Today we are launching the beta version of Home Builder Blog Pro, which enables home builders to create websites, blogs and landing pages with no HTML. Just drag, drop, and publish. Good, right?
It’s an idea that has been on my mind for awhile, and one that I wrote about back in May (“The Evolution of New Home Marketing”). For those of you who know me in person, you know this has been a soapbox that I have been on since 2007.
Home Builder Blog Pro was designed for you, to save you time and money and headaches. I hope that you will check out the website, sign up for a free trial, and let me know what you think.
In the meantime, here’s my very personal account of why this project was so important to launch, and our vision for how it will help you sell more homes:
“It’s Not in the Marketing Budget”
One of the most common obstacles to creating a successful home builder marketing strategy that I see is simply this: the hassle and expense of designing, developing, hosting, maintaining, and updating a builder’s online presence (including website, blog, social media profiles, etc).
I have been on almost every side of this equation over the last four years, and here are some of the frustrations that I have experienced (maybe you can relate?):
- Sales Manager (“Why can’t we get this one simple change to the website done?”)
- Marketing Manager (“I don’t have approval for an agency landing page in my budget”)
- Agency (“Yes, I really do have to charge you for that update, and here’s why”)
- Project Manager with an in-house team (“There are 147 other competing priorities today”)
Today our industry is resource-challenged on every front: time, talent, money, margins, training, and the list goes on. Creating a powerful online presence (beyond static websites and blah blogs) requires a better solution. One that saves time, one that saves money, and one that does not require extensive training or oversight.
A solution that allows us an industry to truly work in real time on the web.
Theory Has No ROI
But this isn’t just about developing a cheaper way to deliver the status quo. There are many tools that we have used here in building successful home builder marketing campaigns, things that we have seen transform lackluster communities to successful ones. Things like A/B Testing, coded contact forms, landing pages, niche sites, vertical email marketing, and more. I can tell you about these, I can even sell you on why you should be using them in your own online marketing. But if you do not have access to your website or blog, or are held hostage by the outsourcing costs and marketing budget approvals, then anything we talk about here just gets… lost. And I don’t want that. Because I believe as an industry we can do online marketing better. A LOT better. And it’s not about doing it right or wrong, which is kind of a lot of hooey. It’s simply about selling more homes, faster. Period.
The Wisdom of Christopher Columbus
I have spent the better part of the last four years trying to convince the world – or whoever would listen – that these tools can be used to drive more leads online and sell more homes for less money. It takes a lot of energy to convince people that the world is round if they believe it is flat. There are lots of small wins, occasional big wins, but very few who are willing to toss aside decades of common home builder marketing wisdom to start anew (and I understand this for all of the reasons outlined here).
But at some point every zealot has to lay down their soapbox, stop trying to convince everyone that the world is round, and simply find the people who believe it is. Only then can that collective of believers start to find ways to build the ships that will sail to a new world.
Remember what they said about a small group of committed people and their ability to change the world?
The End of the Generalist
There is another reason that Home Builder Blog Pro is such an important step for us as a company right now.
For the last four years, I have been an online marketing generalist. Not really an “expert” in any vertical (social, websites, etc) but someone who had a working knowledge of all of the pieces and how they work within the home builder sales and marketing process. Systems and process over trends.
But there is a shift that is happening in online marketing and I do not believe that we will be marketing the same way in another 12 months, or even 6 months. If you have held an iPad in your hands and experienced how differently we (and our buyers) are processing information today, it becomes clear that the very desktop computer that I am typing this on may soon be a relic. (An aside: am I the only one who now tries to swipe my desktop computer screen?)
I believed that it was time to draw a line in the sand, and a significant part of that is focusing on the technology that could withstand the fundamental shifts ahead. Finding, and delivering, technology that was flexible enough to grow with home builders through the various technology trends to come.
The Democracy of the Home Builder Web
I know that for many of you, outsourcing the design, development, and maintenance of your websites and blogs to third party companies is the right choice, and there are many valid options in our industry. (A few who do it very well: Bokka Group, Builder Designs, Meredith Oliver, mRelevance, O’Neil Interactive, Graphic Language, p11 Creative, and others I am sure I have overlooked – apologies).
But for others, a few of whom I know personally, having hands on access to every part of your online presence (at an affordable price) is mission critical based on your size, budget and goals. For some of you – and truly my kindred spirits – you understand that now is the time to take measured risks in order to survive and thrive in the years ahead.
Home Builder Blog Pro is for you.
The Road Ahead
Our beta release is a starting point, with more features and capabilities and training tools to come. I hope that you will sign up for a free trial and poke around. Then, please drop me a line at dawnsadler [at] buildertarget [dot] com and tell me what you think, or leave a comment below. What you like, what you don’t, and where you see your own marketing going over the next year.
If you’re a kindred spirit who would like to join the “new world collective,” select a plan and let’s get started building our Ninas, Pintas, and Santa Marias.
I will be here every step of the way.
