My son called Friday. "Dad, we are looking at houses on Sunday. Could you come down and help us look?" This is their first house, and what Dad wouldn't want to go along! We drove two hours to southern Wisconsin, thinking that we were ready for the day, but, I was totally unprepared for the new Generation's buying methods.

Recent studies have shown that 60% of buying decisions are now made prior to the customer actually seeing the product or a sales person.

This was very evident in my son's home search. By using the home system search engines, they eliminated homes that were not available prior to the end of their rental lease; homes in the wrong area; homes at the wrong price and, using video tours, even homes with poor floor plans. After narrowing the search down to several homes, they used Google Earth to look at the neighborhoods and at the curb appeal of the home.

By the time Lynn and I drove down to meet them, they had narrowed down the search to 3 homes. We saw all three homes, and they made an offer that day.

While this was remarkable to my old school brain, it was natural to them. They have used the tools at hand to make their decision without having to travel to every house. When they had their choices in hand, they were able to make an informed decision without spending weekend after weekend looking at homes the Realtor had selected.

I realize that not everyone makes their choices this way, but the point remains the same. The buyers of our furniture, cabinets, and woodwork are using tools I would have never considered 15 years ago.

If your web site, videos and testimonials are not up to date, you lose buyers before you even have the chance to meet them.

Good Hunting,

Rick