Developers Need To Do More For Customers Now: Experts
Getting the customers to invest in houses is even more challenging during the Covid times, say developers and real estate experts. "In the current market scenario, if buyers are interested in investing in property, they would be demanding more than the usual information to be completely sure," says Vijay Verma, CEO, Sunworld Group. "Developers cannot simply rely on customer service, mailers, and SMS. They have to closely understand the changing homebuyers' mindset and customize their offerings accordingly," he adds.
Verma has some ready pointers for all developers to win back the customers. One: Every homebuyer is interested to know your track record as a developer. This is where ORM plays a huge role. "Make sure the social media platforms are updated and leave no doubt in the consumer’s mind," he says. Then maintaining frequent presence on leading financial and realty platforms is very helpful, he adds.
Verma says that it is important to be updated about the latest trends like the response your projects are getting from other real estate aggregator websites, and the developer group’s social media platforms. "This will help them in designing their campaigns and modifying marketing models as per the new normal," he adds.
Where is the real estate today post the lockdown? "The lockdown and the resulting disruption has panned out significantly longer, extending well over four months. The longer the disruption, longer it would take for businesses to come back," says Anurag Mathur, CEO, Savills India, a leading full-service real estate advisory services firm.
So by when can the real estate sector see a turnaround? "We believe that the recovery in the economy and the real estate sector could be fairly quick once the turning point is established. This could either be favourable turn of statistics relating to infection rate or the recoveries, or a medical intervention in the form of a cure or a vaccine," says Mathur.
What would be the impact on commercial real estate, especially the office space as more companies are extending Work-From-Home for their employees?
"Our assessment is that it would not diminish the importance of a quality workplace in the form of modern world-class offices," says Mathur from Savills India. But why is he saying this? "You cannot ignore the fact that apart from technical and connectivity issues, not everyone has equitable facilities or work setup at home that could support an intense 8 hour workday, 5 days a week," he adds.
So, how will the offices adapt to the social distancing norms? "What is a given is that workplaces will now on give a lot more focus on hygiene and occupant wellness. I also expect that more companies will follow agile offices and hub-and-spoke models for their footprint, besides investing a lot more on technology to allow remote working," says Mathur.
