I read a funny article about a few of my colleagues here in San Diego and the success they've had marketing to the MySpace generation. It was in the Voice of San Diego and this article featured an agent named Seth O'Byrne. I have communicated with Seth a few times and can tell you that this is a young man that has his pulse on the 20 something market.
Nicolette Fontaine was featured in this article about her marketing on Myspace. Active Rain was also mentioned in this article by Jessica Diaz.
Business Week writes about how the MySpace Generation is used to receiving information instantaneously. It's obvious that technology and speed will be quick to capture these teens and twenty-somethings when they start buying homes in 3-10 years.
Finally, although this site requires registration, this article called "Marketing to the MySpace Generation" discusses the phenomenon of social networking, the growth of myspace to over 120 milion users. I logged onto Myspace in early 2005 and I was pretty much the oldest person there. Today, it is common for a Realtor to use myspace.co as a way to promote their real estate practice. I have found that the groups are a great way to exchange information about loan programs.
My Group on MySpace, MLS on MySpace, has over 900 real estate professionals as members. It is a place for professional Realtors to publish their listings. Please check it out and see how the MySpace Generation of Realtors is communicating with each other. While you're there, check out my home page and request me as a friend.
My summary of this article is this:
MySpace is not a flash in the pan nor is it a place for sexual predators. With over 120 million users, the bulk of whom will be first-time homebuyers in five years, it is silly not to incorporate this site into your long-term online marketing strategy. 10 years ago, the buzz was "are you on the world wide web?" Today, it's "what's your myspace?"