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©2015 Blade Creative Branding Inc. 1

C R E A T I V E B R A N D I N G

Best Practices for Real Estate

Industry Marketers

A Blade Creative Branding e-BookUpdated to March 2015


TABLE OF CONTENTS

Creating Success for Real Estate Marketers .................................................................................3

Your Brand is a Community ..........................................................................................................4

What’s Your Role? ..........................................................................................................................5

“How Does This Apply to Real Estate Marketing?” ....................................................................6

Case Study: Establishing Greenpark’s Currency in the Condo Market .......................................7

The Right Stuff .............................................................................................................................10

Get the Right Stuff Now! ............................................................................................................14


Building low rise and/or high rise brand

communities is part of Blade’s foundation as an

agency. We’ve been doing it for over 24 years,

working continuously with respected builders

throughout Ontario. We pioneered the move

away from a herd mentality and established

the importance of brand community building

in real estate.

Every aspect of your effort – establishing the

location, designing the product, launching the

marketing campaign, selling the units and then

delivering and servicing those units – represents

an opportunity to build your brand’s community.

In this e-book, we’ll share with you a list of best

practices to enhance your real estate brand. But

first, we’ll introduce you to the basics of brand

community marketing, and how this perspective

applies to every industry we’ve worked in.

Aspen Ridge Homes

Broadway Homes

CountryWide Homes

DiCenzo Homes

Fieldgate Homes

Genstar

Greenpark

History Hill Group

Invar Building Corporation

Molinaro Group

Remington Homes

Rosehaven Homes

The Ross Group

Royal Pine Homes

Starlane Home Corporation

Townwood Homes

CREATING SUCCESS FORREAL ESTATE MARKETERS


At Blade, we see your brand as a destination your

customers populate, creating a community. These people

are attracted to your

brand, and stay with

it, because of the

values they experience

from your brand.

Your brand’s ability to

consistently deliver on

those values establishes

a dynamic relationship

that needs to be nourished and managed.

Seeing your brand as a community offers you a clear view

of the important amenities, points of interest, core values

and beliefs that attract community members, keep them

in the fold, and encourage them to enlist others.

YOUR BRAND IS A COMMUNITY

A successful brand today owes its creation and growth

to a set of core principles:

• Your brand is a destination, around which

a community will form.

• Your brand must nurture the connection

it creates with the community.

• You don’t own the brand or the community.

• You’re part of a relationship based on

shared values and fulfilled expectations.

It’s all About the Relationship

Best of all, seeing your brand as a community provides

clear insight as to where your marketing resources should

be invested. If you know where and how people “live in

the community,” you know how to reach them.


Because a brand community creates a working partnership,

your role is to be the diligent guardian of the brand.

That doesn’t entitle you to a lot of arbitrary control –

mostly because you have a lot of obligations first.

WHAT’S YOUR ROLE?

Internal Stakeholders

ExternalStakeholders

InternalStakeholders

ExternalStakeholders

In�uencers

SharedKey

Values

SharedKey

Values

SharedKey

Values

YOURBRAND

1 Ensuring you do everything you can to deliver on

your brand’s promises. Sounds simple, but it can

be tough as nails.

2 Anticipating the expectations of your brand

community – and sometimes gently guiding them.

3 Regularly exploring new ways to keep the community

buzzing by engaging them with relevant content.

4 Align your brand and your promises with only those

media or partners that share the same values.

5 Recognize that your brand community is a living,

organic thing that can be evacuated at a moment’s

notice if you do something toxic, or just plain dumb.

6 Never forget that your internal brand community

(your employees) is the most important group of

people you need to enlist, engage and motivate.


“HOW DOES THIS APPLY TO REAL ESTATE MARKETING?”Here are just a few key best practices for real estate marketers.

5 Encourage Membership In Your Brand Community Buyers need to feel their investment is the best deal

around. From delivery to after sales service, multiple

opportunities exist to engage, encourage referrals,

and reward loyalty. Satisfied home buying families

are quite often generational home buying families.

6 Embrace Modern Strategies and TacticsBuilding your brand community today is all about

engagement. Whether you are reaching out to

the brokerage community, or building your own

lead generation program with investors and/or

end user/occupants, consumers seek out and find

relevant content at a time and place of their

choosing. Traditional print, broadcast and out-of-

home media have their place. But your brand must

also be “findable” via content marketing and social

media platforms, empowered by targeted search

marketing and pay-per-click advertising. These

approaches are measurable and can be optimized

almost on the fly. Embrace them!

1 Avoid the Herd Mentality No two developers share the same business model, financial

strength, or experience level. Study what the industry is doing

– but seek out the strategic and creative solutions that work

best for your situation.

2 Keep Your Ego In Check Seeing your competitors launching glitzy promotions may be

enticing. Some developers may have the luxury of executing

programs that are not focused on a reasonable ROI. Have

confidence in knowing what works best for you and stick to it.

3 Clearly Connect the Brand to a Core Set of Values What your company stands for must be reflected in every

project you develop. Don’t be shy about promoting your

commitment to quality, longevity, service, or design flare.

Whatever your key values are, keep them present in as many

customer touch points as possible.

4 Enliven the Brand Character Investing in real estate is serious business. Embracing

contemporary language and imagery is just as vital. Have fun,

be entertaining – but always be relevant and consistent.


CASE STUDY: ESTABLISHING GREENPARK’S CURRENCY IN THE CONDO MARKET

Greenpark, in Blade’s view, had to be seen

as an emerging leader in the condo market.

The new positioning line for the brand would

have to evolve from “We Build It Better” to

something more assertive.

CHALLENGE: Establish Greenpark’s Brand

as a High-Rise Condo Developer

Blade decided to leverage the strengths of the

established Greenpark brand: integrity, quality and

innovation in creating high value yet affordable

residential housing.

Blade understood that Greenpark was not going to

be the biggest condo developer right away. Instead,

Blade wanted to focus on Greenpark’s commitment to

delivering a new level of condo development inspired

by smarter suite designs, hotel-inspired amenities and

outstanding value for both investors and end-users.

Greenpark, a highly successful and reputable builder known for low-rise and subdivision

master planned communities and neighbourhoods in the 905 area, recognized the evolution

of the real estate market towards intensification and condominium development.


KEY INSIGHT: Leverage the Current Brand Promise

Blade focused on the core deliverables that defined

Greenpark’s approach to condo development and design:

convenient locations, landmark architecture, hotel-

inspired amenities, and intelligently designed suites.

Plus, Greenpark only included those amenities residents

would actually use, while avoiding costly amenities that

look great in brochures but are seldom enjoyed. That

approach would also keep maintenance fees down.

The mission was to communicate

that the same innovation,

attention to detail and value that

Greenpark applied to its low-rise

homes, would also be applied to

its high-rise developments.

BRAND STRATEGY: Broad Reach

with Innovative Targeting

The first task was to develop an integrated brand

communications strategy that combined traditional and new

media to reach a diverse and distracted audience. Talking to

investors, brokers and end-users at once demanded that media

investments were flexible, that creative was memorable, and

that the call to action generated metrics that could be used to

refine and redeploy the campaign going forward.

Blade began with a new web presence for Greenpark including

a CMS website, social media content strategy and engagement,

and e-newsletters. We then developed a powerful campaign of

digital and pay-per-

click Google AdWords

advertising supported

by traditional print,

TV, radio and out-of-

home advertising.



At point-of-sale, Blade worked closely with Greenpark’s

team to create welcoming, contemporary environments.

Instead of the standard kitchen/living room vignette

many developers offered, Greenpark featured a fully

furnished, designer-decorated model that potential

buyers could walk-through to more fully experience

Greenpark’s design and finishes.

Throughout every phase of Greenpark’s brand update,

Blade recruited and managed a wide range of suppliers

to provide high quality renderings, displays and

collateral material. We knew that higher production

values create a higher perceived value – and that is

what Greenpark needed.

LAUNCH STRATEGY: More Bounce For The Ounce!

Every condo Blade has launched for Greenpark, whether

urban or suburban, has enjoyed rapid sell-out success.

Blade has accomplished this for significantly less cost than

many developers have spent to launch similar projects.

Our approach has always been to do a better job, not a

needlessly more expensive job.

“The Blade Team has been, and continues to be,

a trusted partner in our condo development

business. Their approach is always thoughtful,

creative and results-oriented. They are a

collaborative and energetic group that offers a

comprehensive range of services that has helped

keep the Greenpark brand relevant, current,

and competitive in the condo marketplace.”

Ted WineExecutive Director High-Rise Developments

Greenpark Group



THE RIGHT STUFFAllure Condominiums – Midtown Toronto

Blade’s insight on the

branding of Allure was

generated from seeing the condo as a highly attractive

neighbourhood enhancement that buyers would perceive

as a worthy investment. Developing an equally attractive

‘face’ for the condo was a key deliverable that helped

establish Allure as intriguing and eminently fashionable –

essential attributes of this boutique condo.

1


THE RIGHT STUFFUV2 Condominiums – Markham Village

Greenpark’s master

planned condominium

development in Markham, Ontario had already sold

90% of the south tower and was under construction.

The project was about to move into its second phase

– the North Tower. But with the market changing

and even more competitors entering the local area,

Blade’s key insight was to introduce the north tower

with a more energetic, decidedly urban feel.

2

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CONSTRUCTION

**Terms and Conditions may apply. *Brokers Protected. To qualified purchasers. Limited quantities available in some price ranges. Prices & information correct at press deadline. See Sales Representative for details. Renderings are artist’s impression. E. & O.E.

MAIN ELEVATION

BUY WITH ONLY

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PRESENTATION CENTRE HOURS: Monday - Thursday: 1pm - 8pm. Saturday, Sunday & Holidays: 11am - 6pm. Closed Fridays. Markham Rd. North of 16th Ave. – Upper Village South Tower, Ground Floor

One & Two BedroomSuites from the $200’s*

UV2, the North Tower of the Upper Village condominium residence, is the next chapter in a success story of unprecedented vision that Greenpark is proud to bring to Markham. Visit our Presentation Centre in the Upper Village South Tower.

UV2.ca


S E L F E V I D E N T T R U T H S O F A X I O M

HOTEL INSPIRED AMENITIES ACTUALLY

DO INSPIRE

Located at Adelaide East and Ontario Streets, AXIOM features a host of elegant amenities including an elegant Porte Cochere, a luxurious 24 Hour Concierge Lobby, a delightfully landscaped outdoor Party Terrace and a breathtaking Sky Deck. These are just the sort of amenities that will inspire you to fully enjoy life, without having to try too hard and no maintenance fees for up to 2 years.* Learn more at axiomcondos.ca

*On selected suites. See sales representative for full details.

The Difference is Self Evident

SUITES FROM THE LOW $200’S

UP TO 2 YEARS

FREE MAINTENANCE*

Renderings are Artist’s Impression

THE RIGHT STUFFAXIOM Condominiums – Downtown Toronto

Greenpark’s first downtown

Toronto development was

situated in a less than glamorous, but certainly up-and-

coming neighbourhood in the east end. Blade’s approach

was to the leverage the awesome array of cool, local area

amenities, including St. Lawrence Market, the Distillery

District and even Leslieville, to make the case for AXIOM

being TRUE downtown living. Taking ownership of a

broader footprint than just the condo itself, was the right

strategy that presented the self-evident advantages of

choosing AXIOM.

3


THE NEW BURLINGTONOPENS SOON

EXCLUSIVELY FROM

The New Burlington is Paradigm. Paradigm is luxurious and inviting. You are invited to experience it live and in person.

Burlington’s New Standard of Condo Living from the $200’s.

South of the QEW

on Fairview @ Brant


BLADE CREATIVE BRANDING INC.150 Laird Drive, Toronto, ON M4G 3V7416.467.4770 | 1.800.392.5233 bladebranding.com

Date

Client

Docket Number

Publication

Insertion Date

File Format

October 7, 2013

Molinaro Group

PD-1897

Condo Guide

New Home & Condo Guide 7.5”w x 10.5”hOct 12th, Oct 26th, Nov 9th, Nov 23rd

Sept 28th, Oct 12th, Oct 26th, Nov 9th, Nov 23rd

InDesign / PDF

Trim Size

Bleed Size

Live Area

Colour

Notes

7.5”w x 10.5”h

0.25”

CMYK

APPROVAL: PLEASE INITIAL

Art Director WITH CHANGES WITH CHANGES WITH CHANGESREQUEST A REVISED PROOF

This proof may be privileged and/or confidential, and Blade Creative Branding Inc. does not waive any related rights and obligations. Any distribution, use or copying of this proof or the information it contains by other than an intended recipient is unauthorized. If you received this proof in error, please advise Blade Creative Branding Inc. (by return e-mail, fax or otherwise) immediately. Thank you.

BOOK NOW

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THE RIGHT STUFFParadigm Condominiums – Burlington

The Molinaro Group has

been instrumental in the

evolution of Burlington, from its origins as a charming

town to its current status as a growing and dynamic

city. When they conceived their newest condo, ideally

located steps from the new GO station and minutes in

each direction from the QEW and the waterfront, they

wanted to hire an agency that was the “best of the

best,” according to Molinaro president Vince Molinaro.

They chose Blade.

4


T: 416.467.4770 | Toll Free: 1.800.392.5233nmcgovern@bladebranding.combladecreativebranding.com

GET THE RIGHT STUFF NOW!

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