Jonathon Dalton over at Phoenix Arizona Real Estate Blog has decided to enter the realm of property specific websites.  And he has entered in a very good way.  Check out his blog, his website and his property site and you'll notice that all 3 have the same look and feel.  His write up for the property is excellent, going far beyond the bare specifics that are available all over the internet, i.e. x bedrooms, x baths, x garage, x sq ft.

JD's using subdomains from his primary site, so the page is http://8439wemilezola.daltonsazhomes.com/ which may turn out to be hard to advertise.  I think it may have been better to purchase the domain "www.8439WEmileZola.com" and than point & mask it to the subdomain but that's just my personal preference.

There's a lot of discussion in the real estate blogosphere about the value of these sites, some people are for them, some are opposed but it's definitely a marketing technique that every agent should consider.  The WOW factor is great with sellers, especially if you are using the domain, and not just a subdomain. 

In my real estate sales days I often would purchase the domain before I ever went on a listing appointment.  Nothing tells a potential seller that you're going to work hard at marketing their home than having already starting doing it.  At $8.95, it's a small investment to help differentiate yourself. 

According to NAR...

• 38%  of recent home buyers were under 35 years old
• Half of first time home buyers were between 25 and 34 years old
• First time home buyers accounted for half of all homes purchased in 2005.

So how do you market to these "GenXer's?  You start by understanding them.  I you ARE a GenX, you already understand them.  They are just like you.  However, if you're like me, these "kids" are young enough to be your children, and you don't REALLY understand them.  You may think you do, but you don't.

Mariana Wagner from Keller Williams in Colorado Springs has written an excellent article called The Secret Life of a "Generation X" Cosumer... My Story.   While everything she points out doesn't apply to every member of this generation, there's enough good stuff there to make it worth the reading.  So much of it applies, not only to real estate, but to any business that hopes to market to this group.