How important is creating a show home to sell new homes?
Working with new entrants to the world of property sales I regularly hear….
ʺWe don’t need a show home, there’s no budget available.…ʺ or ʺWe can create our own show home…I’m quite good at interior design…ʺ There is of course a perception that show homes are very expensive (they can be!) and that it must be easy to create a show home but the real value of creating a beautiful space to welcome prospective buyers is often under-valued.
Remember that buyers shop with their eyes and hearts. A prospective buyer walking around a well-designed show home creates an essential connection with the home and can prompt them to take the next step in the process of owning a new home.
Take the time to walk a mile in the buyer’s shoes: what’s it really like to interact with your sales team? Make sure that you understand the buyers’ experience – from their first online impression to the sales pitch and closing. Where will you conduct your sales appointments without a show home? Inviting your buyers and customers into your new show home and giving them a guided tour excites them, makes them feel special, part of something, a new community, an opportunity to meet neighbours. It’s a special time.
Partnering with the right interior designers: developing a show is a valuable part of your marketing mix and will ultimately increase sales revenue if done correctly. Your show home must be suitable for your target audience and requires a clear brief for your designer. If you don’t know the local market where you are developing, do your research. You need to have a good all-round knowledge and insight as to what your buyer’s aspirations are and what will make them fall in love with your homes.
Having worked with several amazing interior designers over the years it is vital that you partner with a handful of trusted designers. Working with designers that understand the profile of buyers in the neighbourhoods where you work is a bonus, being able to create an impressive show home or sales office on a budget is important as housing associations are often operating within limited marketing budgets. Understanding what is on trend and what will appeal to your target market is important in creating the wow factor. One design doesn’t fit all markets and demographics. Fiona Woodward-Kelly, an interior designer says “key to the design of a show home is to enhance the spaces in the home giving potential buyers a sense of well-being as well as be an aid to help them visualise how they could use the rooms. Empty rooms tend to look small until a bed or sofa is placed in it and then the scale of the space is more easy to see. I also try to maximise the light in each room with carefully selected decoration and colour choice.”
The main benefits of creating a show home:
Sales tool – a show home gives you the best sales aid you can have. A beautifully dressed show home that has appropriate furnishings and accessories to appeal to your market and suitable for the size and price tag of your home is important.
You will attract local carpet treaders, potential time wasters – but do offer them a warm welcome. Why? Because they will talk about your show home and development with their friends and neighbours. Recommendation by word of mouth is one of your best routes to market, an important element of the marketing mix.
Boosts sales – there is no doubt that on a show home launch weekend there is always a real buzz as current buyers and prospective buyers visit your show home for the first time.
For prospective buyers, the show home can show buyers the value of owning a brand new home. By educating those on the direct impact it can have on their everyday lives will make a positive impact on reservation levels.
My client Gecko Homes has just launched their new show home at Park View, Gorton last weekend, beautifully designed by Fiona at Woodward-Kelly. With viewings fully booked for both opening days and forward bookings secured this has been an important event in the sales calendar. In addition, there has been a constant flow of casual visitors keen to take a look at the new homes. The first opening weekend has secured an increase of 25% in sales reservations and plenty more prospective buyers.
Customer experience – you must understand that the buyers’ perception is everything. Buyers are influenced by two factors: How you as a business are currently perceived in the market and how your competitors are perceived. Your show home will help reinforce positive messages about your company and its brand.
Furthermore, being able to meet with buyers in a nice comfortable setting supports the customer journey. It generates a buzz and excitement for newly reserved buyers whilst creating buy in as their excitement builds for move in day.
The show home launch weekend brings together specialist Mortgage Advisors such as Metro Finance and sales staff all under one roof. The customer leaves the visit being fully qualified and committed to their purchase.
Work place – the show home provides a useable sales office and pleasant working environment for sales staff. A pleasant change from the office and an environment that they can be proud of.
Brand development – your show home is like a shop window into your organisation. It reinforces the brand of both the Housing Association and the actual development scheme as buyers can see the build quality and the design of the properties in a beautifully presented way. It helps develop the brand with the use of photos of the show home that can be used in all marketing material such as website, social media, adverts etc.
PR opportunity – the opportunities to promote your organisation are multi-faceted. A show home provides an excellent opportunity to show case your development team and raise the profile of their work, quality of construction, and promote shared ownership as a route to home ownership. There’s an enormous amount of opportunity for positive news stories. For example, photo opportunities of first buyers moving in, engagement with the local community (schools, community groups, neighbours), VIP events showcasing the first homes complete and buyers moving into their new home.
The Gecko Homes experience
My client Southway Housing Trust fully understand the importance of creating a beautiful show home at their development in Gorton. As a new provider of homes for sale they have created a fantastic platform for them to continue to achieve sales success at their development, further develop their brand and create a new community that they can be proud of.
Wendy Perkins, Head of Development says “seeing the show home for the first time was really exciting, it brought all the hard work to life and demonstrated all the potential of this fantastic development. It made the bricks and mortar into homes, a place that customers can visualise themselves living in. The power of that alone is something that will definitely drive sales, making it a living, breathing prospect that customers can fully imagine themselves being part of. The design, quality and professionalism demonstrated by the home only helps strengthen our reputation within the sector.”
Finally, if you are still in doubt, think about your buyers. You need to speak the buyers’ language for them to engage with you. Spark their emotions! Buyers want a home, not a house. They want to live in a neighbourhood, not a project. They want to be part of their community, not the development. A show home can help your buyers emotionally connect with your organisation, your homes and the local community.
LWC can support your development and sales programmes by developing comprehensive, fully integrated marketing and sales strategies. This includes the delivery of show homes and sales offices for your new housing developments by working with trusted and experienced suppliers.
To find out more about Lisa Westerman Consultancy Ltd (LWC) and ways in which we can help support your development programme, visit www.lwcl.co.uk or email lisa.westerman@lwcl.co.uk