You’ve heard it said time and time again; content marketing is the way to go. But you're still a little unsure - how is writing a blog post on interior decorating styles or how to budget for a new home going to help someone to actually buy one of your new homes?
In short, you’re probably wondering just how much of a return you’re going to get on your investment. If you switch your advertising dollars to content marketing, are you going to see an increase in home sales or are you just flushing your money down the toilet?
Before you can be ready to achieve success with content marketing, it requires a shift in your thinking and the willingness to believe in a long-term investment that will pay off exponentially in the form of more traffic, leads and home sales.
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Ditch Your Traditional Marketing Ideas
Traditional marketing was fairly straightforward, and it often produced some quick results. You’d mail out a flyer or place a radio ad, and customers would come in to learn more about what you have to offer. Interested people might not necessarily turn into paying customers, but there was always an influx of interest soon after you spent your money.
You also couldn't really track it.
How many people saw or heard your ad? Of those people, how many actually came and talked to you?
Content marketing is different. It’s a longer game, as in the results aren't immediate. You start spending advertising money, but you don't normally get that same initial rush of interest.
In fact, at first, it might not seem like you’re getting any results! But you will notice two important differences:
In fact, at first, it might not seem like you’re getting any results! But you will notice two important differences:
- Your investment lasts forever. When you pay for a direct mail campaign or a TV spot, it’s a one-time thing. With content marketing, you get an informational resource - usually in the form of a blog post, an ebook, or a series of emails. Those last forever. A good blog post can get many views a day for years.
- When customers do come in, they’re ready to buy. Customers these days use your content marketing materials to research options. If they’re coming into your showrooms, there’s a good chance they’ve already narrowed their decision down to having you build their home; or your company and one other. Your sales team doesn’t have to work as hard.
Be Patient and the Results Will Come
Good content marketing requires patience, and that’s hard for a lot of people.
Maybe you've heard people claiming that content marketing doesn’t work? Generally, people who say that fall into one of two camps.
Maybe you've heard people claiming that content marketing doesn’t work? Generally, people who say that fall into one of two camps.
1. They haven't tried it yet
or
2. They put some effort in for a month or two, then gave up when they didn’t see the results they wanted.
Think about it this way: if you put out one SEO-optimized blog post a week, you’ll have 12 possible posts that might turn up in the search engines after three months. At the end of a year, though, you have 52 pages that could turn up in the search engines. After two years, you have over 100. Each of those pages is a permanent possibility for attracting customers. You can see how it builds up.
Content marketing expert Neil Patel says that it usually takes about six months to start seeing serious results with content marketing.
Develop a Proper Content Marketing Plan
Without a solid background in content marketing, people usually make the mistake of creating content without an actual strategy. They may be creating the wrong types of content for their site or they may not be incorporating search engine optimization into the plan.
Whatever mistakes they’re making, they’re not seeing results from their efforts.
Whatever mistakes they’re making, they’re not seeing results from their efforts.
If you want to do content marketing right, you need a solid strategy. You need to understand who your customers are and what they’re looking for. You need to deliver that content to them at just the right time.
It’s complex. You shouldn’t go it alone.
A marketing agency that specializes in the home building industry can help you plan out the right content to post and will take care of it for you. They're a great resource to your team because their focus is on the specific goals you set out.
It’s complex. You shouldn’t go it alone.
A marketing agency that specializes in the home building industry can help you plan out the right content to post and will take care of it for you. They're a great resource to your team because their focus is on the specific goals you set out.
Remember the Customer’s Journey
Most of your customers go through a particular journey.
They first realize that their current home isn’t meeting their needs, and they start considering alternatives. Once they’ve decided they’re going to build a new home rather than buying a resale home, they start doing a different type of research. Looking into floor plans, design options, communities, and so on. Finally, they’re ready to see what you have to offer.
With content marketing, you have the opportunity to insert your brand into every step of this process. You’re not just waiting for them to research home builders. You’re giving them good - and unbiased - information about whether or not they should buy a new home. You’re helping them select the right type of floor plan for their family.
When they’re finally ready to pick a home builder, they’ll remember all the good information you’ve been providing them.
So... What Kind of Results Can You Expect?
We’ve cautioned that there are several things that go into a good content marketing strategy and that you’re not likely to see instant results.
While It’s basically impossible to give exact numbers specific to you because it depends on variables like your unique goals, average monthly traffic, and budget, we can say is that after a full year of following a solid content marketing strategy (like what we build with our clients), you’re going to see positive results.
Your monthly traffic will rise through content promotion, and the long-term results are exciting to watch! More leads will enter your funnel from your content via the use of powerful CTAs strategically placed on blog posts and relevant website pages.
You're also building up your content marketing efforts the right way, so in time, the numbers will continue to rise as more of your posts rank higher in search results.
This is very important because all of your other goals relating to revenue are largely dependant on the amount of traffic you get. More traffic to your website means more leads, and more new home sales that can be tracked back to the content they read in the very beginning of their home buying journey.
If you want to see what is typical in terms of results for the satisfied clients we've already worked with, we're happy to show you an example. Here's how we helped Pacesetter Homes get 52.4% more home buyer leads year-over-year.
Not sure whether content marketing is right for you? Talk to us to learn more about what content marketing will look like for your home building business. We can help you create your own customized marketing plan that will have you seeing impressive results as you build up your bottom line!
