Builders recognized for being cream of the crop
Winning models offer calm and soothing spaces
The world of sales and marketing in the housing industry is one of seeming opposites. While it’s crucial to stand out with your message, being bold with your model home designs doesn’t always pay off, at least not when it comes to winning awards.
Quiet, calm and cream were the keys to winning at the 34th annual SAM awards, held this week. Put on by the Greater Ottawa Home Builders’ Association, the sales and marketing awards recognize excellence in the local housing industry’s model homes, marketing campaigns, and sales staff and centres. Trophies were given out in 40 categories from among more than 130 entries.
Despite appreciating the risktaking by builders who opted for bold choices in their models, the majority of homes that judges chose as winners focused on neutral palettes, soothing tones and subtlety.
“Everything seemed to be cream,” said returning judge and Ottawa Sun Homes editor Sophie Rust. “I like to see something that stands out … It makes it stick in your head.”
But when the aim of a model home is to get potential buyers to see themselves living in it, going neutral is key. “I totally understand why builders go the beige route, because it’s non-offensive,” Rust said.
Interestingly, the builder who won the Grand Sam for collecting the most trophies has been known in the past to take chances with its models, especially its townhomes.
Richcraft won a whopping 10 awards for a mix of those neutral models, bold marketing and the best builder sales representative.
“Our team has been working extremely hard the last couple of years and it’s paid off,” said Richcraft executive vice-president Monica Singhal.
It comes down to timing, added marketing manager Shawn Bellman, as Richcraft launched new models, a new community and officially opened its Bowery condo tower, all of which won awards.
Richcraft’s showing caps a rewarding year for the builder. Three of its winning models at the SAM awards also won trophies at the larger Housing Design Awards last month and the pile of wins comes on the heels of multiple recordsetting monthly sales in 2017.
“I can’t be happier,” said Bellman. “It’s been a good year for Richcraft.”
While Richcraft chose more muted tones in its models this year, the designs worked because of their continuity, said judge and designer Jen Robinson. And that continuity comes from knowing what type of buyer you’re targeting a home at, whether a first-timer, a young family, a move-up buyer or someone who’s downsizing.
The builders who identified a clear target market had “overall continuity, whereas the ones who didn’t, (had models that were) a little bit more wishy washy.”
So, what’s popular in today’s models?
Dark kitchens are out, said Rust. “Pretty much all of the models had either white or cream kitchens” – although she did notice some blue ones, a trend that also popped up in the Housing Design Awards.
Natural materials such as wood and earth tones were also big, gaining ground on the greys that have been dominating recently, she said. And she found the overall decor to be more traditional than it has the past few years.
Robinson liked how some of the builders were finding creative ways to fit in utilitarian needs, like storage in a mudroom, without diminishing a sense of grandeur in the home.
She also noticed how models mixed finishes, such as a more traditional Shaker-style cabinet door with modern furnishings and light fixtures. It’s a bit of a risk, but one that still allows a buyer to see themselves in the space, she said. “People know they can choose their own light fixtures, they can choose their own cabinetry. I like the way they’re mixing those things.”
Richcraft wasn’t the only builder scooping up handfuls of trophies. eQ Homes won four awards, including the Best Community, which it won along with Hobin Architecture for Greystone Village. eQ won the same category last year, for its golf-course community of eQuinelle in Kemptville.
“It continues to be a massive point of pride,” eQ vice-president Josh Kardish said of Greystone. “It speaks to the fact this is a really special place and (that it) hit the right nerve. People clearly like the concept.”
And both Campanale Homes and Urbandale Construction won a trio of awards.
Among non-builders, the big winner – as it was last year – was the marketing firm TRUEdotDESIGN, with eight trophies for everything from website design to marketing campaigns and rebranding initiatives.
“We’re really pleased,” said TRUEdot president Shelley True. “It’s a great event to bring everyone together and see what everyone is doing.” Communication and targeting of audiences is the whole point of the messaging and strategy behind marketing, she said.
Because we’re constantly bombarded with messages, said judge and marketing professional Taralyn Carver, any time “you’re able to have a clear message and get it across quickly, that defines a successful campaign to me.”
The challenge for builders and renovators is that there can often be so much to tell that it can be difficult to figure out what’s best to highlight, Carver said. “Overall, the ads that stood out, the (sales staff ) that stood out, were the ones who had a clear and well-thought message and knew what they were trying to achieve with some cohesiveness.”
New to the awards this year were five marketing categories aimed at renovators, who had been grouped with industry partners in past years. Industry veteran Amsted Design-Build took advantage to capture three of those categories.
“Isn’t it exciting?” asked Amsted president Steve Barkhouse, who appreciated how the new categories acknowledged renovators as a key part of the housing industry. It also allowed some recognition for staff who are typically behind the scenes.
The awards ceremony and luncheon were held at the Brookstreet Hotel with about 180 attending. For the 10th year, comedian James Cunningham of the TV show Eat Street was the host.