High-End Property Marketing

Originally posted at Constructect.com

Today’s connected homebuyer is looking for homes in new ways. Equipped with connected devices like tablets and smartphones, these buyers are out looking at your properties, perhaps unbeknownst to you, and are using these devices to get an insider’s look at why they should be working with you. Savvy builders and developers are realizing this trend, and trying to stay one step ahead.

Residential developer Millennium Partners, www.millenniumptrs.com, New York, N.Y., for example, is using QR (quick response) code technology to keep people up to date on its latest project, Millennium Place. Through the use of high-end digital signage technology, those passing by the development are able to scan a QR code from across the street and then watch a 3D digital simulation of how the 15-story residential building was erected, right from their smartphone.

The project is currently under construction with initial occupancy slated for fall 2013. According to the developer, Millennium Place will be Boston’s first large scale residential condominium to be completed in more than four years, and represents the latest advances in planning and development for condominium projects.

“Whenever we begin a new project, we like to start by listening closely to sophisticated residents in Boston and other great American cities about how they want to live, work and partake in all that the city has to offer,” says Joe Larkin of Millennium Partners. “Millennium Place was designed in response, and we believe that it moves condominium design and services to yet a new level.”
The developer says Millennium Place will offer a wide selection of open and flexible floor plans that allow working at home in today’s new lifestyle. These units will feature an abundance of natural light, large scale “great rooms” for living, dining, and cooking, as well as luxurious bathrooms.
Part of Millennium Partners’ plan to invest nearly $1 billion in Boston during the next decade, Millennium Place, demonstrates a trend of building high-end luxury homes and incorporating new digital technology to help market the project.
The QR codes being used to promote the construction of this property may seem like a small part of the process, but could go a long way in demonstrating to buyers the tech-savvy nature in which these units are being displayed. Whereas in years past the name of the game with regards customer service was to ensure you had a robust Website to display your properties. However, today’s homebuyer is looking to tour your homes in a more live and interactive fashion. Smartphones and tablets have become a primary device for doing just that.
QR codes are 2D barcodes that, when scanned with a smartphone or other mobile device with a QR-code-reading app installed, displays a wealth of information embedded in the code. A June 2011 study from business-analytics firm comScore, www.comscore.com, Reston, Va., suggests QR codes are becoming conventional. According to the report, 14 million mobile users in the U.S. scanned a QR code on their mobile device, and that nearly one in five smartphone users scan product barcodes while inside a store.
Selling property in a down market takes a little bit extra these days. In all, QR codes might not be the thing that brings your property marketing efforts over the top, but they are another tool in the toolbox when it comes to digital sales and marketing efforts for residential properties.