With the shifts in the real estate industry, marketing plans need to be extremely precise and strategic to remain effective. Gone are the days of a simple branding campaign or a division-wide message distributed across a few platforms. Crafting a compelling divisional marketing plan for each community improves sales results, creates efficiencies in the sales process, and increases profitability by ensuring the right prospects receive the correct information through the proper channels.
Audience Segmentation
Understanding the market and buyer perspective is paramount to crafting a strategic marketing plan. Conducting a thorough review of your product offering relative to the competitive landscape allows you to identify your Target Consumer Profile (TCP). This becomes the lens that everything at the community level is viewed. Each community for a given builder, even within the same division or area, should have its own unique marketing strategy.
Messaging Design
With the TCP identified, the next step is determining what message to communicate. Identifying key features of high value and importance to these prospective buyers is a must. You will need to review which features hold such value within the fields of area, builder, community, neighborhood, lifestyle, floor plan, features, homesite, and terms. These generally culminate in the process in which you form your Unique Selling Propositions or Value Propositions. In addition, be sure to keep current incentives and promotions top of mind for these prospects.
Marketing Activities
With ideal buyers and corresponding messaging finalized, the last strategic planning step is determining the most suitable distribution method. Delivery needs to take place at both the field and corporate levels. Sales agents can execute community-specific marketing initiatives by analyzing where the TCP lives, works, and interacts and use those locations and businesses to help distribute the composed messaging. Strategies should also be devised for procuring referrals and engaging with the local Realtor network. Home builder marketing teams can utilize their budget, reach, and resources to complement these field-level projects and prioritize digital marketing efforts. Community-specific social media content, search engine optimization, and other TCP-specific media placement such as signage, billboards, magazines, etc., should be considered for efficacy. All marketing efforts should feature a call to action, usually a prompt to either contact a sales agent or visit the builder website for more information.
Utilizing your social media platforms and posting regularly is a great way to strengthen your marketing efforts. Digital advertisement has risen tremendously over the past few years, and it’s become more important than ever to tap into this online network. Consider creating Facebook groups with Realtors around the local area, posting reels on Instagram, or advertising any upcoming initiatives on LinkedIn, to name a few. Be sure to follow your state’s guidelines for disclosure of brokerage when advertising on social media.
Refining Your Strategy
Analyze traffic patterns weekly, particularly demographics’ current addresses and primary lead sources, to determine if the community marketing plan drives the desired prospect results. Additionally, review the sales being made at the same timeframe to ensure the TCP is converting to contract at a higher rate than other traffic types. Evaluate elements of the plan that were less effective and capitalize on components that proved to be successful. This reflection stage can be the most complicated and often overlooked, but without it, measuring the effectiveness of a community marketing plan can be extremely difficult. Continue refining this strategy as shifts happen and you realize what works best in your division.
