TND SPECIALTY MARKETING

A Comparison of New Urban Marketing Strategies and

Conventional Development Marketing

By Alan Hoffman

In recent years there has been a rebirth of holistic communities known as Traditional Neighborhood Developments (TND). These communities, like towns of old, offer places to live, places to work, places to shop, places for recreation, and places to go to school within walking distance of each home. In contrast, conventional subdivision development (CSD) built in the last fifty years have offered predominantly, "exclusivity,", featuring homes of limited variety, price range and few if any other uses. The TND offers homes in many price ranges as well as providing commercial, civic, retail, service, and educational components. Just as the TND is in many ways different from the CSD, the marketing must also be different. This paper will consider some of these possible differences.

Our generation has lived much of its life surrounded by the results of the auto-oriented suburban "dream." Very few of us were around when genuine communities were being built before World War II. For this reason, TND marketing needs to educate and, enlighten Realtors, Builders and future residents about the potential of such a community. New Urban marketing starts earlier, uses less advertising and more Public Relations than a typical subdivision marketing plan. Involving the public in the creative process of town building is the most powerful method of giving prospects a stake in the success of the town that is eventually to be built.

Some opportunities to create emotionally- invested participants are as follows:

Just as the TND is in many ways different from the CSD so also the marketing must be different.

People appreciate being listened to and often make significant contributions to the eventual planning and marketing effort. Outreach is needed to contact groups which would have a natural propensity to support the ideals of New Urbanism.                       Entitlement hearings almost always garner front-page publicity. This is an important opportunity to mobilize your support. . .

2. The Visual Preference Survey consists of a presentation to citizens and politicians in which photographs of different local road and neighborhood types are displayed. Old and new parts of a community are compared. The citizens are then asked to consider the options and vote on which community model they would choose for their town. This is one of the most tangible, powerful, and publicly accessible methods of getting the population to understand what a TND has to offer in relation to what has been lost since the advent of the auto-dominated Suburb.

3. Outreach to groups which would have a natural propensity to support the ideals of New Urbanism can help to build powerful support. These groups might include: environmental groups, transit advocates, open space preservation groups, and energy and water conservation organizations.

4. A Planning Charrette is a public planning process held over a number of days. The Charrette presents an opportunity to coalesce your support by including the concerns of the interested public as well as the Municipal staff in the planning mix. The press is often interested in this unusual and accessible planning process, which can highlight the democratic nature of New Urban Design.

5. Entitlement hearings almost always garner front-page publicity. This is an important opportunity to mobilize your support by turning this pivotal process into an educational and marketing event. If you are successful at turning out visible public support, it will likely help in getting your development plan approved.

6. Events pre-marketing is the staging of events which enroll commercial users, planning staff and end-users in your new community. You can give them the opportunity to see themselves as residents or commercial users in your TND before the first spade of dirt is turned. These events might include lectures, site visits, presentations or charity events.

7. Public relations is generally more effective as a tool for the marketing of a TND than advertising. If properly executed, everything we do is novel, new and innovative - "newsworthy". Articles and editorials are more trusted means of communication than paid advertising.

8. Events Marketing is the ongoing staging of events within the new community. These could include arts events, sports events, community and farmers' markets as well as performances of all types. An example of events marketing is the Film Festival held in the early days of Seaside in northern Florida. This event drew locals and visitors alike and created the perception that Seaside was a living community even before it was significantly built out.

Marketing and Your Business Plan

Marketing in the form of education, outreach, and public relations begins with the earliest stages of planning. This effort must be properly funded and should be designed to lead the public from the planning process to entitlement support and eventually to purchasing a home in the TND.

New Urban developments, whether on Green Field or Brown Field sites, have certain requirements not found in conventional projects. These include the need for a slightly greater front-end cost to allow for the construction of a Plaza or Square, the beginning of the civic element. On the other hand, TNDs can deliver more varieties of housing and commercial uses for less cost than any of the recent auto- dominated development models. This makes it possible to offer a number of different product types, expanding market segment and shortening absorption time. This should more than make up for the slightly greater front end cost.

Phasing

Phasing is crucial in the marketing of a TND. With a CSD, the public is given the "sizzle not the stake." People know subdivisions; the sizzle is sufficient. Unlike the Suburb, the public has not recently experienced a traditional community and must get a real taste of the TND and how it works. Both sides of a finished street and a bit of the commercial and civic components should be available to the buying public as early as possible. If your potential buyers can see themselves taking part in the intended lifestyle, they will be more likely to invest in a home.

Streetscape

Quality construction, rich textures and great design in the streetscape, and amenities will invite pedestrians into the public realm. A vital, active pedestrian center looks so different from a conventional suburb that it is instantly

TV, a web site and magazine articles could be part of this process.

Identifying Your Market

People buy "homes," but we have found that they often choose their neighborhood first. In the past, exclusivity and elitism were the prime factors in choosing a suburban neighborhood. Nowadays, quality of life is more and more the predominant consideration. As the baby boomers reach middle age, their view of the American Dream is changing. The most valuable asset often emerges as free time and the creativity to use it. Replacing the waste lands of freeways and gridlock with the information Superhighway frees time, making the home and community even more important. This trend is only beginning.

Other trends leading people to TNDs include the comfort and security of having friends and neighbors close by. The explosion of single- adult households has created a longing for an extended family. In one community within a TND in Santa Fe, New Mexico, the final population was made up of approximately 58% single professionals and 42% couples and families. These populations are price sensitive yet well served by a vital pedestrian community.

The family of the new millennium often has two parents that work. In this case, the TND is an optimal place to support such a life style. Schools, recreation and the day care are often available within walking distance of all homes. Closer contact with neighbors enhances the sense of community and forges closer bonds that support children and their families.

As people live ever longer, many active seniors are looking for a location where they may walk to buy their basic needs, spend time with like- minded friends, and enjoy the vitality of a well- rounded all- age community, not one fixated on the elderly. The AARP has called these communities Naturally Occurring Retirement Communities (NORC). This type of buyer has probably owned several homes in the past and is well versed on the values of owning real estate. If they can experience the vitality of a community they are more likely to make the leap to a TND. Unlike CSD marketing, a well- conceived TND marketing plan might well expect the agent and prospect to spend as much time experiencing the town center as picking out tile and cabinets for the new home.

Other available market segments are specific to your region. Market research firms are valuable for identifying these potential prospects.

Town Building Strategies

The diversity evident in most successful TNDs presents new challenges for Town Founder, builders, and marketers.

Town Founders (developers) must find new ways to provide housing products of many different styles, sizes, and types, with more flexibility in design and function for end users. Town Founders must also provide retail, hospitality, recreation, and educational opportunities with their communities

Builders need to find new ways to deliver diverse housing of compatible scale and design which are interspersed with homes by other builders. This can be accomplished by having a builder acquire lots spread out in an area or, if necessary, by acquiring an entire block and then selling lots to other builders in order to create the fine- grained diversity sought after in a TND.

Marketers may have the greatest challenge in the short run, endeavoring to make the TND as popular and well-understood as the suburb of today. In a suburb, the marketer generally works for the builders, representing their homes. The builder is generally the major purchaser of the developer's lots, usually in bulk, or they may do their own development. In the TND, some Town Founders will likely sell numbers of lots to large-scale builders but also must make lots available to individuals and small-scale custom builders to enhance diversity. As unprecedented as it might be, marketers for different builders and the Town Founder might well work together in a common model home compound, representing lots and different housing products interspersed in a single community.

Runaway Marketing

Runaway marketing occurs when the Town Founders abdicate control of the market positioning for the community, often to builders. Builders need a competitive advantage, which they often attempt to get by price competitive marketing. TNDs can deliver lower lot prices than large lot, low-density developments, but if a TND product is marketed for its price advantage the community as a whole will likely get the reputation of being a "cheap project.". Neither of these words should ever be associated with your TND. Let the affordability speak for itself, let it be a pleasant surprise to the potential buyer.

Special events and specialized public relations can bestow upon the potential residents the experience of your community. These functions must be

created and implemented by the Town Founders with their consultants, so builders, architects, and residents continue to be reminded of the vision that makes this community different from the auto-dominated subdivisions which are in your market today.

Your sales teams should be trained in TND principles and should have spent some time in a living working traditional community, whether new or old. Ideally your sales staff would live in the TND you are selling. The sales staff should be able to convey their excitement without being technical or sermonizing and be able to tour prospective buyers through a small amount of fully developed community components. Patience, concern and conviction are the attributes needed in a sales team as well as the ability to close the deal.

Time Allocation

The TND is not for everyone, but with increased variety, a large market segment can be carved out. It is crucial to identify the individuals that who have no real interest in or common ground with your community, leaving more time for those who share your vision. TNDs require a greater amount of time for each prospect to experience the details in that there are more housing choices and the community model needs time to be appreciated.

After Sales Commence

In the relatively short history of creating TNDs, a number of methods have emerged for on site marketing, ranging from a Town Founder sipping wine on his front porch, waiting patiently for the buyers to come, to multiple model sales centers with all of the high- tech bells and whistles. Regardless of the size, price range, or marketing method, a TND - like any community - has to nurture its residents and solve their real problems to sell well.

Once sales have begun, ongoing events should be undertaken to create a point of difference between your TND and the CSD up the street. These events should emphasize the community amenities, such as the Plaza or Square, and the commercial vitality not found in a typical CSD. Ongoing events will draw in the public and allow it to share in the TND experience. Events can be fuel for the public relations machine; they are great opportunities to keep your community in the press.

Community Building

Community building is the process of actualizing community amenities and enrolling the residents in these opportunities. Social activities, exercise classes and meetings at the coffee shop can be the heart and soul of the community. This community building begins when the first house is occupied and continues after the last one is complete. Community building occurs at the same time as construction and sales. This overlap lasts for some time and creates competing purposes within the fledgling community. This situation can create tension and conflict and should be considered from the inception of your community. Some considerations include:

· Try to complete discreet portions of your community so "post- construction life" can begin as quickly as possible.

· Support the homeowners' association in your community and stay involved until the end of construction. Retain access to all homeowners' amenities by contract and clearly delineate your responsibilities and rights in association documents.

You may find that many different visions of community life will emerge in the residents. This can occur even if communications from the Town Founders are good. Be proactive - continually include the residents in events to keep the energy positive. Provide an adequate budget for this purpose.

Protect Yourself

TND's mix together a number of housing types, apartments as well as commercial uses, so residents may be surprised by the final form of an adjacent property. Even when presented with the plans for the entire TND, residents can still be caught off guard. When this happens, we have found that a "convenient memory" can emerge in the residents. These recollections, recalled at a time of anger and fear, can be the greatest source of tension between residents and Town Founders, regardless of your intentions. You said one thing and they remember another about how "their" community was to be implemented. It will help to prepare a handout with clear information as to land uses, with a disclaimer that warns the residents that they live in a TND and that mixed uses are encouraged. "If you are unwilling to live in a mixed-use community, don't buy here." Consider a "hold harmless" clause and obtain a signed notice that the handout was received by each potential resident.

TND marketing is a new field. In coming years, New Urbanism will become an accepted model for community building in every part of this country. The specialty of TND marketing is quickly coming into focus and will aid in the implementation of TNDs from coast to coast and beyond.

Acknowledgments

The author wishes to thank the following people for their valuable contributions to this paper: Robert Althouse; Jackie Benson; Chris Kent; James Kunstler; John Schleimer; and Todd Zimmerman.

Alan Hoffman is the owner/broker of the Realty Group, Better Homes and Gardens in Santa Fe, NM. He has specialized in environmental real estate for 22 years and for the last four has worked in TND sales and consulting. Alan is a member of the Congress for the New Urbanism, a signature to the CNU charter and a member of the Implementation and Marketing Committee. He also is one of the original Town Founders of the Frijoles Village, a DPZ community, set to break ground in the winter of 1999. Alan may be reached at 505-920-4444 or Realtygrp@nets.com.

.

.