Regardless of whether you currently assign a budget for marketing or have a team able to convert marketing leads successfully, a point will come where you’ll be required to spend money (or more money, if you’re already spending) on advertising. When that time comes, you’ll want to make sure you ‘budget’ or plan out how to spend it right.
When developers reach this point, they come to us. They want to know how to market their development. Not only to get attention online but to successfully sell it off-the-plan and sell it out as soon as realistically possible.
iCreate has been in the property marketing space since 2009. Since our creation, we’ve been reporting on developers projects day in and day out, giving us an extremely niche and highly in-depth insight into what gets quality leads. And we want to pass those insights onto you.
Your marketing plan and activities are critical for getting your results
Depending on the size of your development, setting up a solid campaign could mean a simple three-to-six-month robust media plan. Or for larger builds, such as townhome, apartment projects and master-planned communities, this will be a longer sales cycle, requiring longer marketing predictions and careful planning over multiple years.
The goal in both cases, however, is the same. You want to develop well-qualified leads that can be captured and nurtured to get your project sold out.
To achieve this, you need thoughtfully considered placements (ads about your project) that work in harmony to reach your target audience, showcase your project and lead them to enquire, i.e. clicking your ad to visit your website.
Then begins your owned media lead nurturing campaign.
Your marketing plan streamlines your focus, looks at your lead targets and sales timeline and creates a strategy that gets you where you want to be.
“A budget is telling your money where to go instead of wondering where it went”
Dave Ramsey
What to expect for a property development marketing budget
We recommend our clients to allow between 1 to 2.5% of GR (Gross Realisation), depending on the size of the project.
Developers can be surprised when they see us spend (on paper) such a big part of the overall development profit. But it’s important to remember the following:
- These are predictions into the future of what you’ll likely need to do. You aren’t committed to spending the entire schedule
- With a well thought out project brand and positioning, supporting collateral with substance and a real story around your unique points of difference, your project is positioned for success
- Understanding your gross realisation upfront is a key value to your development’s feasibility
When you’re getting into this planning phase, it’s wise to talk to your salesperson about their sales ratio. This will change, depending on the market at any given time, but will impact how many leads you need to bring them before they make a sale.
While everyone wants to sell out their development in three months, it’s essential to be realistic. That almost never happens. What you can do, however, is to plan the best possible marketing approach and give yourself the best shot at success, whether it takes three months, six, or more.
Consider your contingency plan. Otherwise, you may weigh the budget too heavily at the beginning.
“Budgets are blueprints and priorities”
Kevin McCarthy
No budget is not an option
The worst thing that you could do is not to plan out your budget. A logo, a brochure, a sign out the front and a listing on Realestate.com.au is not enough to sell your property off-the-plan. This can be a hard lesson to learn.
Yes, a logo and some documents will slash your marketing costs to begin with, but it will also slash your efficiency. Long-term, that will cost you more.
Another important consideration is that no matter the size of your development, failure to reach the right audience is going to cost you greatly. Without a holistic marketing plan and approach, you’ll end up going ad hoc. And ad hoc marketing quickly accumulates and fails to follow a strategy with complimenting steps to take you from lead generation to nurture to conversion.
Planning = cost-saving and efficiency
Planning does not mean spending
Creating a marketing plan is more about taking control of your spending and putting a laser-like focus on your goals. Not all areas of your plan will be used, and other options may come into play, depending on the sales results. Flexibility is great when you have a plan in place to be able to see how these changes can positively impact your goals. Knee jerk reactions, on the other hand, will hinder that clarity.
Every developer has different goals
Suppose you are looking to achieve a higher percentage of investor sales. These come at a higher commission cost and, as a result, will reduce the overall retail marketing strategy to a local market. This makes planning all the more important. Sales goals and marketing strategy need to align.
Working with experts in property development marketing helps you to get clear on your goals, make a plan for success, and take steps with complete confidence in each activity and its role in getting your development sold out.
iCreate has been helping clients sell out their developments since 2009. Contact us today to learn how we can help you.
