OK, so you probably won't care a lick about the next couple of pieces I am writing.  But my sociology and marketing muscles need flexing, so here is a resource for those of you that want to understand the differences in home buyers/sellers from a demographics and psychographics standpoint and how you can use that data to craft real estate blog posts that resonate with your market.

Have you ever considered if you would write differently if you knew your primary audience was male?  Have you thought if you would take a different approach to your blog if you knew most of your readership was between the ages of 35 and 49?  No?  Well you should.  Knowing the demographics of your primary audience is essential to sculpting content that converts visitors to leads.  For example, if your primary readership is male between the ages of 25 and 34, you might want to consider writing more aggressively, injecting more humor and using more video whereas if your primary readership is female between the ages of 35 and 49, you might want to do more storytelling and pen more "how to" posts.

What are demographic profiles of real estate blog visitors?

Demographics looks at characteristics of people that include age, income, education, occupation, household size, home ownership and home value, among other factors.

Knowing your site's demographics is Marketing 101.  Fortune 500 companies hire high dollar marketing firms to analyze their demographics so they focus their marketing to appeal to their most viable customers.  Similarly, you should focus the content on your website to appeal to your primary readers.  Luckily for you, you don't have to spend beaucoup bucks to know what your demographics are. MSN's Ad Lab can give you a ball park estimation of what the demographics are for both your prime key terms and your real estate blog.

Tools: Statistics, Demographics and Psychographics Websites

*It may also be useful to compare the online data to the US Census data to understand your market's specific demographic landscape.

Resource: US Census Data

How to use MSN's Ad Lab to determine your current demographics and your target demographics

1.       What is the demographic profile of your site's visitors?

Use the Audience Intelligence Demographics Predictions tool by entering in your domain name and clicking the URL radio button, then press "Go."  This will return the current estimated demographics for your real estate blog.

EXAMPLE: Let's take the Miami Real Estate Blog  as an example: this blog's demographics are:

51% male, 49% female with 60% of traffic above the age of 34.

2.       What is the demographic profile of Internet users searching for your prime key words?

Use the Audience Intelligence Demographics Predictions tool by entering in your primary keyword and clicking the Query radio button, then press "Go."  This will return the current estimated demographics for your prime keyword.

EXAMPLE: Let's take the term "Miami Shores real estate" as an example: this term's demographics are:

57% female, 43% male with 60% of all traffic above the age of 34.

Resource: QuantCast (free): What are the demographics of people visiting similar sites? I love this site and highly recommend using it!

Resource: Geographic segmentation: Prizm (free).

What do demographics tell us?

This gives you a general overview of what your traffic demographics are on your site and what the ideal demographics should be based on your primary search terms.  You should see that both sets of demographics are reasonably close to one another.  If you notice that the demographics are substantially different and your site is not ranking on the first page of Google for those prime terms, you might want to consider adjusting your blogging style to fit your demographics.

How to write real estate blog posts to different demographics:

Generation Y Housing Trends

Male 25-34: This demographic responds well to aggressive writing laden with off-beat humor.  They may have an interest in technology enabled or green homes.  They like slick copy and even slicker images/video and may want locations that feel collegiate or near urban resources.

Example of writing that targets this market: Car and Driver, ESPN, Maxim, Rolling Stone

Female 25-34: This demographic responds well to stylistic writing with rich detail.  They are style conscious and may have an interest in the special details of a home like hardwood floors, new appliances and fireplaces. Images that focus heavily on unique details of homes will resonate well with this audience.

Example of writing that targets this market: Cosmopolitan, InStyle

Resource: Tech Savvy, Generation Y Housing Trends

Resource: Generation Y Home Buyers: Do they matter?

Gen X Housing Trends

Male 35-49: This demographic trends towards statistical data and will be interested in market reports, mortgage options and tutorial posts.  This crowd does not want to waste time online but rather get what they need and get out, so write well organized copy that is easy to scan with bulleted or ordered lists and bolded headings and subheadings.

Example of writing that targets this market: Esquire, Men's Health, National Geographic, Newsweek, Sports Illustrated, Time Magazine

Female 35-49: This demographic has a greater interest in listing proximity to resources, school systems and the overall appropriateness of a home for family living.  Neighborhood summaries will be important to this demographic.

Example of writing that targets this market: Better Homes and Gardens, Entertainment Weekly, Martha Stewart Living, Oprah Magazine, People, TV Guide, Vogue

Read also: Young Adult Housing Trends

Read also: Generation X Powers New Home Design Trends

Baby Boomer Housing Trends

Male 50+: Marketing to this cohort demands attention to providing more information to back up claims and to calm skeptical concerns. Boomer men prize holding on to their youth but may also plan well into the future, so showing the youthfulness of a home and/or the versatility of home will be important.  Search statistics show that 48% of Baby Boomers phrase search criteria in the form of a question, so writing posts with titles phrased as questions (Will over pricing my San Mateo home get me better offers?) will improve your ability to reach this market on the Internet.

Example of writing that targets this market: The New Yorker, the Atlantic, AARP The Magazine, Reader's Digest

Resource: Marketing to Baby Boomers

Resource: Housing Trends among Baby Boomers

Female 50+: This demographic is characterized by a focus on home life and enjoying free time- whether it be retirement or weekends, so writing rich copy about listings that focuses on the home as a retreat from the world will connect well with this market.  This market may also be most receptive to "how to" type posts.

Resource: Trendsettting Baby Boomers Ready for 'Me Time' in Homes

Example of writing that targets this market: Family Circle, AARP The Magazine, Good Housekeeping, House and Garden, Ladies Home Journal, Woman's Day

Resource: Media Info Center

Resource: MRI Magazine Estimates Fall 2007

*NOTE: the above characterizations of demographics are broad reaching based solely on age and do not account for income levels which can affect the overall attitude and interests of the demographic.

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