trends

Isn’t that what we want all consumers to do when they get to our websites? Builders like getting internet leads. With a good follow-up program, builders I have worked with tend to convert about 4% of leads into sales. Unfortunately, not all consumers fill out lead forms. This is a gross understatement. In fact, the number of online shoppers requesting information is well under 10%. So, how do you know if your online advertising on NewHomeSource.com, Google, or Yahoo! is working?

If you can’t measure leads alone to assess value, what should you measure to see if exposure to the other 90% of online shoppers were of any value to you?

Obviously, you have to measure something else. Let us help you out with some objective benchmarks. We completed a consumer survey of NewHomeSource.com users on October 31, 2009. 6,044 consumers participated in the survey. They were only asked to participate once they had bumped around the site a bit. So, these could be called “engaged home shoppers.” We pared this down to 4,245 that answered all our key questions. One of the things we asked is what actions consumers actually take:

NHS Consumer Survey 2009

23.5% of consumers took at least one of these actions. Keep in mind a consumer can take multiple actions. Here’s how they broke down:

NHS User Survey 2009 - User Actions

So, what does this really mean? Well, if 23.5% took at least one of these actions, then of all the consumers answering the survey 17.6% clicked over to the builder’s website, 5.6% printed off the driving directions, 5% called or are planning on calling you, and 7.6% filled out a lead form. How can you track this?

Tracking is always an issue. First, make sure you track through Google Analytics or whatever you are using, users coming to your website. You can even track their path and whether referred traffic converts into leads on your site. Next, you must modify your registration cards on site to capture the real source and ask the question in the right way.

23.5% of engaged shoppers are taking action we can measure on NewHomeSoruce.com. What about the other 76.5%? Come read about it in a week or two. In the meantime, let me know what you think by responding to this post or sending me a note.

What if I said, “Hey, let’s just not target 15% of the available homebuyers out there!”? That would be silly wouldn’t it? That would be like ignoring every sixth person that comes into the sales office. When we don’t do anything to cater to the fastest growing demographic in the U.S., that’s essentially what we are doing.

A 2006 Harvard University study shows that Hispanics represent 14.6% of U.S. homebuyers, and this number is growing rapidly. I did not have a more recent stat handy (this is a blog, not a thesis), but one can only assume this percentage has increased as the Hispanic population has increased.

But you would be amazed at the excuses I hear in our industry about why we don’t do anything to cater to this very critical and increasingly critical demographic…it almost becomes comical at times and sounds very much like the whining I hear at home about brushing teeth or doing homework or wearing underwear. (Well, he is only 9.)

Probably the most pervasive excuse I hear for not targeting Hispanics in the new home industry is that there seems to be this fear that we have to go completely Latino in all aspects — translate our website, our collateral, and our contracts; have bilingual sales agents, and, and, and,…Slap yourself. It is almost as if we are fearful that a bit of Hispanic marketing might work, and, oh gosh, what will we do if we get a lead?!

Take a breath — You don’t need all of that; nor would such efforts be expected. Hispanics who live in the US are fully functional day-in and day-out in a bilingual world. Just take some small steps, which, in and of themselves, will be truly appreciated.

We are all human and get a real jolt when someone has taken a bit of extra care to appeal to us specifically. For example, it’s not that the breakfast-in-bed that your kids bring you is all that tasty (and actually it can be quite scary). It is the thought and intent that was there. The same applies in any aspect of marketing. It’s all about showing extra care and appealing to another human.

Take that first step, mis amigos, even if it’s a baby step. Why not start by listing on Casas Nuevas Aqui?

The relationship between a builder and the buyer is a lot like the relationship between husband and wife. Sometimes the buyer is telling us exactly what they need in their new home, and we are just not listening. I could take you down the humorous and trite path of male-bashing, such as the tendency of men to leave the toilet seat up. And I could even imbed some branding by highlighting some of our great manufacturer brands, such as Kohler, into it. But this really is not about the inadequacies of the male species! (Though this topic certainly does need to be covered, it’s probably not appropriate here.)

Here are some high level analogies that do seem worth considering:

  • Buyers are often about “how they feel” whereas builders are often all about schedules and quality tolerances. How often do we say to a hysterical new home homeowner, “But that crack is within tolerance, Maam.” Meanwhile, the buyer is replaying scenes from that movie “The Money Pit” in their minds and thinking that their lives are going to end in a complete disaster of bankruptcy and divorce… all due to that crack. And yet it’s not even about that specific crack at all.
  • Eggshell and Cream are not just shades of white paint for buyers, but rather the single pivotal decision between a beautiful designer home and living in the trailer park of their childhoods. So builders need to give them all of the tools and time (and that does not have to be “our time” …use Envision for goshsakes!) to make those decisions.
  • As is often the case between husbands and wives, buyers love the “experience” of shopping and designing their new homes, whereas builders are often just concerned about how quickly they can get back on schedule, sort of like how husbands are trying to get out of the mall and back to the football game.
  • As in many relationships, builders are great in the “dating phase.” They are attentive and on time and send special little love notes. But as soon as that contract is signed, they often become lackadaisical and take the relationship for granted. Suddenly their spouse (the buyer) is discontented, and no matter how hard they try, the builder can do nothing right. Hmm…sound familiar?

So, as you go through your day today, treat that buyer as you would the love of your life on your honeymoon, and see if your satisfaction ratings don’t go up!