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Each generation is unique – they react differently to and change what previous generations have done over time. With this understanding in mind, I find it valuable to not only appreciate where our own generation, and those generations before us, has come from, but also what to expect and how to work with the coming generations. Each generation approaches challenges differently and as a result, solutions are obtained differently. That is not to say that one solution is better than another, it is just to make note that if a generation younger than you, for example Generation Y or Z, (your future clients) has a problem – such as finding the right house – how are you going to help them? Will you solve their problem in the way they would expect you to solve it, and not in the way you would naturally solve it?

Each generation tends to favor a different a method of communication. For the Silent Generation it may have been hand-written letters or telephone calls. For Boomers, it may be pagers or cell phones. For Gen X it may be email or Social Media, and for Gen Y it may be text messaging. Each identifies a dominant vehicle. Therefore, reaching out to each generation often requires communication via their preferred platform, for example:

A Gen Y couple is looking to purchase a new home. Having had access to the Internet most of their lives, they decide to do research prior to connecting with an agent. After coming up with possible neighborhood choices, the couple opts for additional research by viewing YouTube videos and online virtual tours of homes for sale. Finding a few homes they like, they send a text message to three agents that have received good online ratings and reviews with an inquiry and contact details.

The first agent, a Boomer who prefers the telephone for communication, receives the text, but treats it like a phone call. The agent calls the couple a few hours later only to get voicemail, and in turn leaves a voice message.

The second agent, a Gen X’er and savvier than the first agent, prefers to use email. The agent sees the text message, uses Outlook and sends the couple an email template together with various attachments providing more information about the area within a few minutes.

The third agent, a Gen Y’er who understands the immediacy of texting, replies within a few seconds with a short cryptic message indicating they’re currently with a client, and points the couple to an interactive web page with the information they need.

Get the drift? What is your “digital body language?” Does your business cater to all generations? Check out the video down below to help illustrate the point. I have also included interesting facts regarding each generation below.

A List of Generations

Here is a breakdown of the births for the last century, its shows you the size of each generation. The Baby Boomers are the largest, with a total of 78 million in the yellow. Second place goes to Generation Y with roughly 73 million. After the graph we have some descriptions for each generation.

The G.I. Generation (1901-1924) – is the generation that includes the veterans who fought in World War II and who came of age during the Great Depression.

The Silent Generation (1925-1945) – born notably during the Great Depression (1929–1939) and World War II (1939–1945), The Silent Generation was raised to expect and ask for little. As such, this generation more readily accepts fate and hard work.

Baby Boomers (1946-1964) – are widely associated with privilege, as many grew up in a time of affluence. Collectively, Boomers are the healthiest, and wealthiest generation to date.

Generation X (1965-1976) – Growing up in a historical span of relative geopolitical peace for the US, this generation saw the inception of the home computer, the rise of video games, cable television and the Internet as a tool for social and commercial purposes.

Generation Y (1977-1994) – With the rise of instant communication technologies (email, texting, and IM) and social outlets (Facebook, Twitter, YouTube) Gen Y has reputation for being somewhat peer-oriented and often finds comfort in virtual cyber-worlds.

Generation Z (1995-current) – Born after the fall of the Soviet Union and the dawn of the World Wide Web, Generation Z is considered to be Internet ready (requiring permanent access to the Internet) and device agnostic (not limited to the home computer or any particular device). Unlike previous generations, Gen Z focuses on being entirely individualistic, partially as a result having been raised with online social networks and Internet freedom.

Rock Concert Commercial [VIDEO]

When you take a look at the video below, think about our perceptions in the different age groups, much like we have just discussed.

About the Author

During the last fourteen years, nineteen-time author Stefan Swanepoel has widely become regarded as the leading researcher on the business and technology trends impacting the real estate industry. For more information on his annual Swanepoel TRENDS Report and the annual Swanepoel SOCIAL MEDIA Report visit www.RETrends.com.

A distracted couple embarks on a three-day visit to Africa. While the husband bemoans the lack of cell phone coverage and is consumed with worry about his business thousands of miles away, his wife becomes immediately immersed in life in the East African plains. Slowly they gain wisdom from the wild animals they encounter and they find themselves revisiting many perspectives they have on business and life. They had not realized that nature has so much to share if one is but willing to listen. By the time they board the plane home, they realize they have learned more about themselves they knew before. They saw people, problems and situations in a different light.

Ask yourself:

* Have you ever woken up one morning and just didn’t feel like facing the day?
* Ever worked with a manager or an employee that didn’t have the skills to something right?
* Do you have a friend or family member that just doesn’t get it?
* Do you have a dream that you wish to pursue but don’t think you will be getting there any time soon?

“You are not alone. Most of us have,” says Swanepoel.

“I don’t have your personal roadmap,” says Swanepoel, “but what I cab provide is an brand new method to discover the untapped skills and wisdom you already have, but may nit have maximized or even discovered.”

Surviving Your Serengeti may actually achieve just that as Swanepoel’s insights do come from having lived in five countries, going on 20 safari’s, serving as CEO managing seven companies and even heading up two non-profit organizations. Add in that Stefan is a gifted storyteller, an energetic presenter and a veteran with over 750 presentations over the last two decades and it’s time to buckle up for the safari ride talk of your life.

Customers pay for services on an as- needed, pay-per-use business model in which the cloud provider maintains the infrastructure, not the individual user. This virtualization of resources won’t, however, occur overnight. The single biggest hurdle to overcome is the difficulty in delivering a standardized environment to all members. This initiative is still at a very early stage of development with Forrester Research estimating that only 5% of companies are currently prepared for cloud deployment.

A major driver of cloud computing is the freedom in mobility, the ability to use Software as a Service (SaaS) like cloud-based email services Gmail and Yahoo! Mail anywhere without having specific hardware with you. In 2009 only 3% of email accounts were in the cloud. By the end of 2012 that number is expected to explode to 10%. Gartner believes that as cloud email offerings are adopted it will pull wireless email implementations into the cloud. Companies like Research In Motion and other wireless email vendors are forming partnerships with cloud providers to address their customers’ cloud needs.

Think of the impact of cloud computing on a typical real estate office as it opens up ways to stay on top of the latest technological advances in the growing demand for data and bandwidth without all the infrastructure cost. The power of the cloud allows the system to pull in data from third-parties to blend data from local MLS systems and websites like Zillow, Google, etc. in order to provide a full spectrum of available real estate data.

About the Author

During the last fourteen years, nineteen-time author Stefan Swanepoel has widely become regarded as the leading researcher on the business and technology trends impacting the real estate industry. For more information on his annual Swanepoel TRENDS Report and the annual Swanepoel SOCIAL MEDIA Report visit www.RETrends.com.

1. It is estimated that 10 blog posts are created every second.
2. If you post once a month, realize that by the time of your next post, some 27 million posts will have been made. If you post weekly, that number is approximately 6 million.

The Connectivity Revolution that has taken place over the past two decades, focused on the development of personal websites, the World Wide Web and Search Engines. In recent years, the focus shifted as users began utilizing social networking. Now, the focus has shifted again, this time to mobile media. People increasingly want to use mobile devices for collaboration; to share content, information and experiences with their communities.

According to the Center for Realtor® Technology, which extends an email survey invitation to 45,000 Realtors®. In 2007, 28% of all Realtors® stated that they were Smartphone users. By the end of 2008 that number increased to 50% and by 2010, it was up to 90%.

Mobile technology is ramping up at a much faster pace that PC technology ever did. Its impact is also expected to be larger than PCs and you already know what PCs did to business and your life in less than two decades. Mobile phones have jumped from simple phone-dialing services to modern Smartphones with the ability to serve as small but powerful, portable computers.

About the Author

During the last fourteen years, nineteen-time author Stefan Swanepoel has widely become regarded as the leading researcher on the business and technology trends impacting the real estate industry. For more information on his annual Swanepoel TRENDS Report and the annual Swanepoel SOCIAL MEDIA Report visit www.RETrends.com.

Adversity often affords us a special opportunity to make a difference in the lives of other people. No other event in 2010 made that more clear to me than the rescuing of the 33-trapped miners after a two-month ordeal underground. Truly inspirational! However why do we frequently wait for a catastrophe to move us into action?

So, now that the clock has struck midnight and we have begun the eleventh year of the 3rd millennium and of the 21st century, I ask myself: “How will I make a difference in 2011?” As of yet, I have no answer. What I do have is a commitment to continuously explore ways over the next 365 days to find the answers.

May 2011 bring us as a global people, and you and your loved one in particular, more happiness, better health, improved prosperity and less natural disasters that 2010…and above all, an opportunity to make a difference!

Top 10 Words/Phrases of 2000-2010

1. Facebook
2. Google
3. Social Media
4. 9/11
5. Foreclosures
6. “There’s an App for that!”
7. Blog
8. iPhone
9. Twitter
10. Green

What an interesting combination with Social Media and related sites taking several of the top 10 spots.

During the last fourteen years, nineteen-time author Stefan Swanepoel has widely become regarded as the leading researcher on the business and technology trends impacting the real estate industry. For more information on his annual Swanepoel TRENDS Report and the annual Swanepoel SOCIAL MEDIA Report visit www.RETrends.com.

In the world of technological leaps, wireless Internet access will be the next obvious accomplishment.

The popularity of portable communication devices is predicted to continue as wireless service increasingly displaces traditional telephone lines. By 2002, wireless service for the Internet will be creating millions of new uses and opportunities. The cellular phone may soon emerge as the ideal Internet access tool and could even displace computers as the Web-connection device of choice by 2005.

And it has!

Mobile technology has enjoyed rapid evolution since its inception nearly 30 years ago. It has jumped from simple phone dialing services to modern Smartphones with the ability to serve as a small but powerful, portable computers. Since the first portable cellular phones were introduced in the early 1980s, the technology has blasted its way into everyday life with a vengeance.

UTILIZATION

Over the past two decades how consumers utilize the Internet has greatly changed and now with the inclusion of mobile Internet platforms they are changing again. With the increasing prevalence of location-based services, applications are rapidly and dramatically developing both inside and outside the real estate industry. With the addition of web usage, calendars, email, MLS, etc, to mobile devices, Realtors® can now multi-task anywhere, changing communication from a one directional request to a back-and-forth discussion involving the simultaneous exchange of data.

TODAY

To offer a little perspective on data, Mobile phone usage has risen in the U.S. from 200,000 users in 1985 to over 285 million users by the end of 2010. So as we begin the second decade of the 21st Century with more than nine out of every ten Americans using cell phones as a part of daily life.

Even more intriguing, is that ABI Research estimates by 2015, Smartphones and connected computing devices (such as tethered laptops) will contribute to an incredible 87% of all U.S. mobile network data traffic.

Trends are in many cases predictable. The more you read, study and research, the more likely you are to spot the shifts occurring. That’s what we do.

About the Author

During the last fourteen years, nineteen-time author Stefan Swanepoel has widely become regarded as the leading researcher on the business and technology trends impacting the real estate industry. For more information on his annual Swanepoel TRENDS Report and the annual Swanepoel SOCIAL MEDIA Report visit www.RETrends.com.

It’s only 90 second long so please watch it, subscribe and “Like” it and then let me know what you think. I am really very anxious to get your feedback!

Thanks and happy holidays!
Stefan

Business Book by Stefan Swanepoel. Surviving Your Serengeti: 7 Skills to Succeed in Business & Life