Keeping Sales Process Momentum Positive Over the Holidays

2019 Market is Strong Heading into the Holidays

We're just about to arrive in a double whammy environment for new home sales: less than optimal weather and many competing activities.

The weather might be frightful but ...

Yet, the overall market is positive: website visits are up, sales traffic is up, 2019 sales results are good.

How to keep the momentum going through the next several months?

Home Shoppers are in Your Office Because They're Interested!

A good first step is embracing the idea that home shoppers are visiting your community because they're interested in buying one of your homes... in many cases, today!

It's true: the weather might very well be frightful (while that is probably true in Minnesota, there are other locations where the weather is much better than July!).

And, recognize the power of inviting; take advantage of the holidays and your locale for inspiration. Hot apple cider makes any location seem like home! Add some fresh smelling citrus to up the scent if you're in a warmer climate! A fresh, new look and feel is contagious... and inviting!

Work Your CRM to Drive Traffic

Did you have a chance to read our Top Performer Blog? Our most effective CPS CRM sales manager's tip for success was persistence with follow-up. 

This Top Performer kept in touch with "his team" using his CPS CRM database -- and there's no better time to reach out than today. Invite "your team" over for holiday treats, coordinate a wine tasting, support a fundraiser for a local food bank. You're working to be "top of mind" for your team and any of their friends and family considering a new home.

After All, You're Prospecting for the Long Haul!

That's a Jeff Shore theme: top performers work the small things over and over. Ryan Taft is one of Jeff's sales trainers; he produced a great Blog reinforcing the small and consistent message:

1. Do it! (that is: start now!)
2. Personalize the Heck Out of It! (and the holidays make this pretty easy!)
3. Be Consistent! (get started, now; keep at it after January 1!)

Consider New Tools in 2020!

Take a look at the IBS2020 Buyer Guide: CPS is listed as a member of the 25 Year Exhibitors Club! 

We're persistent: we're actually celebrating 35 Years as a software vendor to the homebuilding industry! Join us in Booth SU631 and see how our persistence can help you sell more homes, build more profitably and provide more responsive customer care!

How to: Offer a Great Home Shopper Experience!

It's Competitive Out There!

Website visits are up, sales office traffic is increasing, 2018 sales are good.

SalesTouch: Differentiating Your Brand with Information

While these stats suggest a positive market, the marked increase in customer touch points and a growing need to standout in a crowded marketplace creates a highly competitive environment.

It's a Consumer-Driven Environment

There's an increasing emphasis on providing a consumer "experience" -- which Retail Customer Experience tells us is set to overtake price and product as a key brand differentiator by 2020.

But.. what adds up to make a great customer experience?

There's Information and then.. there's a Relationship

There's absolutely no doubt that home shoppers want to be able to (1) go and look at a product; (2) evaluate quality and (3) understand the product before buying.

Sales agents are an important part of the home shopper customer experience: they offer the direct, personal relationship surrounding the purchase. Importantly, a good agent, suggests Amy O'Connor, a sales trainer in Jeff Shore's organization, helps the home shopper achieve clarity and certainty regarding the purchase.  Your agent is going to want to determine the home shoppers needs and demonstrate how your product meets those needs.

Personalize the Experience

Today's home shopper -- Millennial or Boomer -- wants to examine alternatives, analyze the lifestyle and dream.  Listening is important -- as is providing tools to understanding the product. 

Take a look at CPS' interactive touchscreen system, SalesTouch: it offers a unique journey through the customer experience. 

What's your home shopper's particular need? Lower level master? Place for the baby grand? Close-by recreation? Home shoppers using SalesTouch take advantage of a unique process called narrowcasting: every home shopper can locate and examine the information that will help them make a decision.  In the order they want, at the time they want and in the desired detail. Throwing out a wide net, hoping it meets everyone's needs is no longer.

With so many consumers seeking the ability to gain clarity and information before they purchase, the race is on to offer personalized experiences.  SalesTouch provides that differentiating experience that makes your brand stand out!

How to: Make Your Digital Signage Resonate

Today's customers -- especially those shopping for big ticket items such as homes and autos -- expect an experience that's on-demand and engaging. What can your digital signage project do to meet customer expectations and maximize impact?

Make Your Digital Signage Relevant to the Sale

Do you know your customers? Are you speaking their language? Boomers and Millennials, for example, are  different and unique in both their shopping and buying habits.  What is exciting and a reason to purchase for one may not be for the other. Boomers frequently want to comparison shop and examine purchase alternatives in detail.  Millennials work at warp speed, expect answers quickly and typically examined the alternatives before showing up in your office. 

Such differences don't mean your digital signage should be focused on a single group but... be aware of your audience when designing and be consistent in your approach.

Does Your Digital Signage Jump Above the Noise?

Get Above the Noise

On one hand, we don't really mean noise but... on the other, we do. Every location has noise -- people's voices, phones, construction activity and the like. Try to design your sales area so physical noise doesn't interrupt.

What we're really talking about, however, is visual distraction. Is your signage viewable as soon as a shopper enters? Is it visually engaging? Will it stop a visitor in their tracks? Are similar visuals distracting from the shopper's ability to focus on the digital presentation? 

Take a look at the Minto Harbour Isle interactive touchscreen image: doesn't it grab your attention and make you want to jump in and find out more? 

Make Sure Self-Serve is Enabled

It's frequently said today's buyer is in a rush and easily distracted. That may seem to be the case but keep in mind that today's expectations are shaped by other transactions. They're used to, for example, self-service via phone and website. 

Interactive Encourages Consumers to Get Engaged 

Shoppers want to jump into content and find answers. That doesn't mean sales agents are irrelevant; it does mean that shoppers will search for relevant information and then turn to salespeople for confirmation and the sale. 

Interactive digital content provides the on-demand, engaging customer experience that resonates with today's consumer. Interactive actively encourages shoppers to engage and locate their unique decision factors, on-demand. How would my home look with the optional study, where is the closest high school, are there yoga studios close by? 

Interested in exploring how CPS can help you create digital signage that resonates with your home shoppers, offering interactive content designed specifically to your target audience? Contact us here!

Marketing Focus: The Live-Work Lifestyle

Are you familiar with the phrase Live-Work Lifestyle?  According to a recent BuilderOnLine article, this term, particularly popular with Millennial workers, pairs telecommuting with opportunities for connection.

Many of us are familiar with telecommuting or working remote without a "typical" office to go to on a regular schedule.

SalesTouch provides focus on Flex Space options

But, BuilderOnLine suggests today's remote worker also wants to incorporate the element of seeking out camaraderie.

Not every telecommuter can or wants to live in an urban area. Housing prices as well as the need for larger living spaces, good schools, recreation and the like mean many remote workers are moving out to the suburbs suggesting home builders find creative ways to satisfy the demand for a vibrant lifestyle outside the city. 

In other words, telecommuting and flexible work options (such as 4x10 work weeks) are changing what home shoppers want not only in a home but in the neighborhood, as well. 

Take a look at the top image: CPS' SalesTouch in use at Cornerstone Communities new Agave neighborhood in North County San Diego displays structural features such as the optional Flex Space providing the home shopper with the home office so often needed for remote work.

SalesTouch highlights walkability

And, now take a look at the lower image: SalesTouch provides an interactive, pinch to zoom surrounding area map highlighting neighborhood locations meeting lifestyle objectives in the KBHome Reunion area. Those objectives can range from walkability as well as "work away from home" locations such as the library or Starbucks plus dining options and recreation hot spots such as parks, trails and dog walks!

Lifestyle marketing, in other words, is expanding as the interest in live/work options grows!

Exploring Lifestyle When Marketing Homes to 55+ Shoppers

There's an eye-catching article in the recent Builderonline.com: Remember Wine is Divine When Selling to 55-Plus.

Marketing to 55+: Let's Talk Celebration!

Who could resist a deep dive to read the article after seeing that headline?

Author Deryl Patterson talks about incorporating wine into home design, the sales center and community club house and suggests boomers look at wine differently than other generations. Wine, Patterson says, is more than a beverage -- it's a universal symbol for celebration.

He takes that point further in his marketing to 55+ buyers: make it fun! These buyers are looking for something more than square footage, number of bedrooms and whether or not there's a basement lot available.  This home purchase is about their next life step and realized lifestyle.

It makes sense to help home shoppers visualize the lifestyle available within your community: let them virtually explore community amenities and the surrounding neighborhood.  Focus on the lifestyle options: recreation, shopping, dining, community involvement opportunities.

CPS' SalesTouch provides an engaging and informative exploration with a touchscreen-based presentation.  Community amenities and neighborhood points of interest can be explored at a touch -- with visually engaging photos, video and copy. Engage your buyers with the vision!  It might be sailing at one community -- and the rodeo at another!

While not everyone is a wine drinker, in other words: everyone loves a celebration!

Creating Effective Customer Experiences Using Technology

Take a look at the photo attached to this blog: doesn't it seem that the technology employed at the sales office is doing its job? The home shoppers are comfortably engaged in exploring and finding out more about the product!

CPS SalesTouch: Helping home shoppers engage and interact!

And, doesn't that statement address what James Bickers, Contributing Editor at DigitalSignageToday.com suggests are the goals of a successful customer experience:

• accomplish the task at hand; and
• make the customer feel good about how it is accomplished.

Bickers goes on to say that the task (in this case, introducing home shoppers to a new community, its amenities and floor plans) might be to speed up a transaction, solve a problem or... just give the customer a great time. 

We'd like to think the SalesTouch interactive presentation meets all three of these objectives in an engaging, easy-to-use manner.  Bickers goes on to say:

Customers are increasingly aware of the physical and emotional context in which products and services are delivered.  This is the customer experience -- and it is something businesses ignore at their own peril. 

Fall Homebuyers: Yes; they're out there!

Agents might think the home buying season is over once the calendar turns into October.  It's getting darker sooner -- and cooler, there's all sorts of school and sports programs underway and home shopper traffic might seem few and far between.

And, buyers could mistakenly assume if they buy in the Fall they won't see much progress on their home before cold, rain and snow potentially slow construction progress -- and waiting until prime buying season in the Spring could seem reasonable.

Get visual in your storytelling! Make interest rates & process more relevant.

But, says Builderonline in a recent article, "Fall and Winter are a great time to start working with a builder."  After all, much of today's new home sales are "built to order" requiring the "upfront planning and legwork that goes into a new construction home," according to Brian Brunhofer of Meritus Homes.

What can an agent do today to bring today's home shopper to a purchase decision?

Tell your story effectively: Interest rates are bumping around all time lows today.  It is fair to think they aren't going to get any lower. And, today's buyer is that much closer to reaping green benefits!  Use your touchscreen system to calculate payments, illustrate green benefits -- and remember women and millennials two "green leaning" demographics!

Explain your process: While some buyers are interested in a "quick delivery" home, most will be a part of the standard process including approvals, permits, structural option decisions, design center selections.  Let them know your 8-point process or 15 steps to home purchase -- build their confidence in your organization and how the process will create a positive result.  If you can do this visually, all the better as women appreciate creative story-telling.

Get into Process 2.0: Brunhofer suggests that builders are just starting to finalize 2016 vendor bids and many will adjust their home prices reflecting increased costs.  Once buyers understand the time frame involved and the process, suggesting a purchase today is consistent with your story. Show them your construction schedule; introduce them to a Buyer Portal with schedule updates as well as stage of construction photos.

Work Your Co-op Program: Many areas see co-op agents bring in most of their traffic; do you have an established co-op program?  Such a program helps bring in traffic -- and it also helps with co-op sales.  Offer to put your home shopper in touch with one of your co-op program participants; help them understand Spring selling time frames and let them coordinate what is needed for a summer move-in.

Remember: there are all sorts of touch points associated with the buying process.  Information gathering is critical for many of today's buyers -- especially millennials.  Visual presentations and storytelling are key for women shoppers.  Take advantage of the slower traffic season to strengthen the tools necessary in today's market!

Interactive Touchscreens: Branding Dives Deeper than Marketing

Previously, we've talked about how using an interactive touchscreen system at a sales or leasing office or a welcome center provides builders and developers with a unique branding opportunity. 

Branding:  providing benefits to customers

Branding is at the core of a business' marketing strategy.  More than logos, colors, web designs, sales office styling... branding reflects your business purpose, values and culture.

How do those big picture concepts get translated to an interactive touchscreen? We've always said SalesTouch is more than a pretty face -- although the introductory screen presented here is certainly attractive! 

Is your market first-time buyers? Your home shoppers might not be familiar with your community or the surrounding neighborhood or the financing process .  They're just getting started in the purchase decision process: let them engage and explore using the touchscreen.  Storytelling is key for this demographic!

Now to the opposite buyer profile: 55+ buyers: they're just as concerned about the surrounding neighborhood; however, their specific interests probably differ than the first-time buyer. Schools give way to golf courses, local attractions to golf courses.  Financing might not be as much of an issue as available structural options: is it possible to convert bedroom #3 to a flex room? What makes your amenity package attractive?  Details are critical to this demographic.

A well-designed touchscreen system helps you respond to your homeshopper's objectives; it benefits your customers -- and isn't that your brand's objective?

Want to continue thinking about branding and the relationship to marketing strategy? There's a very interesting branding discussion in a recent Kissmetrics blog located here.