Case Studies
The Lane Report news article on Ball Homes
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Ball Homes / Milestone Realty Consultants
Meridian-Chiles produces results for Ball Homes, the country’s largest family-owned building company specializing in family home construction, and Milestone Realty Consultants, which markets Ball Homes and other properties in the Lexington and Louisville areas. Ball Homes-Milestone Realty Consultants came to Meridian-Chiles to rebrand their marketing endeavors to increase awareness and home sales.
Prior to coming to Meridian-Chiles, the client utilized limited print executions, which focused on home listings, using small photos and brief descriptions. People were encouraged to call real estate agents and to visit open houses. In addition, there were a limited number of small outdoor signs, near model homes, that mentioned Ball Homes’ “trade-in program” – where, if new homebuyers purchased a Ball Home, the company would buy their existing homes.
During the first year of the trade-in program, Ball Homes received 79 inquiries about their trade-in program, of which 16 were purchased.
Meridian-Chiles recommended Ball Homes-Milestone focus their marketing efforts on television, cable and radio advertising to get their message to their target audience.
As a result of the rebranding campaign - which included a fresh jingle package, a new look for television advertising – which used a diverse group of homeowners and real estate agents – and a strongly-targeted electronic media campaign to reach the 98% of the audience of adults, 25 – 54, over 17 times - the trade-in program inquiries increased to 402, of which 359 homes were traded-in during the first three months of the campaign.
The campaign focused on the trade-in program and drove people to Ball Homes’ website for details about the program, available properties and model homes they could customize.
The campaign of where “Ball Homes makes dreams come true” and a “custom home without a custom price” was an immediate success: Measured through Google Analytics and Search Engine Optimization, Ball Homes averaged 40 hits per week prior to the new campaign. The first week of the campaign, the web site received up to 850 hits per day.
Open house attendance grew from an average of 21 people per week to an average of 62 per day Saturday and Sunday.
As the realty segment of Ball Homes, Meridian-Chiles leveraged the brand equity of Ball Homes' "Makes Dreams Come True" to create "Great Homes in Great Neighborhoods;" in which Milestone Realty Consultants is positioned to provide the homes where you want to be. The branding campaign targets the neighborhoods where homebuyers want to be. Meridian-Chiles revitalized the logo into a bright, bold, instantly-recognizable look that let the buyer know Milestone Realty Consultants was different from all other realtors, in they were always "on target" for the buyers and the sellers.
Every aspect of Milestone Realty Consultants has been formulated to show this difference: Internal communications, business cards, print materials, such as letterhead, envelopes, note cards, as well as property signage, newspaper advertising and television advertising. A thematic music package was also created to convey the bold, crisp direction and to reinforce the message: Great homes in great neighborhoods.
By completely redesigning the logo for greater visual impact, creating a universal, cohesive “look” for Ball Homes and Milestone, utilizing a strong musical thematic, changing the media buy to focus on where the prospective homebuyers are (TV & radio), the message truly “hit home” and made an undeniable impact in the real estate market.
The result has been, even in an uncertain economy, Ball Homes and Milestone Realty Consultants stand out and above other realty companies. Their listings have increased and, most importantly, so have their sales. The recognition of the Milestone Realty Consultants name has grown substantially.