Editor’s Note: Social Skills is a bi-monthly feature in RISMedia’s Daily News focused on social media and digital marketing tips, trends and solutions for agents and brokers.
The housing market has not exactly been a breeding ground for first-time homebuying in recent years, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t any younger folks interested. Despite continued market challenges, there are still pockets of Millennials and Gen Zers who are looking for their first home–you just have to know how to get their attention.
Marketing to the younger audience (ages 18-35) is different than it’s been in the past. Millennials and Gen Zers are not only the social generations, they’re also the no-BS generations. The classic tried-and-true marketing strategies do not always work for the members of these discerning-eyed generations.
To market to the future homeowners of the Millennial and Gen Z generations, you have to change your approach: Aim your content where they are, and address their needs directly.
Focusing your efforts
Facebook is a thing of the past when it comes to the younger generations, it’s all about Instagram and TikTok (but mainly TikTok).
The short form video is where it’s at when it comes to the Millennial and Gen Z audience. TikTok and Instagram Reels will be your bread and butter when it comes to marketing to these potential first-time buyers.
You have to be scrollable to interact with these audiences, but not too scrollable. You need to hold attention and compete with the urge to move on, which is all too common nowadays as attention spans shorten. That means the majority of what you’re going to be making is quick-hit videos, keeping them less than one minute. You’ll be drawing the viewers in, holding attention just enough to have them tap your profiles and watch more.
You can still have the deeper dives, the longer property tours and more types of long-form content on your profiles (coupled with other visual content to round it all out), but a lot of what you’re making in order to grab that initial attention is the shortest form videos.
Honing your content
Now that you have your platforms and your content type, it’s all about what you’re making within those parameters.
As we covered, you’re approaching the no-BS generations. As such, Millennials and Gen Zers don’t want typical advertising; they want the truth. What these generations crave is authentic, thoughtful advertising. It’s becoming less and less about posting actual properties, and more about teaching the ways of the housing market.
The younger generations are some of the most curious, but also the hardest to earn the trust of. As such, you have to market from a perspective of truthfulness to build that trust up with them.
Your content is going to focus on being a housing guru—you’re going to break down the misconceptions, the financial ins and outs, the whole shebang of housing. Topics like the 20% down payment myth and the different loan options available, what a certain level of mortgage payment can get you in different areas, the all-around costs of buying and owning a home that people typically don’t talk about (closing costs, home insurance, etc).
This is what is going to get the Millennial and Gen Z audience to not just interact with your content, but to turn into real, genuine leads. When you take an honest approach to how housing works and are willing to break it down, those younger buyers are going to consider you a thoughtful guide that they trust to lead them through the housing process.
