Are You Leaving Leads on the Table When It Comes to Latinos?

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?

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Melissa Morman, VP & GM, is one of the Founding Executives of Builder Homesite and New Home Technologies

Executive Perspectives

Well, here we go!  ‘08 is here, and from all indications, it should be a challenging yet interesting year for all of us. 

The theme these days for all of us is certainly…How can I do less for more?  How can I ensure high customer satisfaction and keep those nervous buyers from cancelling?  Many times we get trapped into thinking that the only solutions are expensive systems/processes and/or the hiring of more staff in order to achieve higher levels of customer satisfaction, but certainly these are not options that are in the cards for many of us at the moment.  But there are many ways to leverage what is right in front of us, without adding costs, and that is what this issue of Insight Inbox is all about.  We have gleaned some of the best practices from leading industry players such as Eliant, EH Publishing, and Pivotal.  These folks are out there with builders every day and are hearing some great success stories and ideas on how to delight customers without breaking the bank.  Here are a few highlights:

Design Centers -- You have great design centers and online design portals, so why not leverage them for prospects as well as signed buyers? 
Hot Products -- The hottest products straight from the CES showfloor…find out what products are really dazzling consumers today.
Marketing -- Hear about how one top 5 builder achieved perfect JD Powers scores by offering Envision (oh and they made 15%+ more on options upgrades!)
Solution Center -- Customer segmentation!  Nothing delights customers more than being marketed to in their own language, whether that is literally as in Casasnuevasaqui.com, or figuratively as in Newretirementcommunities.com.

Happy reading,
Melissa Morman

Executive Perspectives

Welcome to the second issue of Insight Inbox, the industry's newsletter!  This month, we turn our sights to 'Design Centers'.  This is very timely, as many of you were part of the innovative sparks at Summit 07 this past month.  The group that assembled here in Austin managed to look past the industry challenges and hone in on the immediate opportunities we have to increase margin and delight our buyers by taking more of a 'retail science' approach to our businesses.

Executive Perspectives

Welcome to the first issue of Insight Inbox, the Industry Consortium’s monthly best practices newsletter.