Today we’re taking a look back at yet another successful N5R project and sharing the marketing lessons that we learned.
The Challenge
When N5R was approached to help sell 33 unsold units of the most luxurious condo development in Waterloo, we were a bit taken aback. The units themselves were impeccable and the building boasted a highly energy efficiency structure with absolutely gorgeous architecture. The builder had kept the highest standards on even the smallest details. More than that, it was located in global technological hub, one of the fastest growing communities in the country. Why then, was this project still left with unsold units? To find out, N5R had to do some digging.
The Solution
We secret shopped the project to analyze its marketing communications and sales. Two issues became abundantly clear. First, the marketing materials were completely outdated and second, they didn’t have a single experienced sales person.
The Marketing
This project was still using the same marketing materials it had produced for its original marketing campaign. The brochures were tired and the website was uninviting. The entire marketing campaign was going to need a facelift if these units were going to be sold.
We started with the website, as this would be our most important contact point. By building the new site with Hubspot Software we were able to easily track all of our leads and more effectively analyze the site’s performance. We put together a world-class video to tell the project’s story and replaced the outdated photos with more elegant lifestyle shots that focused on people. This gave the site a more personal feel and gave prospects something visual that they could aspire to. A blog was also added, along with Facebook and Twitter accounts to drive traffic and optimize the site for search engines. We even created a new logo, more befitting of the project’s luxury and put together a new brochure that matched the site.
The Sales
Our client was well aware that the project’s sales team was an issue. They had tried to hire more experienced sales people, but were finding it very difficult to find a qualified applicant in Waterloo. We broke down the qualities we needed for the position and decided that an applicant with experience in real estate sales wasn’t quite what we were looking for. The project already had an enormous amount of leads left over from the original marketing campaign. The new sales staff would need to be great on the phone to follow up on those leads, but also understand how to show prospects the units.
We managed to find a candidate that had a background in telemarketing and hospitality. With their experience and particular skill set we were able to turn this candidate into an absolute superstar with just a few days of training along with a series of Ebooks and webinars.
The Results
The website’s traffic went way up and we were able to easily track all of the leads it generated with Hubspot’s software. On top of that we were able to effectively follow up on all our leads – old and new – because our new sales person had the all the right skills and none of the bad habits that real estate sales professionals tend to have. Without spending a single dollar on a new advertising campaign we were able to sell more units in 41 days than the project had sold in the past year.
The Lessons
Don’t Forget About Past Leads
Generating new leads is hugely important and that process should never stop, but don’t forget about your past leads. Leads left over from past marketing campaigns are often the best place for your sales staff to start. They have already shown an interest in your project and their situation may well have changed drastically since your last contact with them. Nurturing your past leads will save you future advertising dollars on generating new leads.
Sales People Don’t Always Need To Come From Real Estate
Just because you’re selling real estate doesn’t always mean you need a sales person with real estate background. Qualified real estate sales people can be difficult to find and have often picked up bad habits that can hurt your sales. Figure out exactly what areas of expertise your sales team needs for your specific project and look for a candidate with experience in those areas. Consider other industries with transferable skill sets and find candidates from there.
If you want to learn more about how to sell your real estate project in ANY market, apply to our exclusive one-day Condo Mastery seminar.
Watch the video below to hear about Condo Mastery directly from world-renowned condo and sales and marketing expert, Roman Bodnarchuk, and click APPLY NOW to learn if you qualify.
