Interactive Portals: Delight Your Customers While Capturing Thousands in Margin With Every Home

by Melissa Morman

Consumers (that includes each of us!) today have become extremely spoiled by the Internet, and we basically expect (demand!) to have all information online and at our fingertips instantaneously via the Web.  We have even come to expect that car shopping can be researched completely online prior to visiting the dealer to conduct the paperwork.   

The days of keeping customers in the dark are long gone.  So why in the homebuilding industry do we still have builders who do not have online, personalized portals for their buyers?  This is the single largest purchase a consumer makes in his lifetime, and yet, we expect him to just ‘trust us’ and not sweat the details.  How can we expect a customer to be delighted with making hundreds of options decisions involving thousands of dollars, with his only source of info being a rushed design appointment over a few hours?   How can we expect him to feel good about this experience?  Not to mention how our designers feel through this experience…they too suffer from a lack of current and accurate product information.

Admittedly, in the past -- given the complexity of our business and the ever changing options masters on a per plan basis, involving thousands of manufacturer products -- the creation/maintenance of a personalized portal was rather daunting and a non-starter.  But thanks to technology advancements that enable integration in even the most rudimentary of back-end/CRM systems, and the industry’s coming together to amass/update all manufacturers’ products, these are no longer barriers. 

The really great news is that for $100, builders can now provide a customer portal to each and every buyer, to better prepare them for an effective and critical design appointment.  And the builders who have launched the solution (Envision) are realizing a 15-30% increase in options upgrade sales!  So, a $100 investment is yielding thousands of dollars in margin on a per home basis, and the best news for our cash-conscious industry is that the return is immediate.  This is not a ‘feel good’ solution with an elusive, ‘maybe someday’ impact…it starts paying back in the first few weeks of going live.

The really great news is that the customers are delighted with it!  Not only are they spending more, but they are more engaged in the process (fewer cancellations), and they can even use the portal ‘post close’ to access product information and register directly online with their manufacturers.  One of our top 5 builders achieved 100% JD Powers customer satisfaction scores with their buyers using Envision, whereas the control group (buyers not using Envision) were at an 8.5 out of 10. 

So what are you waiting for?  You are leaving thousands of margin dollars on the table with each home you sell without Envision…and in today’s climate, I cannot think of any builder who can afford that.  Join Beazer, KB, Standard Pacific, WCI, Fulton, and other enlightened builders today!  For more information, email us at envision@newhometechnologies.com.

Hot Design Trends: Continuing Into 2008 and Beyond

By Jane Meagher

As 2007 comes to a close, here are what we see as hot design trends that  will continue into 2008 and beyond…they’ve probably already hit your design studio, but look for them to make a broader and deeper impact into your product offerings in 2008.

The Real World
While homebuyers are buying a brand new home, they don’t want it to look mass-produced.  Many of today’s hottest selling design studio products represent the authentic, vintage, rustic and timeless look of weathered family heirlooms and old world charm.  Wide planks and hand-scraped hardwoods, such as Shaw’s Artisan’s Touch or Artisan’s Craft, continue to trend up as buyers yearn for an authentic timeworn look representative of fond memories, warmth, coziness, and uniqueness.  In cabinetry, glazed cabinets and distressed finishes, such as Yorktowne’s Character Finish Packages, continue to increase in popularity. These products often represent the upper end of the product lines for both cabinets and flooring.  Who would have thought we would one day pay significantly more for someone at a factory to purposefully and methodically rub off part of a newly-applied finish, create worm holes or spatter marks, or even scrape sharp metal objects across a brand new hardwood floor?  The magnificent Ann Sacks stone floor I’m putting into my new kitchen is terra cotta, reclaimed from ceiling materials found in 19th century stables in France!  Authentic materials provide an opportunity for highly individualized expression.

Sales in the City-How To Meet The Needs Of The Single Female Homebuyer

51% of all American women are single! This is probably not a surprise to most of the design center managers who are in touch with their clientele, but the single woman home buyer is now making 22% of all US home purchases! Builders are starting to listen to what this home buyer wants and needs in their home, and the experience they seek in the home purchase experience.

While writing an upcoming article, I began to see just how much opportunity there is in gearing our sales approach to this consumer, and offering the amenities she needs.Despite the title of this post, this segment is not just the young, urban career woman. Single woman home purchasers are young singles, single moms, middle-aged singles and active adults. Each of these groups has specific needs your design center staff can speak to.

Meagan Kato, a consumer strategist, indicates there are five values that will help you connect to this woman: Empowerment, Identity, Control, Security and Family. She will relate to lifestyle photos of a single mom, or of a single woman entertaining friends for dinner. Ask manufacturer partners for point-of-sale signing and marketing materials designed with this segment in mind.

From a merchandising perspective, it is very important that your design center feel as 'retail' and consumer centric as possible. She will expect nothing less. This consumer will gather information and research from many different arena's, including gathering friend's advice, printed material, the Internet, and repeat visits to your design center (and to the competitor's, I will also add). An electronic selection tool/virtual design center is a fabulous selling tool that will also give this consumer the information she wants at the time she needs it. (Hearth and Home has been very successful reaching this consumer using the Envision selection and education tool).

Krisann Parker-Brown is the merchandising manager for Hearth and Home Technologies, the leading manufacturer and retailer of fireplaces and hearth systems. Krisann supports design centers and new construction builders in presenting Heat & Glo, Heatilator and Quadra-Fire hearth systems, and consulting on design center merchandising, point of sale and the consumer experience. Contact her at brownkr@hearthnhome.com or 952-985-6537

5 Steps to Making Your Design Studio Hum

by Kevan Irsch

Builders are constantly wondering what they can do to increase profit margins, move homes, and make their customers happy.  Thanks to design studios, all these goals can be accomplished with one solution - but only if done in the right way.

I spoke with Jane Meagher, President of Success Strategies, a leading design studio consulting company, and asked her discuss the secrets of gaining exceptional results from your design center operations.  She discusses with us 5 steps to making the most of your design center.