Slowing market emphasises the importance of developer marketing

You will likely have noticed some changes in the property market, especially if you’re in the running to buy.

Customers are not as impulsive as they were only a few short weeks ago. With buyers spoiled for choice and impulsive consumers on the decline, property is becoming an even more closely considered purchase. Have no doubts, with buyers in the driver’s seat, property development campaigns will be scrutinised like never before.

Whether this reflects a brief change of sentiment or a changed mindset for the longer term, the shift highlights the need for more considered marketing efforts delivering more impact. 

For developers to remain competitive, their websites need to stand out from the competition and be engaging.

Their artist’s impressions need to be flawlessly impressive, their branding needs to be relevant for buyers and the brochures need to scream quality.

In a hot market where impulse reigns, developers can easily sell properties with average strategy and products. Today, however, this arm’s length of marketing activity is inadequate.

Our experience shows that when the developer has rebranded at the same time as the campaign for the development, consistency of brand messaging and high impact is achieved. Consumers award trust to those responsible for the build as well as to the build itself. Where there is a spotlight on the whole project, a relatively new marketing phenomenon, everyone gets scrutinised.

With buyers who often have $750,000 or more to invest in a property, they want to have confidence in the team producing their new home.

Firstly, they will visit the developer’s website. At this point, buyers will judge its capacity to deliver based on what they see.

Buyers are impressionable and look closely at each company’s branding, sometimes unconsciously, as well as the design of the website and the projects they have completed. Does it work on my iPhone? Does the brand give me confidence that the quality matches the price? If it doesn’t, buyers think twice.

They’ll then look at the specific development’s website.

Highly considered buyers research developments thoroughly. Considering the amount of money being spent, it’s little wonder buyers have a tendency to be excessively concerned with every detail of a marketing campaign. It follows then that where there is a strong brand behind a project and where confidence is high because prospective buyers have done their research, sales tend to run more smoothly

Bottom line, astute developers will pay more attention to their marketing communications online and off, in today’s slowing market. This is even more so the case as buyers are savvy enough to heed advice from multiple sources.

Nick Sammut, managing director, Toast Creative