Whether they realise it or not, construction companies offer homebuyers a customer journey. This journey used to be filled with excels, emails, faxes, phone calls, papers, and notes. Large amounts of manual work. But with manual work comes mistakes, and mistakes create uncertainty, whereas digitalisation can improve efficiency and help eliminate mistakes. 

Work that used to be done manually can now be automated and digitalised. Data can be shared in real-time with all stakeholders, including the customer.

Digital Customer Journey takes homebuyers from sales process to material configuration, onto the building process and warranty period.

Although software can never replace good customer service, it can help customer service allocate their resources better and allows them to focus on their true mission: serving customers and making sure that their customer journey can reach perfection.

Customer service should work with a digital customer journey solution that helps serve home buyers better on one of the most challenging of customer journeys. Today’s consumer expects to play a more active role in the purchase choices that they make. A home is probably one of the biggest decisions of a lifetime on both financial and emotional levels. That explains they expect that what they buy should be on their own terms.   

What can modern software do?

With modern software, the buyer can be presented with a variety of customisation options that the developer can offer: a choice of colours, materials and finishes for various aspects of the property. They can test these different options within the 3D visualisation, or through a VR headset, settling on their preferred choices which are then fed through to the construction team for integrating into the build. Good for the buyer, and great for the sales team, who are given the opportunity to upsell on each unit of the development. Once the buyer has decided on their options and ordered their custom upgrades, they are able to share the visualisation of their new home with friends and family.

The benefits of such software go beyond the buyer and the sales suite. The real-time use of BIM-based information benefits all stakeholders within the development, from the builder and subs to the worksite and beyond. The builder, for example, is offered real-time access to the actual material configurations that go into the building process, as well as punch lists, room cards, orders and quantities. Correct and up-to-date information is always available in one, centralised location, accessible on multiple devices simultaneously – even from a mobile.

Prospective buyers can now see exactly how a property will look before it has been built, a boon for marketers and developers as it facilitates the movement of the buyer into the sales funnel. For buyers, it raises enthusiasm and gives them a feeling of security in their choice of property that may otherwise have been lacking.

Customer experience, when buying property off-plan, should be a delight. When selling a product (i.e. a property) that is not tangibly available to view at the point of sale, it is crucial that we explore ways to excite and capture buyers’ imaginations. Customisation, as a concept alone, is a very persuasive strategy – and where you can go above and beyond, not only to suggest what could be done with a property but actually make the buyers’ dreams come true, you place yourself front and centre of your industry.

Delivering a valuable customer experience begins on the building site, and with a cohesive platform that’s updated in real-time for all stakeholders to use, the building process is facilitated beyond any level previously possible. Accuracy, speed and efficiency are optimised, allowing completion to be achieved to a higher level, faster, ultimately maximising customer satisfaction with their finished home.

One cannot overestimate the value of delivering an ideal customer experience, and in a world where buyers want their own way more than ever, we must be ready and waiting to give it to them.

It is up to those working within the industry to step up to the plate, to use new technological developments and strategies, and deliver unique, quality homes bespoke to each individual buyer.

GBuilder

GBuilder is a BIM-based customer journey management software that streamlines the interaction between customers, internal and external teams. We will help you to digitalise the process and improve your customer journey. Read more here.

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