Stepping Stone: The Power of Brand Creation & Placemaking for Master Planned Community Success

Shea Homes partnered with Milesbrand to help bring its master-planned community, Stepping Stone, from land to brand. Down to its final opportunities, Stepping Stone has garnered much success due to its unparalleled brand creation and unique placemaking efforts. 

Shea Homes developed Stepping Stone for first-time and move-up buyers seeking a suburban community with an un-suburban aesthetic. Located in Parker, Colorado, Stepping Stone provides residents with beautiful homes in a quaint town just minutes from thoroughfares that lead to major cities. Offering stunning single-family detached homes, Shea Homes meticulously curated home styles that catch the eyes of its target market. 

Explore the brand creation practices and placemaking elements employed by Shea Homes and Milesbrand to deliver a successful master-planned community!

Brand Creation

Creating a brand is more than just deciding on a name and logo. Brand creation is a collection of marketing plans, community vision and branding strategies! With the goal of creating a one-of-a-kind community under the promise of side stepping the status quo, Shea Homes and Milesbrand came together to develop a brand that perfectly reflects what Stepping Stone offers. 

The Milesbrand team supported Shea Homes in creating a consistent brand that told a rich and unique story. Several of the branding and marketing responsibilities that went into the Stepping Stone brand creation include:

• Brand Promise: Side Step the Status Quo
• Community Naming and Logo Design
• Environmental Design
• Community Signage and Brochures
• Collateral
• SEM: Banner AD Display, Email, Mobile, Video, Pay-Per-Click, Social Media Advertising, etc.
• Content Development
• Public Relation Efforts: Print and Radio
• Performance Reporting
• Realtors Relations Program

Placemaking Elements

Placemaking plays a crucial role in the success of master-planned communities. From planning and designing to constructing and developing, creative placemaking is key to attracting the target audience and delivering a desirable lifestyle. 

While location and home design are important factors in creating a master-planned community, placemaking also entails community lifestyle and environmental design. Defining the edges of the master-planned community, a bold, curved stone wall greets residents at the entrance and immediately allows the community to stand out among the competition.  Then stepping stones were used throughout the community to create a visual narrative to boost engagement and exploration. Shea Homes thoughtfully selected amenities that provide residents with an easy-going lifestyle, including a competition-sized pool, a spacious clubhouse and four expansive community parks. Several miles of walking trails give the community a sense of connectivity and inclusivity. Every element of Stepping Stone was branded for consistency, including the Winding Path Park and The Lantern House, to tell the rich and unique brand story.

Success Due to Branding

Partnering with Milesbrand on all branding efforts, Shea Homes experienced incredible success with its master-planned community. Just two and a half years after the launch of the community, Stepping Stone became the second top-selling master-planned community in the metro area. Down to its final opportunities, the Colorado neighborhood has stayed true to its brand mission to Side Step the Status Quo. 

Utilizing social media and website traffic to generate leads, Shea Homes witnessed significant results, including:

• More than 500 Campaign Leads
• 200K Combined Social Media Audience Reach
• 6.5K Social Media Post Engagements
• 90% New Website Traffic
• 75% of Website Traffic from Online Advertising Initatives

“Shea Homes has worked with the Milesbrand team for over 20 years. They are the brand visionaries behind some of Shea’s most iconic and award-winning neighborhoods and communities, including BackCountry, Firelight and the hearth in Highlands Ranch, Trailmark in Littleton, Stepping Stone in Parker, and, now Solstice in Littleton,” said Marketing Director of Shea Homes Cheryl Haflich.

Create a Successful Master-Planned Community Brand with Milesbrand

At Milesbrand, we bring your real estate visions to life with strategic branding creation, thoughtful placemaking and effective marketing strategies. Our team can help you develop a brand identity to ensure your master-planned community’s success. Contact us today for more information about our process and how we can make your master-planned community memorable and stand out among your competition.