We’ve said before that 90% of homebuyers search online for homes and custom homebuilders. That’s a significant number! For the best sales and homeowner experience, you’ll spend a lot of time thinking about the design and features of your website. But also think about the way people first find you online. That might include SEO, social media marketing – whatever your company needs for name recognition and first page Google results. One feature to definitely consider is a mobile website.

It’s predicted that by 2013, more people will access information and search on their mobile devices than on their computers. Adding a mobile website will therefore have a major impact on your business. Regular websites are difficult to load and navigate on a mobile phone. Time-consuming sites send people off looking for companies that already have a mobile site. Mobile websites allow not just rapid website load time and easy-to-navigate pages, but also immediate access to phone numbers, directions, hours, and contact information. Consider how important this is to your potential custom homebuyer.

With the majority of people searching for homes on mobile websites, having a sharp-looking site with plentiful, organized information is crucial to staying ahead of your competitors. More visibility means more sales. Companies with mobile websites are going to sell more custom homes – that’s just the logic of numbers. Consider what your company can do to stay ahead of market trends and turn potential homebuyers into satisfied homeowners.

If you have any questions about mobile websites, or site design, SEO, and social marketing, give Builder Designs a call. We’d be happy answer any questions and discuss your options.

Which house are you interested in?

Photographs are an extremely important part of your website for the potential client. They grab attention from the first look, illustrating specials and favorite examples of your custom homes on the front page. The right picture could be the decisive factor between a homebuilder looking further around your site, and leaving for a competitor’s.

Photographs also provide information. They show off your skill at constructing exteriors and designing interiors. Pictures are an excellent way to show off a particular design feature or detail you’re especially proud of. They give clients an impression of the scope and quality of your homes. Clients are often looking for a particular design style, which they’ll want to know if you can provide.

You’ll also want to show off your models and move-in ready homes. Offering floorplans, model types, and exterior shots are a great way to fully inform the client. The more pictures the better, especially if they are available together in a gallery for ease of browsing.

Having photographs is undeniably important. What about their quality? There’s a lot to think about when photographing homes. The right angles, lighting, and background details can make the difference between a beautiful-looking home and a subpar one. The better the picture, the better the house appears, and the more likely a client is going to be to stop and look at it. The better the picture, the better of a chance you have to sell that house. But composing those shots can be difficult.

Consider hiring a professional photographer for your luxury custom homes. They can turn a snapshot of a house front to a beautiful composition of an airy, well-light room, or glowing mahogany study, or color-drenched facade. The right photograph can turn the right house and you into the right relationship between client and custom home.

Did you know that 80% of homebuyers search online for homes? A professional website is crucial to attracting potential customers and to get an edge over competing companies. The right website will have the design and photographs, ease of navigation and search, and the arrangement and quality of information that is right for your customers and your company.

The first thing to think about is data. Clients will want to look at foorplans and pictures before they go see the homes in person. The ability to print plans, or save houses across the site, are excellent additions that can make your site stand out as useful and inviting. Have a balance between photos and numbers. Some people are more visual and will want a tour – even consider video tours  – while others will want to crunch text. Quality photographs make a big difference to the potential client, in seeing the type and quality of custom homebuilding you can provide.

Clients are focused on looking for a home, not looking around a website. Make your site as easy to navigate as possible: organize by model, floorplan, community, and anything else you think the client could use. Likewise, an optimal site should be searchable by categories like neighborhood, price range, and number of rooms.

After you’ve interested a potential homebuyer, provide plenty of information about your company. Along with a clear contact page, interest list forms or additional information request forms will help start a conversation. You’ll also want an About page. Offer specific information about your company. Everyone can (and will) claim interest in customer service, design, and quality. But your special sales, commitment to energy efficiency, interior design plans, and testimonials are all yours.

All of this is important to a good website, but it is enough? The design and quality of a website reflects, in many people’s minds, on the quality of the business and their homebuilding design potential. Fairly or not, a graphically inferior site can turn people away. A website that’s difficult to use, poorly designed, or outdated can make that snap judgement of surfing online a cause to click away from you. Keep in mind, too, how quickly technology changes. A fantastic site for 2005 may not be sufficient or look fashionable in 2012. With so many people looking online for their custom homebuilding, a quality website is an important investment to make.

If you would like more information on homebuilding websites – including mobile sites, SEO, and email marketing – Builder Designs offers custom homebuilder website design.