|
The following comprehensive Marketing Materials, provided for you by the Environments For Living® program, are designed to assist you with every phase of marketing your new, more energy-efficient homes to both consumers and Realtors in your local market areas.
As you know, the Environments For Living program has consolidated the most advanced techniques of applied Building Science for the benefit of America’s builders. By incorporating the program in your new-home construction and consumer marketing materials, your company could:
- Enjoy More Qualified Traffic
- Obtain A Higher Closing Ratio
- Watch Your Sales Grow
- See Your Profits Rise
That is the purpose of the following information - to provide you with the tools you need to succeed.
PLEASE NOTE: All of the materials contained within this Marketing Tool Kit have been designed so that they can be easily “personalized” with your building company’s name, logo, tag line, community map, etc. The “I.M.A. BUILDER” mark used on the sample materials indicates where YOUR mark would appear. Macintosh-format files containing artwork for individual materials have been provided. If you choose to produce the pieces yourself, these files can be saved to CD and taken to an electronic service bureau or printer for modifications and output.
Scroll down or use the table of contents to see how the Environments For Living Program can help your residential building company enjoy a brighter future.
Return to Top
Consumer Marketing
Newspaper
Newspaper advertising is one of the most traditional and effective means of targeting consumers who are "in the market" for a new home.
The samples provided focus on the overall benefits of the Environments For Living program - from Tight Construction to Combustion Safety - as you announce your commitment to building homes that will enhance your customers' contentment, satisfaction and peace of mind.
Naturally, a full-page, 4-color advertisement will have the most impact - especially in the beginning, when you are introducing the benefits of the Environments For Living program to your local area. However, if newspaper costs are prohibitive in your market, we have provided options for half- and quarter-page black & white advertisements that will effectively communicate the importance of your advanced construction techniques and energy-efficient homes.
Return to Top
Radio
Targeted radio advertising is another effective way of reaching consumers in your local market. Not only is radio an excellent medium for those who are "in the market," but it is the perfect way to generate awareness for your residential building company and its commitment to the Environments For Living program throughout your geographic area.
Here are a few recommendations for producing your radio spot using the basic :60 script provided:
Choose a radio station or stations that appeal to your demographic age group.
- Select voice talent that a) does not sound like a typical radio DJ and, b) is not immediately recognized for doing every other commercial in town.
- If you have a corporate "jingle," use that as the opening and background for the radio spot; if not, use an unobtrusive music bed.
- Be sure to drive the listener to your communities, your newspaper ad and your website.
Return to Top
Direct Mail
Direct mail is the most targeted form of traditional marketing available.
Again, the sample provided focuses on the overall benefits of the Environments For Living program. Once you have established your commitment to building energy-efficient homes within your local area, you can begin to build on that platform by aiming your message at different segments within your market.
Using lists developed from your own sales center contacts OR by purchasing lists of targeted consumers - i.e., apartment dwellers, homeowners with incomes of $75,000+, residents who have been in the same home for 10+ years, etc. - you can retarget your mailers and hone your messages to impact specific groups.
Return to Top
Brochure
The sample brochure provided serves a dual purpose:
- It can be handed out to prospects and Realtors at your Sales Center(s)
- It can be mailed to prospects and Realtors who request more information about your Environments For Living program - either through your website, via telephone or mail
As with all the materials contained herein, this brochure has been designed so that it can be easily personalized with your residential building company's information.
Return to Top
Point-of-Purchase
Point-of-Purchase (POP) signage is a simple way to call attention to the Environments For Living program within your Model Homes.
We recommend a series of ”mini-billboards” that can be strategically placed throughout your models to prompt prospect questions and/or Sales Representative points about the multiple benefits of the Program.
We have also provided a simple “yard sign” that can be used to promote the potential heating and cooling savings for each of the homes that you build under the Environments For Living program.
The key to success is training / educating your sales team about the Environments For Living program, so they can talk enthusiastically, intelligently and correctly about the Program and its many consumer benefits – especially the heating and cooling usage guarantee.
Return to Top
Displays
Sales Center Displays are an extraordinary way to illustrate the "invisible benefits" of the Environments For Living program.
A variety of interactive displays are possible, including:
- An "Insulation display" to illustrate the soundproofing and fire retardant aspects of cocoon cellulose insulation
- A "construction display" to show the advantages over "typical" construction techniques
- An "HVAC display" to illustrate the benefits of proper circulation and ventilation
These impressive, "touchy-feely" displays, which could be set up in your Sales Center(s), could have a powerful impact on both prospective customers and Realtors.
There are also very simple, less costly displays – such as the one featured in this section – that can impact your prospective customers without requiring as much space. These high-quality information displays are available by using the Contact Form at the back of this manual.
Return to Top
Internet
The Internet is one of the most powerful and far-reaching forms of marketing. From displaying your communities on your website to sending out regular "E-lerts" and E-Newsletters to both prospects and Realtors, the Internet provides an exciting new medium for marketing your homes...AND your involvement in the Environments For Living program.
If your company has not yet begun "data-mining" its buyers and prospects for their e-mail addresses, it should plan to begin doing so soon.
Here are our "Top 3" Internet recommendations":
- Add an Environments For Living button on your home page that links to your own "page" about your participation in the Environments For Living program. You can also add a link on that page to our consumer site, eflhome.com.
- Develop a text and/or HTML e-mail announcing your involvement in the Environments For Living program and driving the recipients to your website.
- Create a bi-monthly or quarterly E-Newsletter to provide new community updates and reinforce the value of owning one of your energy-efficient homes, "built under the strict standards of the Environments For Living program."
Return to Top
Sample Guarantee
The Environments For Living program offers different levels of guarantee.
Heating and Cooling Energy Use Guarantee (Limited) - BuildLogix, Inc. guarantees the original homeowner that the energy used to heat and cool the home (as calculated in the Account Analysis) will not exceed the Guaranteed Usage listed on the guarantee, subject to the terms of this guarantee. Since this is a guarantee of energy use and not cost, any reference to dollar amounts is strictly an estimate and actual costs will vary with the cost of energy. ( All levels)
Heating and Cooling Energy & Comfort Guarantee (Limited) - BuildLogix, Inc. guarantees the original homeowner that the temperature at the location of the thermostat in the home will not vary more than 3 degrees from the temperature at the center of any conditioned room within that thermostat zone. If the home has a room that does not meet this comfort guarantee, BuildLogix, Inc. will identify the reason(s) for the temperature variance and coordinate necessary repairs with the builder. (Gold, Platinum and Diamond Levels)
The sample guarantee provided gives you another marketing tool to emphasize the extraoridnary benefits of owning a home that is built under and covered by the stringent Program Requirements and Performance Criteria of the Enviroments For Living program.
Return to Top
Realtor Marketing
Print
Realtors read specific trade publications. Since they are responsible for driving a certain percentage of traffic to your communities, it is to your advantage to make these professionals aware that you are now building homes to the high standards and exceptional values of the Environments For Living program.
The sample provided maintains the consistency of the overall campaign as you inform your local area Realtors that you are committed to building homes that will enhance THEIR customers' contentment, satisfaction and peace of mind.
Return to Top
Direct Mailer
The key to success in this endeavor is acquiring a solid, up-to-date list of local Realtors.
The sample provided focuses on the overall benefits of the Environments For Living program, specifically for the Realtors' customers.
The idea is that a comfortable, durable, energy-efficient home is easier to sell, so why not sell your clients a home built under the high standards of the Environments For Living program?
Success can be enhanced by having your Sales Representatives make follow-up phone calls and/or visits to some of the most prominent Realtors on your mailing list; and, if you have invested in Sales Center Displays, inviting the top Realtors for a "Personal Demonstration."
A "follow-up gift" - ideally something that will remind the Realtor of your company and the Environments For Living program - is another excellent way to stay top-of-mind with these professionals.
Return to Top
Branding Example
HomeSmartzTM
It is possible that another builder in your local market area will also discover the benefits of the Environments For Living program.
There are three ways to look at this:
- You get extra mileage and awareness out of any advertising and marketing put out by the other builder(s).
- You can have us (or your own agency) develop a totally different look for your marketing and advertising materials.
- You have an opportunity to actually "brand" your version of the Environments For Living program to differentiate it from your local competitor(s).
One example of a residential building company that decided to brand its Environments For Living program is Cambridge Homes in Charlotte, North Carolina. The company branded its product HomeSmartzTM, trademarked the name, included an advanced structured wiring package, and developed its own set of HomeSmartz* marketing and advertising materials (see following page).
That option is open to your residential building company, too. The materials are provided to help you get started...to give you an idea of the direction in which you should be heading. The rest is up to you.
*HomeSmartz is a licensed trademark of Cambridge Homes. It is provided solely as an example of “branding” a name other than Environments For Living.
Return to Top
|
