This presentation focuses on the best practices in digital marketing and how new home builders can make customers excited about planning for and owning a new home. Presenters include Marc Lamoureux, President and Co-founder at Alpha Vision, Kendra Sanchez, Marketing Manager at Pacific Communities, and Nico Nitti from Nitti Development. John Galante, President of AE Ventures, facilitates the discussion.
Marc goes over key concepts and platform examples that builders are using today, while Kendra and Nico discuss effective implementation of marketing strategies. “It’s often the case when buyers look at a map, they will see a community that has barely started. What we do with Zillow is quite simple and quite affordable as well. What we do is superimpose a graphic of the community over the Zillow map in Zillow, so now you get a sense of a finished community rather than seeing a piece of dirt, which makes a big difference,” notes Marc when discussing how Zillow can be used to inform and excite new home buyers.
Kendra, who works at Pacific Communities, talks about the advantage that Zillow has when it comes to competing with used homes. “Used homes on Zillow are pretty inaccurate compared to the new homes, people are mostly looking for remodeled fixer uppers and they believe that the cost is cheaper, with new homes you have everything that is brand new,” she says. “It’s just a more cost-effective way to purchase.” Kendra provides examples of how her company’s properties compete with used homes and are able to utilize advantages like videos and virtual tours.
Nico shares how his sales team manages the client experience. His company, Nitti Development, is both a home builder and developer operating primarily in Chicago’s suburbs, with projects throughout Glen Ellyn, Elmhurst, Geneva and more. “Our biggest tool for our sales team is Alpha Center,” he says. Nico explains how his sales team uses Alpha Center to provide information to customers and make them excited about their individualized homes. “People really get into the ability to do this,” he says.
The group discusses how home builders navigate the complicated world of customer preferences and custom building, and the many benefits associated with using advanced tool sets and technology to promote new homes.
