We've hit a wall. Our industry that is.
Homebuilder
sentiment in the United States is at an all-time low and home sales in
both countries continue their downward trend. The secret ingredient to
success, whichever side of the border you're on, lies in your unique
ability to capture the information of the few prospective purchasers
walking through the door. Some do it better than others but overall,
most would agree its purely a numbers game. Or is it?
Day by day, month
by month, its becoming increasingly difficult to capture highly coveted
+ personal "contact information" from the few prospective purchasers we
see. Blame it on the internet, the spam messages in their inboxes or
the obnoxious furniture salesman they wish they never gave their email
address to. Yes, the world has changed and everyone from the first-time
homebuyer to to the empty-nester and every purchaser in between is
reluctant to give up their contact information.
Expect More. Get Less?
Could that really be
it? I was meeting with one of our area's most respected builders the
other day. We talked about the market slowing down. We talked about the
decrease in traffic to show homes and we talked about the the lack of
show home visitors that are registering when they walk in the door. It's
happening everywhere but why? If their time spent in your show home or
open house was great and they liked what they saw, wouldn't they want to
receive more information from your talented + polished sales team? Even
the best sales executives these days are having a difficult time
getting prospective, interested purchasers to give up the goods.
Some chalk it up
to a sense of entitlement among show home visitors but I'm thinking its
more along the lines of a lack of excitement + experience provided. They
walk through the door with high expectations and walk out disappointed
or at best, marginally amused. In the end, who's to blame? They expected
more (an experience) and felt they got less (the same thing they got at
your competitor’s show home next door). You expected more (their
contact info) and got less (a friendly "thanks + goodbye"). At the end
of the day, the customer is always right--even when you have no idea who
they are!
Experience Engagement.
Times have changed.
The recent downturn combined with communications technologies evolving
at warp-speed, have changed the game as we know it. They want more from
us. We expect more from them. Seems like a fair compromise doesn't it?
How can we get
more when we're not even getting the basics now? We think its not only
reasonable, but very realistic. Prospective purchasers who take the
time to visit your show home will tell you more if you give them more.
It's not about higher-end furnishings, better staging, more signage or a
slicker sales person. It has everything to do with the experience in
which each of your guests are engaged in. From the moment they walk
through the door to the moment they leave. Create a memorable, unique
show home experience and they'll be falling over each other to give you
their prized contact info.
The reason for
this post stems from our recent ThinkTank sessions at our company's
Collaboration Centre in Calgary. We're more than embracing our niche of
real estate building + development--we're working to make it better. The
problem resonates with most of our clients so we'd be fools to not try
and find a solution. Without giving it all away, the team has been hard
at work on some incredible Prospective Purchaser Pathing Strategies
(PPPS) + technology solutions for the ever-challenging show home
experience. No matter where you are, what you build or who you're trying
to sell to, who doesn't want to be able to "wow" prospective purchasers
and not just get their contact info, but create a "fan" and future
owner of our brand + our homes. Stay tuned. We've got some exciting
experiences brewing.
-jason
#passiondrivessuccess
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