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Building Green in a Black and White World-- Chapter 3

The following is an exerpt from the book Building Green in a Black and White World.
Section 2; Chapter3; Part 4; Sales and Marketing

David Ritchey Johnston
January 1, 1900
HousingZone

Sales and Marketing

Layout Selling what you build is the most important aspect of building green.

Tell the story behind each product that you use. Emphasize that green doesn't necessarily cost more. Tell your customers that green options can qualify them for a larger house. Realtors and sales personnel don't often show a customer the kind of cost breakdown and analysis used in the above study. Yet, when these are explained to the customer, green options can be a powerful sales tool.

-------Benefits Sell Homes--------

House-people Buyers love stories, and green features provide opportunities to tell stories about the house and the features that make it green. Even if it is just a list of benefits (see Chapter 6 for benefits list), you will be doing something different from your competition, and you will leave a lasting impression on your buyers. Green features may not sell the home at first blush, but they will make buyers think and will often bring them back. And remember that many buyers are more sophisticated than you may realize. Better Homes and Gardens, Redbook, Family Circle, and other magazines that highlight home improvement have covered issues of indoor air quality and green building for years. As a result, your buyers may know more about your homes and the products you use than you do.

For example, several years ago I taught a green building workshop for realtors. During the question and answer period a realtor stood up and told this story:

"I was sitting in an open house for my builder a couple of weeks ago. A woman came in and asked if I would show her the house. Of course I started toward the kitchen, when she said, `I would like to start in the basement.' I was shocked but accommodated her wishes. When we got down there she looked up at the 2x10 floor joists and asked how many old growth trees were used in the house. I had no idea what she was talking about and mumbled something to the effect of only using good wood for all the framing.

Explanation When we finally got back upstairs (territory I was comfortable with) she started sniffing around the place. I asked her what she was doing. She wanted to know what caused the `new house smell' and how much formaldehyde there was in the house. I was clueless. There was a pregnant pause after which she said, `I don't think this is the house for us.' I told the story to the builder, and he insisted on my coming to this seminar. I think both of us will do things differently next time."

It doesn't take many encounters of that kind to make your sales people think about the green aspects of new homes. That realtor lost a prospective sale by not knowing the issues and therefore not being ready for an informed buyer. A brief introduction to green building issues is in everyone's best interest. If the sales staff are prepared and know how to sell the features, they can close a sale that might otherwise have gotten away. (See Chapter 6 for other sales suggestions.)

Tom Hoyt's advice for getting started:

Focus your priorities into something doable. Don't set your objectives too high.

Look at your position relative to the rest of the marketplace and evaluate what you think might differentiate you. Take the basic pieces of green building-energy conservation, indoor air quality, and sustainable resource use-and assess your strengths. Maybe you know your competitors have indoor air quality problems due to the products they use. You could stand out from them by focusing on indoor air quality.

Assess your market for what people care about. Use your own customers-you have a tremendous resource in the people you've sold houses to, whether you're a custom builder or a production builder who sells two or three hundred homes per year. Go back to your buyers and ask them what they care about. Discover what will make the most difference.

I highly advise people to read their newspaper, and not just the real estate section. It's important to be aware of general market trends. Understand that air quality is a concern for a lot of people. Narrow down the trends you see to what you think your organization can handle.

Include your people in the process. Make it very clear that green building is a priority for you. Show them that you have the vision. Involve them in practical steps to accomplish your vision.

The minute you've made a commitment to green building, you've got to focus on what you are doing. If you make a hundred changes, you've got a thousand decisions to make. The minute you open the door, there are lots of choices, so don't open the door too widely at first. Try a few changes at a time.

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