From project conceptualization to completion, real estate developers
have to juggle a lot of chores. As the date of completion approaches
nearer, their biggest challenge is to market the project to their target
audience aggressively.
The way a project is marketed can have a great deal of impact on how
much and how soon developers realise profits. Usually, they set up
dedicated display suites, distribute brochures, promote listings online,
prepare 3D renderings and recruit professionals to give their
promotional activities a boost.
There is no denying the fact that these traditional marketing methods still work, but developers who don’t incorporate the latest innovations in real estate marketing fail to gain leverage over their competitors. These latest innovations not only reduce expenses but also accelerate the pace of exposure, enabling developers to reach a wider audience in a shorter timeframe.
Virtual Reality (VR) is at the forefront of all the latest innovations in real estate marketing. It’s the most effective way to convince your target audience about the best features of your real estate project with complete clarity and transparency.
Let’s discuss in detail some of the most common problems that developers face and how VR can help to solve them:
Purchasing a property is a very time consuming and confusing process. Buyers visit several properties before deciding which one fits their budget and needs. Usually, you would recruit multiple marketing professionals to coordinate these showings. You would also build a ‘model home’ to showcase the best features of your project. You would need professionals to communicate these features to the buyers when they are physically present at the property.
All of these steps would further increase your marketing costs and add more items to your and your team’s ‘to-do’ list. VR, on the other hand, streamlines the entire process. By using VR technology, they can get the most immersive and personalized experience while being virtually transported to the physical location of your project. They will be able to walk through and experience all parts of the development. The best thing is that you don’t have to build a model home or complete the project to showcase its best features. It enables you to launch your marketing campaign even before the shovel hits the ground.
Most real estate developers build model homes to give potential customers an idea of how their apartment will look like when the project is completed. It’s a very time consuming and confusing way of communicating the best features of your project. Buyers usually assume that all the items being showcased in a model home are part of the deal and when you tell them that they are not, they may get disappointed. A model home also doesn’t give buyers any idea about the surroundings within the development and outside of it.
Let’s say a buyer is buying a property on the fourth floor. How will the neighbourhood look like when he or she looks out of the window? There is no way you can clearly demonstrate it with a model home. The neighbourhood is usually one of the most influencing factors in property buying decisions.
Similarly, sample layouts and 3D renders in brochures, videos and presentations will be static and mockups too will only be one size fits all. On the other hand, VR can help you to bring the entire project to life. Not only can you showcase the best features of a particular apartment or building, but also those of the neighbourhood.
With the help of VR, a potential buyer can arrange furniture or other objects in their virtually-finished apartment whatever way he or she desires. It gives the buyer a completely personalized experience. It also
Keeping potential buyers engaged during the project development phase
is one of the biggest challenges for real estate developers. You will
probably get them to visit the project site and give their feedback or
recommendations. Feedback obtained in this way can be completely off the
mark because the project may not complete when you collect it.
On the other hand, no matter what stage of development your project is
in, you can seek conclusive feedback from buyers any time when you are
using VR. You can also incorporate VR into your digital marketing
campaigns and promo.
As an estimate, the marketing budget can go up to 10% of the development cost. As already mentioned, you will spend money on setting up dedicated marketing suites, preparing and promoting marketing collateral and hiring marketing professionals. We – here at Lucid Vue – have seen that developers can save a lot on their marketing expenses by incorporating VR in their promotional campaigns. VR solutions cost only a fraction of traditional methods, making them much more cost-effective.
If you believe VR is not a substitute for traditional marketing methods, it can at least be a great addition to your marketing arsenal. It will cut down costs, bring about more transparency in your campaigns and enable you to precisely communicate the best features of your project to prospective buyers. to your project through social media. It will also keep your prospects engaged. Feedback received on home buyers’ preferences will enable you to develop projects that sell faster and/or at a premium in the future.