How A+B1 uses neurodesign in real estate marketing to connect, emotionally…

In real estate brand and marketing, it’s our job to study people. We have to go beyond what’s relevant in our society because residential community development isn’t a consumer-packaged good. Popular culture is only one facet. Instead, community branding is all about the heart and what makes us human, feel human, and connect with our human-ness.

That’s where neurodesign and our practice of it comes in. Because we’re purveyors of storytelling. So we have to know darn well who we’re sharing our story with and how. And that audience, our present-day homebuyer, is seeking a higher connection than features and benefits.

Complementing Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs as our guiding principles, where Self-Actualization is a key selling proposition, we also follow the science of what makes people fall in love with a brand and an experience.

Pillars of Neurodesign

Neurodesign sounds like a scientific, mind-altering, almost subliminal marketing technique. It’s not as scary as it sounds. In fact, neurodesign is about creating positive feelings with a brand through life- (and time-) giving experiences.

The three core pillars for neurodesign act as a path to make this happen.

The first pillar: Visceral reactions

As they say, “first impressions are lasting.” And there’s a reason for that. It’s our Visceral reaction to a first experience. Judgements and observations are quickly engrained, so we must be cognizant of that first interaction.

For launch campaigns, we employ our Awareness, Engagement, Positioning and Cultivation (A.P.E.C.) strategies to create a groundswell before a community launch. Setting the stage for something big yet to come. And that something big is promoted with messaging, creative, and a big event that’s actually fulfilling.

Building “delight” into various aspects of an event is important from the get-go, which takes a keen eye for on-site communications. Because we deal in a lot of dirt, a lot of “more is yet to come.”

Master signage programs and temporary marketing strategies create that delight. They connect homebuyers with what they saw online and the promise of what they’ll see when visiting the community.

The second pillar: Behavioral reactions

The ongoing Behavior that prospective homebuyers experience on an ongoing basis is yet another important facet of neurodesign and turning prospects into brand ambassadors (and happy residents).

Online, today, people don’t have to do much to get what they’re looking for. In fact, a lot of what one wants (or doesn’t know they want yet) come to them. That’s our expectation. Hence TikTok and Instagram stardom. So we need to meet that for community developers and communities’ home builders to succeed.

Ongoing communications and trust-building tactics like blog updates, social media and email touchpoints are a crucial aspect of our proprietary APEC Marketing Strategy. It’s how we stay relevant, stay connected, and share the heart and soul behind a community’s lifestyle.

The third pillar: Reflective responses

Creating a lasting impression is the goal. Afterall, A+B1 brands and markets communities where residents will plant their roots. And as humans, we’re deeply introspective. The third pillar, Reflective touches on that piece of all of us – “how did that make me feel?”

Beyond ongoing communications that provide a behavioral, informational connection through efficiency, Reflective strategies are much more subtle. They’re like a nice complement at the end of a day. A beautifully designed and brand-voice-aligned Thank You email. Highlights of happy homeowners and videos of what’s built or yet to come. It’s the opportunity when a prospective homebuyer says, “huh, I could see myself doing that.”

Thinking about what connects with our humanity is what sets the stage for positive experiences in community brand and marketing. From a vision through sell-out, it’s the residents that create success.