Digital Marketing: Are Developers Tapping Its True Potential?

The idea of Indian real estate has transformed into a mammoth over the years. Bigger projects, larger than life claims, over the top amenities, never-ending skyscrapers; the list is endless. Earlier, residences would be advertised in newspapers. With the advent of TV and cinema, it was surprisingly movies, especially from the 70s, which had songs dedicated to finding that perfect “Ashiana” for the typical middle-class hero and heroine. 

Cut to 2018, it's the digital age and that automatically paved the way for developers to join the social media frenzy with hashtags and tweets and whatnot in just less than a decade. However, the million dollar question is, “Is the Indian real estate industry is actually using the might of digital marketing to its maximum potential or has it, till now, only scraped its surface?” The answer, if one looks at digital marketing currently within the industry, is option number two. 

Digital marketing is very attractive because it has an unbelievably wide reach; it can be a very out-of-the-box creative medium of expression and it is surprisingly cheap. The other types of marketing, namely print, TV and out-of-home (OOH) advertising are limited in what they can convey, hence giving digital marketing an edge above them all. 

Digital marketing consists of several elements, the first being the creation of a website for your brand. This first step is extremely crucial and its inception is what paves way for other important elements, the penultimate one being an established presence on social networking platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc. There are three main targets to be achieved: brand building, attracting customers, and ultimately, retaining customers. The success of the marketing campaign solely is measured by target number three. If large amounts of consumers are retained, the campaign will be an unbeatable success, but if, despite a colossal digital marketing campaign, consumers don’t stay back, it is considered an epic disaster. 

Most home buyers today scout for information via the Internet. There are really no two ways about this. Even if they are told about a particular property by a friend or family member, the first automatic reaction today will be to look up its information online. 

This is where most Indian real estate developers seem to lose the plot. They can’t seem to understand that they have to stick to one goal. They don’t know how exactly their target buyers behave. They mishmash ten things together and expect miraculous results. Communication is vital, especially in this digital age. They fail to get a hold and connect a chord with a potential buyer. For example, if a builder posts about the completion of his project on Facebook and if a curious onlooker happens to ask a question there, if he doesn’t get a prompt response, he won’t come back. Simple. 

Now, the target of developers is not just potential home buyers, but also agents who are always on the lookout to find properties that they can pass onto their clients. So, one can’t create a campaign solely on home buyers while completely ignoring the role agents play in home sales.

The most glaring error across digital marketing is the lack of research and information. Half-baked information is packaged in an attractive looking post. The home buyer of today is smart and the options to choose from are infinite. Digital marketing can be solely responsible for the success of a project. It is time developers saw through the hashtags and fancy promising posts and delved deeper into the gigantic ocean of digital marketing.