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Dear Dennis,

I hope all is well with you and the gang there in California. I really enjoyed your Certified New Home Specialist course and have made some progress in developing a marketing relationship with a builder here. He's really creative and progressive and is very interested in moving into the Green Building design and construction arena.

I know you're a big proponent of Green Building and was interested in some advice. The builder seems to have strong ideas on the design and building details, but what should I consider as it relates to marketing? You talked about the marketing appeal of green homes, but what would be some specific ideas?

Thank you again for your excellent training. The ideas you shared in your certification courses have given me a new perspective and motivated me in a way that will clearly change my future.

Sincerely,

M.S., Alpharetta, GA

Thank you for your kind words. Having the opportunity to make a positive impact on the wonderful people we meet in this business is truly a blessing.

Congratulations on your success so far in establishing a representation relationship with this builder. In a market with so many builders competing with similar product, it's great to have an opportunity to work with a builder looking to build a better mousetrap. And, as you know, there has been a tremendous increase in awareness of environmental issues that is driving greater consumer demand in this area. As a result, there's never been a better time to bring the benefits of green building your customers and enjoy some competitive benefits in the process.

As discussed in the CNHS training, the key to helping our buyers perceive the value of the features in our homes, we must translate these features into benefits. In other words, as we demonstrate what it is, we must also emphasize what it will do for them.

In the case of green building, this means preparing ourselves to detail the specific features, such as materials used, and then explain how those materials translate into benefits such as healthier air quality, enhanced comfort, lower maintenance costs, etc., in addition to making a contribution to preserving our environment. In your preparation, remember that you will find yourself working with prospects who bring different personality styles to their decision-making. This means we must be prepared for those who would like to support their decisions with statistics, facts and other details. We also find those who will relate from a more emotional perspective such as the impact on quality of life, healthy benefits to family members and making a contribution to the well-being of others.

One major aspect of green construction centers on energy efficiency. It's important to be prepared to demonstrate estimated impact on energy usage and the resulting cost savings. These cost savings can then be multiplied over the life of the home to demonstrate substantial long-term benefits. One approach is to calculate estimated monthly savings, then demonstrate that if those savings were applied to the mortgage loan principal, over the life of a typical 30 mortgage, a substantial sum of money could be saved.

I encourage you to revisit the sections of your CNHS training that focus on selling quality and strategies for effective demonstration.

Another consideration is finding ways to apply other resources that may be available to support the benefits of green building. In Atlanta, for example, you can find support from the EarthCraft House program. There are often excellent ideas that will provide additional exposure for your green homes. You may also find that some manufacturers will offer co-op marketing dollars that can be applied to your benefit.

With this topic so popular these days, it's usually not difficult to contact local media and enjoy some news coverage to create substantial exposure, especially if you can tie in some sort of event and/or support of a good cause. An excellent example of this is found in an event organized by a group known as "project7ten". A LEED certified home built in Venice Beach, CA of sustainable materials, energy efficient details including solar panels, reclaimed and recycled materials, etc. Project7ten is running a Green Home Tour with many industry sponsors. Proceeds collected from the tours will be given to "Healthy Child Healthy World", a non-profit organization "dedicated to protecting the well-being of children from harmful environmental exposures". You can visit www.project7ten.com for more information.

For some additional examples and ideas, in addition to a Google search on green building and marketing, I'd recommend you also visit www.HousingZone.com and www.BuilderOnline.com.


Best of luck to you, Dennis


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