Why Builders Should Maximize Post-Sale Customer Service

 

A homebuyer’s journey continues long after the sale closes.

In a year like 2020 where everyone is thrust into uncertainty and ever-changing events, people crave sustainability. Longevity. Something that will endure. For larger investments like a new home, builders often believe the product alone will provide long-standing satisfaction. But it’s important to understand that the best service provided to customers doesn’t end when the sale is final.

We believe in the power of every customer’s journey. In many cases, that journey concludes at the close of a sale. Home ownership is a different story. The signing of a new home is the start of a new phase in the buyer-seller relationship. Warranties are one of the only ways builders maintain a relationship with homeowners post-sale, but the process of navigating warranties can leave homeowners feeling helpless and builders feeling stressed. This is one of the many reasons why we created WarrantyWatcher – a cloud-based software with 24/7 access for builders and homeowners that streamlines new home warranties and customer service requests.

Homebuyers could be your best brand ambassadors for future sales!

Maintaining post-sale communication with homebuyers is critical for builders. Responsive customer service not only increases repeat business by 60 to 70 percent, it helps expand the probability for referrals as well. When customers have a positive experience, they are likely to spread that experience via word of mouth to an average of six people. It’s long been known that the cost of retaining customers is far less than the cost of acquiring new ones, so when customer service makes a positive impact, your existing customers become your best brand ambassadors for future sales!

WarrantyWatcher is our way of making post-sale customer service simpler for homebuilders. Once in the portal, homeowners can easily submit and view the status of their work requests, and all work orders are tracked from end to end with full transparency. Vendors are also able to access the portal at any time, helping them get to work quickly and efficiently. WarrantyWatcher allows documents, photos and files of any type to be submitted as needed. Simply put, it’s an easy-to-use system that makes homeowners more confident in their purchase, keeping them happy for the long haul.   

Builders benefit from a modern, reliable and durable new home warranty solution.

We introduce WarrantyWatcher to builders that want to give homeowners a modern, reliable and durable solution for managing their new home warranty. No more drafting e-mails and leaving voicemails, no more playing phone tag – everything is managed through the WarrantyWatcher portal and accessible via computer, tablet and smartphone. The user-friendly software keeps homeowners satisfied, which continues to amplify the selling power of the builder. Even emergencies that are traditionally taxing to manage can be tracked and handled in real-time through WarrantyWatcher.

Learn more in our video:

Homeowners are smart. They know when customer service quality is outstanding or poor. Offering a warranty is important, but helping customers understand how to benefit from their warranty is pivotal. WarrantyWatcher will eliminate concerns or tensions you’ve dealt with in the past related to the warranty process. Customers will feel like their warranty means something, versus just being an add-on that they struggle to understand in the overall picture.

When you enhance post-sale customer service with WarrantyWatcher, you’ll notice how much of a difference it makes with existing and future homeowners – and your bottom line. The warranty experience you provide to one homeowner could result in your next sale with a new customer!

Finding Your Midas Touch in the Era of Physical Distancing

What’s your Midas Touch with home shoppers?

In Greek mythology, King Midas was known for turning anything into gold with a simple touch. In modern times, businesses try to find their own Midas Touch by offering a service, product or experience so valuable that customers turn into gold. This gold can come in many forms: monetary transactions, referrals, brand loyalty, glowing reviews and more.

The COVID-19 pandemic has forced nearly every industry to find new ways of interacting with customers. Physical distancing is the new normal and online sales are skyrocketing. With such a drastic decrease in customer contact, how can you find your Midas Touch?

Finding your Midas Touch is simpler than you may think.

Many of our customers know us because of SalesTouch. Traditionally, we provide these touchscreen kiosks to homebuilders, developers and property managers in sales and leasing offices. Once installed, SalesTouch is a powerful sales & marketing solution with dynamic content. It helps home shoppers visually see and interact with details of their future home and community. They can look at floor plans, drag-and-drop furniture, “write” notes, print and e-mail their customized home information and beyond.

Home shoppers aren’t engaging in person as often now, especially in the beginning stages of the home search. They’re working from home and want to do as much groundwork as possible before entering an office to meet with a salesperson. You might think this would limit how often SalesTouch is used, but we’re here to tell you it doesn’t. We created SalesTouch to work online, as well!

We believe sales presentation solutions like SalesTouch will continue to gain momentum, particularly if they are available for online and remote use. Even when physical distancing measures are behind us, this technology is likely to maintain popularity.

Customers are tech-savvy, autonomous and attached to their digital devices. When in-person sales presentation tools can adapt for websites, tablets and smartphones, it becomes another avenue for sales leads.

Your Midas Touch could be going virtual. Your gold is a digital currency!

SalesTouch engages a home shopper online

We’re not just talking about online shopping. That trend has been booming for years and many industries have already adjusted. We’re beyond the phase of simply making products and services available for purchase online. What’s important in 2020 and beyond is considering how to further innovate your online sales presentations. How can you help customers experience your brand online, rather than simply browse your website? What are you offering to immerse them in your business, from the safety of their own home and at their own convenience?

By making SalesTouch work in person and online, we’re helping our homebuilders, developers and property managers remain sustainable while opening them up to more potential sales and leases. Home shoppers are able to explore home options online with ease. They gain the same information and home exploration abilities without the burden of a physical visit. They can customize, learn and make decisions in a brand-new way!

When you embrace this Midas Touch and transform your in-person sales presentation into an online experience, you’ll find your gold!

The Home Shopping Shift: 4 Tips to Increase Online Sales Leads NOW

*lightning strikes and thunder roars* We’re in a shopocalypse!

In 2020, we’re watching many businesses close their doors indefinitely. Some remain open but with slashed operating hours. It’s not just a struggle to retain the same foot traffic we saw before the coronavirus pandemic – it’s literally impossible. With physical distancing measures, businesses simply can’t allow the same capacity.

Customers are more wary about in-person interactions. With unemployment rates alarmingly high, they’re cautious with money and expenses. According to a recent survey from McKinsey & Company, shopping behaviors are shifting, and spending is allocated for essentials and expenses that display clear value. For many, if purchases are being made, they’re happening online – and this trend is expected to stay in place even after COVID-19.

At the Jeff Shore Sales Leadership Summit last month we talked with many new home sales professionals from around the country. Many said that sales office traffic was down considerably, but they are still relatively meeting sales goals. The common theme: they all have a focus on online solutions that help drive sales!

While engaging customers online may seem like a challenge for retailers and businesses, it’s actually the key to continued success. It’s also why we love SiteViewer, our online solution that makes home shopping simpler for customers and their changing habits.

SiteViewer helps homebuilders, apartment developers and property managers deliver critical, on-demand pricing and availability information straight to the fingertips of prospective buyers and renters – in lieu of physical trips to a sales or leasing center. 

Using SiteViewer as our guide, we compiled four quick tips your business can implement right now to pick up online engagement and increase sales.

1. Enhance Your Visuals – When it comes to millennials, the most technologically advanced generation, your online presence is a necessity. If consumers can’t be in the physical presence of your product, it’s important to keep your online representation as visually appealing as possible. Millennials are the latest generation to have become highly involved with home shopping. When builders and developers incorporate SiteViewer into their community websites, they provide customers with a clear picture of their future home and community. It’s the perfect way to make the buying and renting process aesthetically pleasing online!

2. Keep It Updated – While the shopocalypse is a horror story for businesses, the words “sold out” are a horror story for home shoppers. If you’re promoting a product that’s no longer available, convey that information. If prices change, make sure they’re listed correctly. SiteViewer helps professionals update the information on their home and apartment listings in real-time, thus avoiding any confusion for the customer. Current, transparent information will help form a trusting relationship in an uncertain age of shopping.

3. Make It Interactive – Just like kids prefer books with buttons and noises, adults like a little something to engage with as well. How can your online product listings go beyond the traditional format of an image and description? This doesn’t have to require an overhaul of your IT systems. SiteViewer is easily embed directly into a homebuilder or apartment community’s website! It works with touchscreen technology or traditional computer displays.

4. Track the Clicks – Your online metrics are a treasure trove of information, helping you better understand your customers and their digital behaviors. It’s important to constantly assess what’s happening – are they clicking on a product, but not purchasing? Are they navigating away from your website? Then, you can augment your approach to increasing online sales by making smarter decisions backed by your own data. We developed two versions of SiteViewer: the consumer facing namesake and SiteViewer Pro. The Pro version allows businesses to see valuable information on the backend about how consumers are interacting in the virtual shopping environment.

Brick and mortar operations can find savvy and simple online solutions that meet the needs of today’s consumers. SiteViewer is one such solution, aiding builders, developers and property managers nationwide to better reach, serve and sell to home shoppers.

 The world is evolving for businesses and consumers alike, but it doesn’t have to be such a scary reality. Instead, let it be your next big opportunity!

Contact us at info@cpsusa.com to learn more!

CPS and COVID-19

All of us here at CPS want to assure you that we take the health and well-being of our community, customers and colleagues very seriously. Like you, we're closely monitoring the quickly developing effects of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

To help prevent the spread of COVID-19 and follow the "shelter in place" directives mandated here in California, we are now manning and providing service from our office remotely. 

That means that, should you need it, we are still here for you in terms of customer support, design and SalesTouch assistance. We will continue to provide support and service, as usual, 7-days/week.  If you need assistance, please reach out to us via email at techsupport@cpsusa.com or design@salestouch.net.

We are all in this together. We will continue to monitor the COVID-19 situation and will follow guidance from public health officials and government agencies, so we can contue to support our customers and communities, as needed.

Stay safe!

Builders: Adding Some Apple to Sales/Leasing Office Marketing!

Have You Heard About the Value of Laptop Tilt?

Did you see one of our earlier blogs talking about How the Apple Store Seduces You with the Tilt of Its Laptops? You can read it here!

Engage your home shoppers with new channels!

Carmine Gallo had written an article for Forbes suggesting that Apple had the tilt designed to encourage customers to adjust the screen to their ideal viewing angle.

In other words, Apple was encouraging consumers to touch!

Apple's Actions as a Differentiator Are Worth Investigating

There's a recent Builder article by John Rampton highlighting Apple's marketing tactics and ways Apple has been able to differentiate itself to become the strong competitor it is through their marketing efforts.

Are there takeaways for sales/leasing offices? Let's take a look at several of the ideas presented:

• Create unique buying channels: Rampton suggests that companies can enhance their marketing efforts by finding new, unique channels that competitors aren't using. Consumers like to explore products, engage and find out information. Rampton suggests marketers should explore ways to make shopping more enjoyable and exciting.
• Think about the user experience: Here, too, Apple goes beyond competitors as they've created unique, exploration-based shopping experiences. Rampton suggests an enhanced user experience creates more loyal customers.

Engage Your Homeshoppers as Soon as They Enter Your Office

Interactive touchscreens engage consumers and provide the unique shopping experience Apple and Rampton suggest meet today's consumer's objectives. You're able to differentiate your business by not only adding technology but using it to enhance the buyer experience.  Interactive floorplans, drag 'n drop furniture, dynamic/real-time sitemaps -- they're all focused on creating a value-unique experience for your home shoppers.

Use technology to enhance the buyer experience

Your home shoppers not only gain the information they're searching for but recognize your brand as forward thinking and offering a unique home shopping experience.  That's the "hyper-focus" that Apple applies to their consumers!

Let's Talk About Adding Some Apple!

CPS' interactive touchscreen product, SalesTouch, is designed to engage home shoppers the minute they walk into the sales office with interesting, useful, emotional images and content. Whether exploring the neighborhood or trying out virtual options (where is the local elementary school? is there an optional den available?) they're finding solutions -- and creating an ownership experience!

Isn't building an ownership experience what home shopping is about? CPS is celebrating 35 years providing engaging, dynamic software solutions for the homebuilding industry. We'll be at IBS2020 in Las Vegas; you can visit us at Booth SU631 or ask us for a one-on-one demo here!