate someone. In real estate, it has helped streamline everything from prospect identification to more traditional outreach efforts.
For example, a real estate professional trying to enter a specific neighborhood might use skip tracing to build a list of potential property owners. These might be owners with the exact property type the real estate investor wants to specialize in. Even if they’re not ready to sell, there’s nothing to stop that professional from contacting them. Some homeowners just haven’t considered the possibility of selling their homes. By conducting outreach like this, when the time comes for them to make a move, the real estate professional has already made that connection and has an immediate advantage.
Lead generation takes a significant amount of time. With skip-tracing technology, real estate agents and investors can collate data from various sources faster and more effectively than ever.
Drones for Aerial Property Imaging
Drones, also known as unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs for short), provide potential buyers with a full aerial visual of a property. They capture stunning images and videos, providing potential buyers with immersive views of properties of interest. The use of UAVs is prevalent in the case of rural land, where potential buyers would typically walk a property to inspect it for farmland, hunting, or livestock useability.
From a marketing perspective, 82% of people in this study said they decided to buy a product or service after watching a video. While real estate is a much costlier investment, the psychology behind it is clear: videos can significantly sway purchasing decisions. Buyers can get a clear view of properties by incorporating drone footage, adding confidence to their buying decisions.
Technological Innovation: Reshaping Real Estate All Around Us
Despite the incredible technological advancements in recent years, some challenges present as we navigate this new territory. The tech world often evolves faster than our understanding of it. Because of the speed of change, we run the risk of chasing behind it to mitigate potential risks.
Data security risks, in particular, have necessitated continual adaption for real estate professionals everywhere. Think about the sheer volume of personal identifying information that is a part of your average real estate transaction. Now, think about the damage that could be done if that information were to fall into the wrong hands. Real estate professionals should do everything possible to protect the information they gather through their research. Respecting the privacy of potential leads is paramount, as well as respecting their boundaries. Sometimes, that’s easier said than done.
Still, technology’s overall imprint on real estate marketing and sales, in particular, is undeniable. Not only has it continually made it easier to do more with less, but it’s also made the ultimate goal of helping connect buyers and sellers more efficient as well. Considering the sheer level of chance that has occurred even since 2020, it’s truly exciting to think about what the next few years will have in store for us all.
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