HousingZone Web Awards (2003 Winners)

The 2003 HousingZone.com Web Awards were announced in the builder, remodeler and manufacturer categories at the Reed Residential Group's One Night One Industry awards ceremony in conjunction with the International Builders' Show in Las Vegas.

The winning sites were selected from the nominated companies by the HousingZone.com staff. Multiple winners were recognized in the following categories:

• Best Home Model/Demonstrations
• Best Internal Search Capabilities
• Best Home Buyer Content
• Best Home Buyer Experience
• Best Remodeling Portfolio
• Best Potential Remodeling Client Content
• Best Consumer Information
• Best Professional Information
• Best Building Product Catalog

Expanded coverage of the winning sites will be posted shortly to HousingZone.com.

 

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• Pulte Homes, Inc. [1]
  Refined, easy-to-use and informative, Pulte's Web site serves as a model to any business, not just the home building industry. The look and feel of the site exudes confidence and professionalism. Yes, the graphics and colors are crisp and the navigation is intuitive, but ultimately it's the outstanding content - including the presentation and organization - that won over the judges. Pulte obviously understands home buyers and built the site around their needs. Through an easy-to-use search feature, visitors quickly can find homes in an area of interest and choose communities that meet their needs.

  Community pages display standard elevations and floor plans, but the site allows users to create informative brochures about the development and surrounding community. These brochures print nicely, so customers can take them on the road. The MyPulte feature allows visitors to save home and community information for future reference. Once an item is saved, it can be compared with other saved items and accessed in the future.

  The site's financing section includes mortgage calculators, financing information and mortgage applications. As with other sections, users can submit questions that aren't answered on the site via an online form. Other sections include Building Your Home, which explains Pulte's building process, and Living in Your Home, which has a great deal of information about the care and maintenance of a home.

  The bottom line is that Pulte offers an outstanding blend of customer-focused content in a beautifully designed and organized package. The result is the ultimate site that informs visitors, sells product and keeps customers coming back after the sale.

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Best Home Model/Demonstrations:
Showcasing the beauty and quality of a home through virtual tours and photographic portfolios resulted in three winners in this category.

• Chuck Miller Construction, Inc. [2]
  For an online home demonstration that's informative, intuitive and interactive, it's hard to beat Chuck Miller Construction Inc. One popup window for each home contains an entire portfolio of pictures and virtual tours, and users easily can pick and choose which parts of the house to view. The site clearly labels each element of the home, so there's no confusion about which part of the home the user is seeing. The resolution of virtual tours and pictures is sharper than on most other sites, and the popups are branded with company contact information.
• MBK Homes Ltd. [3]
  Unlike most virtual tours that show 360-degree views of certain rooms, MBK adds another element - floor plans that give users a point of reference. They show where users are in the house and in which direction they're looking, so, for example, they know they're standing in the family room looking into the dining room. In addition, the resolution of the virtual tour is extremely sharp, as are the featured elevations and floor plans.
• Village Homes [4]
  Village Homes' home demonstrations caught the judges' eyes in 2002 and did so again in 2003. Village still does an outstanding job of demonstrating its homes, developments and communities. Users literally can build a home to their liking and choose a home site right on their desktop. This site goes beyond merely showing virtual tours and pictures and offers a truly interactive, educational and rewarding experience.

Best Internal Search Capabilities:
Key to winning this category was going beyond the basic location/price/size criteria. Finalists' sites allowed users to save their search results and compare them.

• Capital Pacific Homes [5]
  Capital Pacific's Home Search Wizard gets right to the point of what buyers want in a home, asking about location, price range and number of bedrooms, bathrooms and stories. Users can indicate the minimum and maximum living space they want, desired move-in date and desired community amenities, including golf courses, pools and parks. Just before hitting the Find button, they can decide how they want their results sorted: by city, size, price, etc. The search results page links the user to matching communities and plans, maps and directions, and contact information. Users can save their search results to the My Favorite Homes folder, where they can compare their selections.
• Pulte Homes, Inc. [1]
  Like many high-volume production builders' sites, Pulte offers a simple search, based on location, price and number of bedrooms. Its detailed search extends this functionality, allowing users to select community type, home type, number of floors and minimum square footage. The search results page lists exact matches and near matches, and allows for results to be sorted by eight criteria. Users can click to the listed communities or straight to the individual models. The model pages offer photographs, virtual tours, driving directions and the ability to create an instant brochure. Selected homes can be added to the site's personalized MyPulte section, where users can compare multiple models at one time.
• WCI Communities Inc. [6]
  Allowing users to search for homes on their terms is a strong point for WCI. By using a search by location, amenities or a more robust advanced search, users easily can find what WCI has to offer. An interactive, Flash-based map makes the search a visual and more intuitive process than a strictly text-based search. In addition, it's easy to begin a new search or edit an advanced search at any time.

Best Home Buyer Content:
Winning sites in this category covered the entire home building and buying process. Educating buyers about financing, home selection, the building process and home maintenance was a common theme among the winners.

• Capital Pacific Homes [5]
  Capital Pacific's Keys to Home Buying section covers all stages of the buying process. By choosing Finance a Home, buyers can find information on the mortgage process, renting versus buying, loan applications and a mortgage calculator (which even shows which Capital Pacific homes they can afford). Other buyer-friendly features include a home buyer checklist, a time line, a glossary and FAQs. Beyond the purchasing of a home, the site also features warranty and home maintenance information, moving tips and a relocation guide.
• John Laing Homes
  Visitors to John Laing's site can get just about all the information they need about the home buying process and home maintenance. Highlights include financial information, a printable move-in checklist and a dictionary of common home buying terms. In addition, the site offers a large selection of home-design articles, an informative newsletter and gardening advice. The result is a site that appeals to those beginning to search for a home as well as customers who already own.
• Pulte Homes, Inc. [1]
  Pulte's content for home buyers is mapped out from beginning to end, starting with information on the buying process and a walk-through of Pulte's seven-step customer-care process. After selecting a home through Pulte's home search process, users can learn how to customize their home by selecting optional home and design features. The Finance Your Home section contains an overview of the mortgage process and five calculators that help users estimate how much home they can afford and what their monthly payments would be. Moving help, home maintenance and warranty information are also available on the site.

Best Overall Experience:

• Pulte Homes, Inc. [1]

See Web Site of the Year description.

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Best Remodeling Portfolio:
In this category, the judges looked for large pictures that demonstrate an assortment of project types, as well as before-and-after photographs and accompanying text that tell a convincing story.

• Airoom Architects & Builders [7]
  Airoom's interactive portfolio showcases dozens of pictures of a wide variety of projects. The easily navigable portfolio is arranged by room, giving users the opportunity to focus on one section of the house at a time. In addition, nearly every section of the site contains thumbnail images that, when clicked, pop open to larger versions, nicely accomplished through the use of Flash. A gallery dedicated solely to before-and-after pictures drives home the magnitude of change that an Airoom remodel can provide.
• Home Rebuilders Design/Build [8]
  Home Rebuilders' portfolio presents more than 200 pictures, arranged in albums by room and sub-albums by individual project. The smaller versions of the pictures give potential clients a good idea of the quality of the company's work, but the larger versions truly show off the detail of these projects. Users have the option of viewing these images in an automated slide show as well. The galleries also contain captions and often include before photographs to provide context for the images on the screen.
• PSG Construction, Inc. [9]
  PSG Construction's photo portfolio features large, crisp pictures of a broad spectrum of projects in a simple but easy-to-use gallery. The site's Renovations section showcases more than 20 projects, each with multiple pictures, captions and a written story explaining why the homeowners decided to remodel, what the remodel accomplished and which trade contractors provided the services on the project.

Best Potential Remodeling Client Content:
Articles and documents that explain the remodeling process, help users assess a project's financials and showcase trends and products were key to winning this category.

• Case Design/Remodeling, Inc. [10]
  Case Design/Remodeling's site features separate sections for baths, kitchens and design/build, each with its own set of FAQs and time lines. The Tips & Trends section answers common homeowner questions and features articles on topics ranging from the benefits of remodeling a basement to home exercise rooms. The site showcases an archive of monthly e-newsletters featuring topics such as case studies and new products.
• Home Rebuilders Design/Build [8]
  Home Rebuilders' site offers a number of downloadable PDF documents for homeowners to fill out, including Remodeling Worksheet, Questions to Ask Remodelers, Move vs. Renovate and Financial Worksheet. The site also maintains an archive of The Blueprint, a newsletter that contains information on new product offerings, case studies and articles on topics from financing options to adding value to a home through remodeling. The site also features a section called The Process that walks homeowners through each stage of the design/build process.
• LIRemodel.com [11]
  LIRemodel.com's How to Get Started section contains a sample warranty, baseline estimates of sample remodeling projects and a credit application. The FAQs section covers topics from price differences in bids to determining fair market value of services. The site also features a PowerPoint presentation that outlines the company's building techniques. Other features include billing policies, what to expect during a remodeling project and sample contracts for a variety of projects.

Best Overall Experience:
To win Best Overall Experience in the remodeling category, a site had to find the right mix of educating the homeowner about the remodeling process and showcasing examples of the company's best work.

• Airoom Architects & Builders [7]
  Airoom's sleek, Flash-based Web site delivers an extensive look into the quality of construction that the company can achieve. Nearly every page features large, detailed pictures that showcase home transformations the company has accomplished. Before-and-after pictures further demonstrate the impact that an Airoom remodel can have. While browsing, users are asked to interact with the site by responding to prompts for a free consultation or booklet. The site's multimedia (including audio) walk-through of the company's S.T.A.R.T. (System to Assure Resources and Timing) process demonstrates Airoom's dedication to educating customers about how the design/build process works and what they can expect from it.

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Best Consumer Information:
In this category, judges looked for documentation that wasn't just self-promoting but that truly educated the consumers about how to select and care for the products they wish to purchase.

• Jeld-Wen Windows and Doors [12]

Consumers can turn to Jeld-Wen's Resources section for information on topics beyond Jeld-Wen's product lines, with content ranging from advice on how to select the right contractor to a glossary (with diagrams) of terminology used in the window and door industry. Information on cleaning and maintaining doors and windows, as well as FAQ documents -- one for windows and one for doors -- also can be found on the site. The Resources section also contains how-to instructions on operating, troubleshooting and replacing Jeld-Wen products and current and historical warranties for the company's windows and doors.
• Kohler Co.
  In addition to a vast product catalog, Kohler's site offers a wealth of knowledge for homeowners. The Introduction to Kohler Products section provides design and functionality guidelines for selecting plumbing products and accessories for nearly any use in the home. The Care and Cleaning section explains which products and techniques are best for taking care of each of Kohler's product families. The site also provides links to and information about kitchen and bath trade organizations and a glossary of 50 plumbing terms.
• Therma-Tru Doors [13]
  Therma-Tru's Design Showcase features the Idea Showcase, with photographs of Therma-Tru doors arranged to inspire users. An article titled "Selecting the Right Door" raises several points that homeowners should consider when choosing doors for their home. A frequently asked questions section covers door care and maintenance issues.

Best Professional Information:
Installation instructions and technical manuals were common threads among the winners in this category.

• Jeld-Wen Windows and Doors [12]
  Jeld-Wen's Resources section covers a broad range of information for professionals, including downloadable PDFs on installation and finishing instructions for all types of the company's windows and doors. (Several of the documents are available in Spanish.) The site provides information on hurricane ratings and energy-efficiency performance, as well as links to other door and window information sources. In the Care and Maintenance section, building professionals can find articles on topics from seal failure to condensation to fungal infestation.
• Kohler Co.

Content for professionals is abundant on Kohler's site. A service parts section features a search for service parts and an online store for purchasing these parts. The site also provides downloadable, full-scale DXF files for computer-controlled countertop-cutting equipment and information on how to incorporate Kohler products into CAD software. The site's product catalog features specification sheets, installation instructions and rough-ins for the product offerings.
• Therma-Tru Doors [13]
  Therma-Tru's Product Help section includes information on painting, finishing and door maintenance. A 17-minute streaming video that gives a step-by-step presentation on installation and finishing accompanies the site's installation guide, which is available in PDF form. Technical manuals, on topics from architectural details to materials safety datasheets to door system specifications, also can be downloaded as PDF documents. A special section devoted to Florida building codes outlines for builders, architects, distributors and building code officials listings of Florida Product Approvals and supporting information for Therma-Tru doors.

Best Building Product Catalog:
The sites with the best product catalogs not only provide product descriptions but also allow users to view and customize a comprehensive directory of product offerings.

• Kohler Co.
  Kohler's product catalog offers product highlights and features, colors, prices, homeowners' guides and video clips, combined with large, detailed pictures. The catalog is arranged by product type, and new products are featured prominently. Users can search the catalog by product category, price range, colors/finishes and style. An advanced search option offers even more detailed criteria. A Compare option enables users to select multiple product offerings and assess them side by side. The My Kohler Folder lets users organize products into their personal catalog, which can be e-mailed to others or printed.
• Therma-Tru Doors [13]

The Therma-Tru catalog provides detailed information in the company's residential and patio door lines. Users can view pictures of the doors with various panel, glass and accessories options. The catalog also links into the site's Design Showcase, a collection of large photographs that show how the doors look in a home's entryway. The interactive Door Designer tool allows users to create a photo-realistic example of the perfect door for their home by selecting characteristics such as style of home, door type/size and glass, sidelight, transom and finishing options.

Best Overall Experience:
This award went to the manufacturer whose site best combined the product information consumers want, the technical details professionals need and a wide-ranging, detailed product catalog.

• Kohler Co.
  The highlight of Kohler's clean, easy-to-navigate site is its extensive, searchable product catalog. Combined with the My Kohler Folder tool, the catalog gives users the opportunity to create their own catalog for review or for sharing, as well as the ability to compare products side by side. By highlighting new products on the site, Kohler recognizes that homeowners and professionals want to stay aware of the latest trends in kitchen and bath design. The site also includes a wealth of technical information for professionals and maintenance information for consumers.

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