Building people’s homes and giving them a haven to call home has been a core business for almost a century now. It has been a long and arduous journey with so many ups and downs, but homeowners and sellers have strived through and through to provide only the best. As this industry celebrates a century of home building, let’s take a look back at Barratt through the decades that the industry has come through to show you what the industry has been through, the experiences it has had, the knowledge gathered, and where it’s heading in terms of our future. Here is a brief overview of this industry for the last seven decades. The 1960s The 1960s was an interesting decade. This decade experienced a lot of firsts in terms of technological developments in various industries. For instance, the world recorded the first moon landing and the Concorde made its maiden flight. There were a lot of interesting and exciting developments in home building and interior design. Homes featured tower blocks and two-storey buildings comprising 3 to 4 people per home. Houses were mostly brightly colored with every room featuring attractive patterns with psychedelic colors. The average cost for houses at this time was around £2,500. The 1970s This decade brought about stylish cars and the rise of punk and pop music. In the building industry, there was a bit of a struggle due to the period’s economic downturn. The average cost of a small family home was around £4,057 but rose exponentially to about £20,000 by the end of the decade. People found it very challenging to own homes during this period. However, home designs and decorations still improved with wallpapers dominating the scene. Homeowners also stocked their houses with home appliances such as washing machines with the first home microwave getting sold during this decade. The 1980s Come the 1980s, the property market experienced a rebirth from the downtime it had gone through the previous decade. This is the decade the world welcomed disco and soul, with popular artists such as Michael Jackson taking the center stage. People’s disposable income nearly doubled giving them enough to buy homes and decorate with frills and patterns. It is also this time that pastel colors rose in popularity. The average cost of homes ranged between £20,268 and £30,000. Still, young individuals enjoying the economic prosperity in this decade could afford these homes. The 1990s Away from the boom in the 80s, the property market faced several challenges as a result of a recession and increasing interest rates. It became increasingly difficult for people to secure mortgages and to own homes. Home prices ranged between £58,000 and £60,000 by 1995. These homes adopted a more simplistic design as compared to their predecessors with beige being the main color and people largely adopting the concept of minimalism. The 00s, 10s and 20s The millennium brought about increased demand for housing. Buyers were focused on buying luxury and coastal properties for entertainment. These homes became very popular and pushed property markets beyond £156,000 by the year 2005. This decade marked an upsurge of entertainment with people owning oversized entertainment systems. The 10s welcomed the era of apartment buildings and more townhouses, further pushing property prices over the roof. It also saw many small units retail at very high prices as more young professionals came to being. The 20s is still in its infancy, but it promises a different story considering the recent outbreak of CoronaVirus disease.

So, you got this nice project planned out that will take your business to new heights. Whether it’s launching a new product or hosting an event for brand awareness, you need to promote your next project or it will be a flop. But getting your project in front of customers is not always easy. Lucky for you, this article compiles seven lists of creative marketing methods for you to try. 1. Offer Exclusive Previews Exclusive previews mean showing your most loyal customers a sneak peek. Not only are they the most likely to buy your product, but they will most likely share the promos to their social circle as well. Exclusive previews can be in the form of in-person, private, or virtual pre-launch parties like an online demo, preview, or tour. Also, it can be a special invitation to test out a new product or service and give feedback. Such exclusive offerings to your loyal customers can reinforce how much you value them, strengthening their loyalty. 2. Spread The Word With Email About 4 billion people around the globe use email. Also, 82% of consumers are said to open emails from businesses and have made purchases from an email marketing message. As you can see, email is an excellent channel for spreading the word about your new project. Not only that, but it also makes a nice incentive to grow your subscribers. You can run a specific email campaign about your new project—perhaps through a series of emails building up to the day of your project launch. You can also use email and platforms like Greenvelope to send professional invitations for your general audience, or in line with the previous tip, for your exclusive promotions.  3. Special Introductory Offer If you’re launching a new product or service, then consider making it available with a special introductory deal. Such deals can take many forms like: Buy 1, Get 1 Deal Discounted Prices Reduced-Price Package or Bundle Coupon or Voucher with Every Purchase Free Gift for Every Referral Loyalty Programs with a Points System Whatever promotion tactic you use, you must emphasize a sense of urgency. Make sure your customers know that it will not last forever. That way, your prospective customers will take action immediately—either by buying or reserving an item. 4. Partner With An Influencer It is not easy to promote your next project if you have a limited reach. If that’s the case, you can always tap people who have a much larger audience. Influencers are authoritative figures who are well-respected in their target market. They have lots of subscribers, followers, and fans who quickly follow any recommendations or endorsements they offer. Reviews and promotions from influencers in your niche can significantly improve your reach and generate instant social proof with your audience. Getting promoted by an influencer will help increase the awareness and recognition of your brand. It will create a lot of hype for your next project too! 5. Forge Partnerships With Other Businesses As a starting or small business, you may have limited marketing resources and budget. So, it only makes sense to try and reach out to other complementary businesses including vendors, suppliers, and manufacturers. Not only is this a win-win situation but there’s also the added credibility when another company recommends you. For instance, you can suggest exchanging customer lists and offering to pay your partner company a commission for every sale that you make. However, this requires access to data, and your business partner must request permission from their customers first if they agree to have their details shared. If the company you’re partnering with maintains a blog or podcast, you can ask to get featured in their content. All you need is to plug your brand name or link in the content, and you can gain exposure to an established base of customers. And if your partner business has a physical retail space, then you can also ask them to put up some of your promotional ads or place your business cards in their lounge or waiting area. In addition, you can also make your customers your business partners. You can create a referral rewards program that offers rewards to customers who refer your business to friends or family. After all, word of mouth is one of the most powerful forms of marketing. 6. Create Project Inserts If you are already shipping and selling products, then you have the opportunity to promote your new project with every sale. You can do so by creating project inserts to ship with every other product that you sell. These do not have to be intricately designed or complex. A simple card can already have a big impact on your receiving customer. You can pair the new project promotion with a thank you note so that your customer feels appreciated while you bring awareness for your new project simultaneously. You can also include a promo code so that your customer is more likely to consider your new project. You can include a custom landing page URL or QR code to minimize the size of your project insert. This also helps provide effective tracking for your campaign. 7. Generate Social Engagement The goal of every social marketing post is to get your followers to act. It can be making comments, clicking a link to engage with the post, or sharing the content with others. The more engagement the post receives, the more visible it will in social media feeds. This can lead to new followers and greater exposure for your new project. So, if you created a social marketing post, then make it actionable with open-ended CTAs. You can include a question or ask followers to weigh in with their opinion. Post a poll or pop quiz. Also, make sure to reply to all comments, positive and negative alike. Whenever possible, reshare stories and posts from customers so you can use such as social proof for other prospects. Conclusion Regardless of how good your next project