“Consumer behaviour has changed. No one walks into an estate agents office to start their search for a property anymore.” This interesting quote was posted on Instagram.

Let’s just say the quote is not entirely true because the sales process does not end with just a search for the right property. It ends when the buyer is convinced that what he is about to buy is what he really wants to buy.

Assuming we suddenly think about buying a property – do we drop everything we were doing and drive out or walk to the nearest convenience store to buy a newspaper to see what properties are available?

The answer is “not really” although it might be in some cases. Some people read the newspapers every day looking for new property launches. Their peers continue to read the papers as well, and many potential buyers do the same.

Thus, a newspaper is a “lead generator”, no different from the few famous property portals. Without these forms of mass media, it will be hard to generate new leads.

This is why advertisements will remain very important for a long time to come. Even Facebook marketing is considered a lead generator.

So, it’s partially true that people do not drop by the real estate agents office to start searching for properties BUT they will still call their trusted real estate agents/negotiators when they see property advertisements and ask if it’s worth buying.

However, generating leads is just part of the whole story because potential buyers do not buy because they see an advertisement in the mass media.

Let’s be honest. Does a first-time property buyer who sees a RM500,000 property advertisement quickly run to the gallery with their cheque book in hand?

For first-time property buyers, it’s much more likely that they’d start reading reviews about the property developer, about the property itself, about the area and even property investment advantages.

And it’s far more likely that they’d drop by the sales gallery to speak to the sales people, ask them lots of questions and then… visit other sales galleries nearby and speak to the sales people there before deciding many weeks later to visit the final two or three choices, and only then decide.

This is why the “people touch” will always be very important. This is why some developers outsource their sales function to good Real Estate Agencies which train their Real Estate Negotiators (RENs) well on objection handling.

This is also why many developers upgrade their own sales teams in terms of property investment understanding because first-time property buyers will have lots of doubts which have to be cleared before they buy.

“I heard a bubble is coming, is it true?”; “Your condo is very nice but I prefer to buy landed.”; “Your project is 45 km from my office, it’s very far…” and more…

However, having an online presence is necessary these days. No developer would even think of launching their projects without a proper website these days.

Experienced property buyers will buy with less intervention from sales people but if we look at the scenario here in Malaysia, the number of new and potential property buyers are by far larger.

This is why it’s very important for online media and people to work together. Online advertisements will not kill RENs. It’s a great combo that works for the benefit of the buyer.

This article first appeared in kopiandproperty.com

Charles Tan blogs at property investment site kopiandproperty. He dislikes property speculators and disagrees that renting is better than buying. He thinks it’s either property or poverty. He is presently the CEO of an auction house auctioning assets beyond just properties.