The Internet is an eternally popular source for consumers, but more and more are turning to mobile devices for their home searches, as our Google Real Estate series found.

By Peter Ricci

The first two parts to our continuing series on “Google Real Estate” dealt with Internet search behaviors from consumers, and all the data we cited in those articles dealt with an increasingly antiquated assumption – that Web browsers cruise the information highway with a desktop computer or laptop.

Of course, anybody who has been following technology in the past 12 months (to say nothing of our exemplary tech coverage!) knows that such a scenario is becoming more and more rare, and that visiting the Internet, whether by smartphone or tablet, is becoming more and more mobile. But where does this changing sphere of Internet interaction leave agents?

Google Real Estate: Mobile Web Browsers

Google’s joint study with the National Association of Realtors, which has formed the backbone of our Google Real Estate series, uncovered a number of interesting behaviors in how consumers approach mobile Web browsing:

• First of all, mobile Web browsing is not a a niche consumer interest, but widespread – 89 percent of new home shoppers utilize a mobile search engine at some point in their home search.
• Specifically, 40 percent of new home shoppers use mobile search engines throughout their entire homebuying process.
• Mobile apps are gaining similar popularity, with 68 percent of new home shoppers using apps in their home search and 44 percent throughout the process.
• The reasons for those home shoppers using mobile resources was interesting: 51 percent did so for general information about a house; 48 percent looked up directions to a house; 44 percent compared the home’s price with those of other homes; 35 percent compared features; and finally, 35 percent perused the listing company’s other properties.
• Most fascinating of all, though, was where all these mobile consumers actually used their devices: 77 percent used their devices at home, by far the most popular location for mobile usage; 31 percent used their devices at work; 28 percent used them while waiting in line; and 27 percent used them at restaurants.

Attracting Mobile Consumers

To conclude: mobile use is becoming mainstream, mobile users namely investigate the main features of a property and they predominantly do so from the comforts of their own homes; so basically, all an agent has to do is get their listings on mobile sits and apps! But how can agents go about doing this?

Judy Kay, broker/owner with Rock Center Realty in Sugar Land, said that the HAR MLS automatically renders Realtor properties for mobile devices, though she has seen some agents going one step further in their mobile marketing efforts.

“Some agents are paying to have their names pop up on websites like Trulia, where they will be contacted if shoppers search in particular ZIP codes,” Kay said. “Other agents are partnering with other resources to develop/use new apps that will add more robust techniques to the home shopper and keep the partnering Realtor, instead of the listing Realtor, in the forefront. [Also], ;isting agents are using property telephone numbers that give home-specific information on their signs, or single property websites to give more immediate information to the mobile shopper driving by.”

Check out our earlier entries in the “Google real estate” series here, here and here.