Homebuilders, ask yourself this: is your message visible where your buyers are shopping?

We all know the real estate market has changed dramatically since the downturn in 2007. But has your marketing mix? Gone are the days of large budgets that can support broad consumer advertising like radio, billboards, and broadcast TV. To be successful in today’s economy, homebuilders need to adjust their marketing strategies and spending to attract active home shoppers.

According to a recent survey conducted by Stevens & Tate, websites were cited as the number one resource used when shopping for a new home. In fact, statistics show that 90% of homebuyers use the Internet during their new-home search. So to stay top-of-mind with these shoppers, you need to be prominent on sites they visit most.

Do a search for new homes in your area and see what listing sites appear at the top of the page. Those are the sites you need to be on. Having your communities and floor plans show up in home searches is critical. However, supplementing your message with banner ads on these sites can prove cost effective, as well. Always track your success. Tools like Google Analytics let you see results immediately so you can modify your advertising spends to maximize sites that work.

For one homebuilder client, Stevens & Tate changed the media mix to focus more strongly online. In doing so, we were able to decrease the builder’s annual media spend by more than 40% from the prior year while increasing traffic per community and maintaining sales volume, resulting in a lower marketing cost per traffic unit.

While having a presence on online listing sites ensures you are reaching homebuyers close to the sale, it may not drive enough new website visitors. So supplement your standard advertising program during high-impact seasons, to announce a grand opening, or promote a special sale. At these times, intensify the focus of your online advertising on website home pages or news pages to use the Internet as a broadcast medium.

Over the past few years, Stevens & Tate has re-engineered the media mix for several homebuilders, shifting from traditional communication channels to online. To learn more, visit our homebuilder case studies at www.Stevens-Tate.com/RealEstate.