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Social Media and the New Home Shopper

Graphic illustrating social media.
A quick look at how home shoppers are using social media in their shopping process could shed some light on how to best use social media for your business.

In a world of emerging technologies, it appears the force that is social media is here to stay.

As platforms like Twitter and Facebook have adjusted their services over time to not just include updates from friends and family, but also from news outlets, your favorite artists, businesses and more, now is the perfect time to consider how you can utilize various social media outlets to market your business.

To help you understand where to start, we surveyed our panel of new home shoppers to see how they have been using social media in their home shopping process. Here’s how they responded:

General Social Media Usage

When asked which social media outlet they used the most for general purposes, the panel responded as follows:

  • Facebook: 75 percent
  • Twitter: 8 percent
  • Instagram: 5 percent
  • Tumblr: 3 percent
  • Pinterest: 3 percent
  • LinkedIn: 3 percent
  • Other: 2 percent

Social Media for Home Shopping

Shoppers were also asked which social media outlet they use the most in regard to home shopping. Again, Facebook came out on top.

  • Facebook: 56.15 percent
  • Pinterest: 15.79 percent
  • Twitter: 5.26 percent
  • Google Plus: 3.51 percent
  • LinkedIn: 1.75 percent
  • Other: 17.54 percent

Time Spent on Social Media Daily

With increasing mobility of technology with devices like smartphones, tablets and laptop computers, access to the Internet has never been easier. Thus, social media access is nearly always at your fingertips. So, we asked surveyors how much time they spend on social media each day.

  • Over 2 hours: 27.12 percent
  • 1 hour to 2 hours: 18.64 percent
  • ½ hour to 1 hour: 33.9 percent
  • Less than ½ hour: 15.25 percent
  • None: 5.08 percent

Why Use Social Media to Shop?

With data suggesting that homebuyers are increasingly using social media in their home shopping, we decided to find out why and at what step. We asked: When do you find yourself using social media during the home shopping process?

  • To find ideas and inspiration for my next home. — 48.3 percent
  • To follow inspirational home décor and lifestyle sources. — 36.2 percent
  • To share homes with friends and family. — 32.8 percent
  • To connect and follow favorite homebuilders. — 27.6 percent
  • To connect and follow Realtors or real estate agents. — 24.1 percent
  • To find and follow industry experts and learn. — 20.7 percent
  • To follow market trends in the real estate industry. — 20.7 percent
  • To follow blogs of industry or local market experts. — 20. 7 percent
  • To connect with and follow favorite home developments or communities. — 13.8 percent
  • I have not used social media at all in my home shopping process. — 29.3 percent