Psychologist Abraham Maslow’s hierarchy of needs pyramid was proposed in 1943.
It is a classification system which takes the universal basic needs of humans as its base level, proceeding upwards to less pressing physical concerns. The inverted pyramid is as follows:
- Physiological needs: food, water, warmth, rest
- Safety needs: security and protection
- Belongingness and love needs: intimate relationships and friendships
- Esteem needs: prestige, feeling of accomplishment
- Self-actualisation: achieving one’s full potential including creative activities.
The system is used to study motivation in behavioral psychology.
Canadian real estate listings portal Zolo analysed one million real estate listings on their site to find the words most frequently used.
The following graph shows the most common ‘power words’ used in listings.
“You know that moment when you read a listing and it immediately triggers an emotional response? That’s the beauty of power words,” explains Romana King, Director of Content at Zolo.
“When used effectively, power words can stimulate a vision of what life will look like when a buyer moves into your listed home.”
Similarly, ‘imagery’ words are the more evocative descriptors that agents use in their listings.
“In real estate, certain trigger words grab the attention of prospective home buyers, create a sense of urgency, and promote exclusivity,” notes Ms King.
As you can see below, most of the commonly-used words slot in nicely to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs.
A home is often the single largest investment a buyer will make, so it helps to address their needs – basic and otherwise – in your listing, to ensure they will feel an inherent connection to the property you’re selling.
