Tue 7 Oct 2008
September - In the know
In marketing, there's no 'one size fits all' rule - a fact developers should remember when they're marketing their latest scheme for its so-called 'lifestyle' benefits. Cheryl Markosky takes a closer look at Newhall's 'back to basics' approach.Marketing Britain's new homes can be regarded as a highly complex process. There can be a tendency to over-examine what works and what doesn't, amid a deal of speculation that your rival has discovered the Holy Grail of how to pull in customers and finalise a deal.
Even after a lot of naval gazing, most developers ignore their deliberations, which are often on a par with exploration by an archaeological professor, and settle on the latest 'trend'. This 'trends' invariably involve that dreaded word 'lifestyle', rather than trumpeting 'here is a good house where you might want to live'.
As this month's marketing campaign of the month reveals, selling a house to the general public in these troubled times needn't be a full-blown Indiana Jones crusade. In a slower market, perhaps sticking to what you believe can reap more benefits than gussied-up images with no link to reality.
In 1963, the American 'father of modern advertising' - Fairfax Cone from agency Foot, Cone and Belding - declared "advertising is what you do when you can't go see somebody. That's all it is."
Keeping this and other straightforward concepts in mind, it is good to see that Jon and William Moen, the guys behind the 2,800-home scheme at Newhall just outside Harlow, Essex, have not been seduced by glammed-up campaigns featuring frozen-smiled models posing petulantly in their penthouses. The public, particularly in the current market, is not fooled by such images and want straightforward, honest approaches to convince them to part with their cash.
Newhall's sales and marketing consultant Matthew Byatt, who once worked for Laing Homes, says Newhall is a long project that will take about 25 years to complete. "We won't be in and out in six months, like many other housebuilders," he explains. "So we need to make sure the destination is always fresh."
To gauge the public perception of Newhall and its separate phases involving a variety of architects and developers, Newhall commissioned focus groups through Pentagram Design (which lists Marks & Spencer and The Guardian among its clients) and held a creative workshop for Newhall's PR, advertising agency and web design company.
"We wanted to make sure what we are doing is right, so we locked all the creatives in a room for a day to brainstorm and we listened to what the focus groups said as well," says Byatt.
The team has decided to stick to their guns. "One respondent spoke passionately of Newhall, saying it is like Marmite and you either get it or you don't," Byatt points out. "Luckily, most people get it."
Giles Calver from Calver Roots and Madge facilitated the creative workshop. "We asked what is the Newhall brand and what does community mean in the 21st century. By overlaying exit surveys on what came out of the workshop, we realised we're branding a place where there is a whole set of associations in place. People see the value of Newhall, which is different from other developments."Harry Pearce from Pentagram Design came up with an unusual way to show the site for many years through the variety of architecture. "The proportions and grids for graphics are taken from the actual proportions of the buildings - the windows, doors and floor plans - which doesn't follow the normal pattern in brochures.
"Wherever we go with the architecture, the design will always be as fresh as the buildings themselves. My work is defined by what they are and always will be utterly truthful and endless changing."
The commitment conveyed by the Moen brothers (who say they have a responsibility to the place because their family lived there) to make this a true neighbourhood is reflected in the latest campaign for North Chase by Newhall Projects Ltd. Four architects, including Richard Murphy and ECD Architects, are building well-thought-out homes in a green setting to a masterplan by Roger Evans Associates.
The clean stylised and simple presentation in brochures, posters and the website emphasises the award-winning development - accolades have come in from What House? (netting Best House last year) as well as RIBA and CABE - in a low-key and direct way. Headlines like 'Newhall is a breath of fresh air' and 'Urban chic finds a new home in the countryside' tell you what you need to know.
Byatt says they have not neglected the local market. "Sixty per cent of our buyers are local, because a lot of people moved out to Harlow from London's East End during the Blitz. So, we went back to basics, producing a four-page wraparound for the local paper. All those trendy unsolicited emails didn't work - and nor would other tecchie suggestions like CD Roms and memory sticks."
Byatt says another good idea was a 48-sheet poster at Tottenham Hale station where many people pass through from Cambridge to Liverpool Street. "We even had people standing in front of it ring us up saying, 'Tell me more.'"
Spurning campaigns of couples cuddling and children running, Byatt says the North Chase and main Newhall websites have been simplified. "Before, the bounce rate was high, because people didn't get it. Now, the North Chase site is more interactive and fun, while Newhall is a library with in-depth elements."
Dominik Webb from digital agency largeblue digital says there are more visuals now after stripping everything back on the website. "People don't understand master-planning. The site was really directed more at architects than buyers - so we have toned some things down."The aptly named Webb says that mainly due to time constraints, "we tried to make the brochure into a website for North Chase, but it didn't work. There were too many areas, and too much text. Now it is about what you are buying and what you get. The site is more direct, more fun and tactile with some animation thrown in."
Advertising guru Jo Crace from Fat Toad Design in Hertfordshire believes it is important not to cloud the message with extraneous bits and pieces. "These are exceptionally well-designed homes of a high-quality finish, so we needed to maintain the integrity of the brand."
Crace made sure Newhall's advertising emphasised community aspects, location and sustainability. "Specific site advertising centres round the architecture itself, which is very striking."
Ads taken out in the Sunday Times were small (10 x 2s), so the message had to be extremely simple. "We just said it was a good location for commuters, and here are the travel times into London." Crace opted for very strong colours - oranges, pinks and greens - which work well on web ads as well.
There is always something new to say at Newhall with top architects and designers involved. The Moens are now looking at new ways to recycle and planting trees in the middle of the road (a deliberate blurring between the road and pavement, minimising conventional road markings, according to CABE), says public relations consultant Lucy Matthews.
Refreshingly, Newhall operates the other way round to its rivals. 'Newhall is design-led with architects empowered over the developer, so case studies are always enthusiastic about living here because it is an inspiring place,' adds Matthews. You could even say they might have found the Holy Grail of property. One only hopes the Indiana Jones's of the future will be just as pleased when they unearth Newhall in years to come.
Posted by Show House
in Calver Roots and Madge, Campaign of the Month, Dominik Webb, ECD Architects, Fairfax Cone, Fat Toad Design, Foot, Cone and Belding, Giles Calver, Harry Pearce, Jo Crace, largeblue digital, Lucy Matthews, Matthew Byatt, Pentagram Design, Richard Murphy, Roger Evans Associates on Tue 7 Oct 2008
Have your say and comment on this article