Going virtual is less of a luxury these days and more of a requirement with businesses and organizations racing to find solutions to adapt to the growing need to have full functionality online. Home builder associations are no different. The government shutdowns and requirements for social distancing quickly pulled the rug out beneath many associations in the height of parade season. Parades are being cancelled or rescheduled multiple times chasing the right time in the future when things will finally get back to normal, but maybe virtual should and could be the new normal. Here are our top 5 reasons to have a virtual parade even if you have a live event scheduled.
1. Virtual Parades Reach A Broader Audience
A quick look at a Cross Demand Report on Realtor.com for most cities shows that the majority of home shoppers searching for new homes in larger markets are located outside of the county that they are searching in or from outside of the state. A traditional parade won’t capture this important segment of active home shoppers, but a Virtual Parade of Homes from BDX will. How? More than a website, BDX promotes the parade to active home shoppers searching within the geographic area on New Home Source—tapping into out of town shoppers.
2. A Longer Shelf Life
We know how the typical parade pans out—builders, trades, and designers are in the home at 2 am racing to get the home complete just in time for the parade. The truth is that sometimes a home isn’t completed in time. What if your parade lived on and builders could join at any time? A virtual parade doesn’t have a set start and end date centered around the purchase of traditional advertising media, it follows the patterns of active home shoppers. With new home shoppers beginning their search online all of the time, it makes sense to keep your parade front and center all year long.
3. Expand Participation
Traditional parades are a huge expense for builders and limit who can participate. Virtual events open up the opportunity to builders that might not normally participate in a parade. With the ability to feature an unbuilt home through virtual home tours, just about anyone can feature their home in the parade without the enormous investment of time and money.
4. Home Shoppers Rely On Virtual Tools In The Decision Making Process
Research has shown a growing trend for many years that home shoppers rely on the availability of interactive online experiences in the decision-making process. Virtual tours, visualizers and interactive floor plans help home buyers continue the decision-making process at home—beyond the initial visit, making it a valuable piece of the process. With the current social distance measures in place, these tools have become essential and it’s not just millennials adopting technology, even Gen-X and Boomers have had to quickly adapt. Who isn’t a Zoom pro at this point?
5. Better Insights
Can you really measure the results of a live event? Sure, you can measure foot traffic and a few homes might be sold, but going virtual can give you, your builders and trades deep insight throughout the year. With the ability to track click through traffic, time on site, and conversions—a virtual event allows you to give ongoing value and insights to all of your participants.
Still aren’t convinced you need a Virtual Parade? Join us for a deeper dive on the topic this Wednesday at 1pm CST in our webinar, The World Is Going Online, Shouldn’t Your Parade Too? Want to learn more? Email us at info@thebdx.com.
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More Content by Alaina Latiolais
