Description

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Every time a builder visits a competitor's new home neighborhood, that's market research. Every interview with an architect or interior designer and every portfolio review adds to market research. Every meeting with miffed homeowners, every celebratory block party - well, you get the idea.

You are probably conducting informal market research already. Find out how to analyze and use this information to your greatest advantage in From Good Market Research to Great Marketing: A How-to Guide for Home Builders. Collecting market and buyer information requires skills you can readily learn with a little practice. The potential for increasing profits is enormous.

New home marketing expert Colleen Edwards discusses how to determine your audience, develop a product that meets their needs, and promote your homes and services to this target audience. From low cost market research you can conduct yourself to advice on hiring a consultant, Edwards examines a wide variety of market research techniques.

Full of interviews, examples, and stories of real builders, From Good Market Research to Great Marketing will help you develop the skills to:

• Perform your own market research by talking to customers, visiting competitors products, and accessing local information resources
• Conduct focus groups to identify key issues that impact what you build and how you market.
• Use exit surveys and satisfaction studies determine your strengths and weaknesses
• Address influential audiences, such as land sellers and approval boards, early in the building process Implement your research findings to select the best media for advertising

About the Author

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Colleen Edwards is the founder and president of Edwards & McCaslin Advertising in the San Francisco Bay Area. Specializing in strategic marketing of new homes and master-planned communities, Edwards has earned more than 70 MAME Awards for her clients. She is past president of the Sales and Marketing Council of the Building Industry Association of Northern California.