How Public Relations Benefits Your Master-Planned Community Marketing

Every industry, especially homebuilding, is driven by buyer trust. When homebuyers trust home builders and developers, they’re more likely to engage and convert to a lead. How do home builders and developers build that trust? One of the most important ways is managing the general public’s perception of the brand and master-planned community.

Public relations is key in directing a company’s reputation and connecting the brand to its intended audience. By making the company more visible, public relations inherently provides builders and developers with enhanced credibility and greater buyer trust.

Many home builders and developers misconceive public relations as only necessary for large companies or organizations facing negative attention/crises. However, the truth is that public relations benefits any company despite its size or reputation. Sharing day-to-day insights, expertise and updates helps brands build goodwill and a positive status.

Home builders and developers often overlook the value of public relations. But this practice is critical for elevating brand awareness of master-planned communities, managing company reputation, generating leads and so much more.

What is Public Relations (PR)?

Public relations – also referred to as media relations or earned media – is the practice of maintaining an organization or individual’s public image by sharing stories of interest with the press. News is distributed to media personnel through press releases, pitches, media advisories, press kits, etc. The ultimate goal of public relations is to build awareness and establish a positive reputation for an entity in the eyes of the general public. By producing positive narratives, this strategic communications process forms mutually beneficial connections between brands and their audience. Although the end goal of this tactic focuses on buyer-directed communication, public relations also requires strong ties between companies and the media, which includes journalists, reporters, magazine writers, editors, etc. To develop an effective PR strategy, builders and developers must network with relevant media contacts and tactically approach media contacts to distribute content to the intended target audience.

Don’t think your company has any valuable stories to pitch to the media? We beg to differ!

“All companies, big and small, have stories to share, whether it is a new community, whole house remodel, charitable initiative, new sales agent, or a 25th anniversary,” said Denim Marketing President Carol Morgan.

Everything your company does as well as any updates that occur within your master-planned community are perfect stories to place in a news outlet to reach homebuyers. It’s all about finding the best angle for the article to make it truly newsworthy.

Understanding the significance of public relations and the impact it has on creating a robust public image for your brand and master-planned community is paramount. Let’s explore ways that public relations benefits master-planned community marketing!

Builds Brand Awareness/Credibility

Building awareness is all about spreading brand presence to ensure  content is seen by more of your target audience. Public relations provides a fantastic way to achieve placements in media outlets that reach the ideal buyers you want to target.

“Brand awareness is step one in a marketing plan for builders. It is the first building block of everything else the home builders marketing agency does,” said Morgan.

Which builder or developer are homebuyers more likely to trust – the one they’ve never heard about or the other they’ve read about in the media? We think you know the answer!

Public relations has the ability to turn national or local builders and developers into household names that buyers recognize and trust if done well.While less than half of consumers trust paid ads, a Cision report reveals that 92% say they trust earned media. More subtle than advertising, public relations validates your company’s standing and expertise, effectively establishing greater trust with your audience. As your company and its master-planned community are featured in third-party articles, buyers will keep your name top-of-mind and eventually view your community as a trustworthy option during their home search.

The effects of brand awareness and credibility genuinely go hand in hand. The more brand awareness your company generates, the more credibility it earns and the more sales you are likely to make.

Reduces Marketing Funds

Employing marketing strategies that incorporate earned media (public relations), owned media (blogging, website content), and paid media requires less budget for a substantial return. Sharing company news through various paid media is costly, but earning media placements through public relations is free. Home builders and developers often save part of the marketing budget by integrating public relations with other tactics. “By integrating PR with other tactics, home builders take advantage of the synergies between earned, owned and paid media. By creating a marketing strategy that incorporates all of these, you achieve greater impact at a lower cost than strategies built independently,” said Morgan.

Maintains Strong Reputation

From your target audience’s perspective, your reputation is built around everything they have seen or heard about the brand, whether through the company itself, social media, articles, ads, word-of-mouth, etc. Pitching stories and earning strong media placements –online or in print – positions your brand positively and helps maintain your reputation.

While positive perceptions are always valuable, no matter your company's current reputation, public relations is beneficial if your brand faces negative attention. Consistently executing public relations efforts allows builders and developers to better protect their company's status when negative situations arise. “By establishing a positive reputation, home builders better protect their status in case negative news happens – and unfortunately, it sometimes does,” said Morgan.

Strengthen Brand Presence

A strategic public relations program significantly strengthens your brand's online presence. Public relations placements are vital in improving your search engine optimization (SEO) efforts. By linking to your website and sharing content focused on your brand, any online earned media piece tremendously impacts your master-planned community’s SEO performance.

“Having stories about the company online enhances its SEO – piece's existence and the link it creates to the corporate website...And who doesn’t want more links,” said Morgan.

Media placements also have endless potential for use across your brand’s communication channels. Amplify the reach and impact of this third-party endorsement by sharing this content as widely as possible through your website, social media platforms, email newsletters, marketing materials and more. By distributing news coverage, you improve your audience’s perceptions of the brand and its community. Articles produced by third parties offer your brand fantastic external credibility that increases buyer confidence in your master-planned community.

Generates Leads

As your brand practices public relations, the best approach is to focus on media consumed by your target audience. If your brand has a greater reach among your intended buyers, it is more likely that your leads will increase.

For buyers who already know who you are, seeing your stories in the media further cements their trust in the brand and increases their comfort in buying with the company. or buyers shopping for new homes yet to consider your company, public relations stories will place your master-planned community on their radar and drive them to your website to learn more.

Develop a Strategic Public Relations Plan for Your Master-Planned Community

Any master-planned community can deliver incredible homes and stunning amenities but creating ways for buyers to connect makes all the difference! To make those vital connections, builders and developers must share their stories to differentiate and resonate with their audience. This is where public relations gives brands greater memorability, credibility and a stellar reputation.

Our team is comprised of incredible communicators who excel in pinpointing, crafting and delivering a good story that portrays your brand positively. We’re ready to give a voice to your brand – contact our team to get started!