‘Webtastic’ response to new site

Ilkeston, Derbyshire [18 May 2005] What’s your first port of call when you buy a new house? In the past it might have been an estate agent’s window or a developer’s brochure. But all that is changing with the power of the Internet.

“Like most businesses, Fairgrove Homes has had a website for many years,” says Steve Midgley, managing director of Fairgrove Homes. “But we weren’t getting a great response from it. Since we’ve updated the site, we’ve had tremendous feedback from throughout the country.”

The new site has been given good reviews from www.themovechannel.com, which describes it as a “well presented easy to use site dedicated to small new home developments within villages and conservation areas.”

“This is very positive,” says Steve. “But where the site is really paying dividends is in the amount of interest we’re getting from prospective home buyers living as far away as the Isle of Wight to the south and Scotland to the north. In fact, we’re finding that more people are choosing to do their homework over the net before they come to see our properties, giving them a good idea of what is on offer in the new homes market and helping them think about what they want from life in a new house.”

Steve has several tips for other businesses in the region to help ensure their web channel is as effective as other marketing channels:

• Make sure you’re listed with key search engines;
• Keep your brand and image consistent between web and all other advertising/marketing media;
• Make the site intuitive and easy to use;
• Ensure potential customers know how to contact you by non-web methods;
• Keep the site up-to-date;
• Link with relevant and partner sites.

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