10 ways to make new developments stand out from the crowd

November 20, 2020 / Isla MacFarlane
10 ways to make new developments stand out from the crowd

New build homes with the right sales and marketing strategies have continued to sell well during the second national lockdown. New build consultant, Jamie Lester of Jamie Lester Properties, provides his top tips on how developers can make their homes stand out from the crowd online.

Refresh your listing on property portals

If buyers weren’t looking at the internet first, they most certainly will be now. Refresh portal listings and your website with up to date information, brochures, videos, aerial views and impressive imagery. If a listing has been up for over six weeks, it’s too old in the mind of a buyer.

Offer virtual tours

Make sure virtual tours are available. Whether using advanced technology or call messenger apps such as FaceTime and WhatsApp, the results will be more qualified leads and more serious buyers when they’re visiting your homes physically for the first time.

Do a secret shop

Ask a friend or business contact to secretly shop at the development, to find out what experience they receive. It’s the quickest way to pick up on any issues with your sales team or the marketing suite that might otherwise go unnoticed.

Listen and act on feedback

Deal with any issues straight away – it’s easy to ignore, but there’s never been a better time to make changes. Even small things can make a big different to a buyer’s experience, so fix the details.

Maximise marketing suites and show homes

If somebody visits your marketing suite, meet and greet, sit them down and ask them a few questions. For example, why are they there? What do they know about the developer? Then tell them a bit more about the development itself – why it’s there and what inspired you to build it. Take them round your show home – not an empty property.

Talk to them about the specification, open the kitchens and bathrooms, show them exactly what they are buying. Once they have had a good look around, ask them if they want to buy it. If the answer is ‘yes’, then you stand in good stead – and just need to find the right unit for them. If they say ‘no,’ ask them politely why not, and see if you can fix the problem.

Engage the senses

Engage your buyers’ senses – smell, sight, touch, hearing and taste. Small things like scented candles, soft cushions and great coffee can make a big difference.

Strike while your leads are hot

If a potential buyer clicks on your website or a property portal, call them back within 60 seconds. It’s great customer service and gets you talking to buyers when their heads are in the property zone, rather than being distracted by something else.

Review your marketing tools

Think about how you and your sales team are making buyers feel when they’re looking at your brand, your marketing suite and website. Are they inspired and excited or do they feel put off? It doesn’t matter how many boxes you are trying to tick – price, number of bedrooms, size and so on – if buyers aren’t feeling it, they’re definitely not buying it. Pleasure from a website that works brilliantly, inspiration from a stunning marketing suite, joy from a sales team that ask all the right questions and speak the buyer’s language can go a long way.

Also look objectively at your branding, website, emails, marketing suite, brochure and social media – is everything working as hard as it could, and does it all feel like it’s part of the same journey? If not, it’s time to fix the details.

Ask the right questions 

Sometimes a simple question can make all the difference – when you follow up on bookings, ask ‘what do you think it’s worth?’ Once someone starts thinking about what they might pay for it, they’re thinking about buying it. Try it and treble your sales!

Don’t forget to encourage your sales team 

If you want to reward your team for their effort, you need to make an effort. Choose incentives that show how well you know and appreciate your people. It doesn’t cost anymore, but it can make a big difference to how hard your team push to hit their targets.

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