INTEGRITY ALWAYS SELLS 
By Hugh Heron

The question what will sell new homes in 2005 is a difficult one to answer. During the past decade, there’s been an enormous shift in the philosophy of sales. When I was president of GTHBA in 1983, I commented that people spent more time picking out a pair of shoes than buying a home. Nowadays, consumers are more savvy. They demand to be educated about products and services rather than “sold.” They don’t want any surprises after making the financial and emotional investment in buying a new home.

We have a remarkably diverse marketplace in the GTA, and in response builders have created a wide variety of product, from condos to townhomes, semis, detached and estate homes. Despite this diversity, there is one consistency in successful selling that I believe will continue to work in 2005 and beyond – integrity in all aspects of the sales process. This involves a number of practices that inspire potential purchasers and home buyers to trust builders, starting with the way they are treated in the sales office. Each salesperson must know the builder’s product inside and out, and present information in a clear way, without focusing on marketing fluff. Customers need to feel welcome AND informed. This means being totally honest and up front about what the homes and communities have and don’t have.

I’ve said many times that total transparency is the best way to go for everyone involved.
So, in 2005, sell by informing. Be honest in your marketing materials, and make them easy to understand. Tell your customers where you’ve built before, and invite them to knock on any door to ask how those homeowners found their experience. Advise your customers to take the Agreement of Purchase and Sale to a lawyer up front. Let them know who you are and that you are an approachable builder. And last, but not at all least, make sure you build a darned good home. Then stand behind your product all the way. The result is a sense of trust that money can’t buy.