Hey @Simeon,
Great and interesting question. There is no doubt that the land development is very behind a lot of other industries in terms of technological advancements in advertising.
Three potential reasons in Canada might be:
1. Land developers are traditionally a very brick-and-mortar business, where the people who run the companies started on the construction sites. As such, many builders that I know barely know how to turn on a computer!
2. The market has been HOT for a long time, and builders/developers have not had to adopt to the times like other industries.
3. What they do WORKS!
But, that is all changing.
When I started BuzzBuzzHome 2+ years ago, most builders that I met with barely knew how to turn on a computer, let alone understand the internet-machine! We are now starting to see builders and developers get more active online, and we are starting to see more activity in this space.
We are also starting to see sales centres get very technologically advanced in terms of their touch screen technologies, and interactive displays. Of course, there is a lot more that can be done, but at the end of the day, most of these projects are selling out in no time, and as such we are not seeing builders see the need to put much more money into the already very expensive sales centres.
I should also mention that Lasso is a pretty cool company! The specialize in relationship-management, so their systems are not really seen by the outside world.
All of that said, of course I would love to see HUGE advances in this field. There is so much more that can be done on the marketing and advertising side, especially in the online world. But, it all comes down to dollars and cents, and these builders know that their current system is working, so why change?
Two great campaigns in the past year:
1. Name Our Condo campaign for Backstage by Cityzen
2. Karma Condos by Lifetime and CentreCourt.
Would love to hear other opinions, and thoughts.
Matthew Slutsky,
President / Co-founder, BuzzBuzzHome Corp.

Good question. To start with, I think its important to note that real estate marketing has changed dramatically over the past 10 years and continues to change quickly. This is most demonstrable by the fact that home purchasers now have a multitude of online listing services showcasing almost every resale and new construction home currently on the market - often bundled with images, maps, and financial info. Stuff that really didn't exist just a decade a go.
It is true, however, that real estate marketing and sales haven't evolved to the same extent as some other industries, such as travel, books or music.
I think there's a multitude of factors stifling progress in real estate marketing - one being the brick and mortar culture of land developers (as Matt mentioned above), but also the complexity and large transaction size of real estate deals, the local nature of home building and buying, and the human/emotional element (which ties into large transaction size).
So, whereas, Amazon came along and single-handedly changed the way books are marketed and sold - real estate is a harder nut to crack. That said, my guess is that over the next several years, real estate marketing will be as markedly transformed by technology as pretty much any other industry.

I'd have to agree with you @Matthew.
But wouldn't you guys agree that that sort of mentality, you mentioned that developers have, is wrong? Just because something is working doesn't mean it's going to keep working. Recent companies that come to mind that have fallen into that trap (non-real-estate-related unfortunately) are Kodak and RIM. They had that same mindset. It works now, why change? Look at where they are now.
With that being said, I really like what you guys are doing with Buzzbuzzhome. With third-party platforms entering the fray in virtually every industry (AirBnB, Getaround, Amazon, etc.), you're seeing a huge shift in consumer demand for these sorts of platforms. The real estate industry still has SO MUCH room for disruption. But, regardless it's refreshing to see the real estate industry is finally coming around. As you mentioned Matthew, with interactive, touch and mobile technology becoming more widely adopted, I think we are seeing the first steps of technological evolution! And as more and more consumers realize the power that these sorts of "platforms" put into their hands, I believe it'll get to the point where MLS and real estate developers can no longer ignore the opportunity that such platforms present. People like "doing stuff" in the comfort of their own home and being able to do their own research if they so choose. I know I ALWAYS do my own research for products online. Going to a physical store has gotten somewhat bothersome. As well, I know that there is a possibility that I might have to speak or deal with someone who's going to try to sell me something..... bleh..

Jeff said:
But wouldn't you guys agree that that sort of mentality, you mentioned that developers have, is wrong? Just because something is working doesn't mean it's going to keep working. Recent companies that come to mind that have fallen into that trap (non-real-estate-related unfortunately) are Kodak and RIM. They had that same mindset. It works now, why change? Look at where they are now.

I couldn't agree more. I always think of this approach as "rear-mirror" strategy, which works great until there is any shift in the industry.
It is the builders/developers, such as Cityzen and Lifetime (and others) that are starting to push the envelope now, who will be the successful companies in the future.
The same is true for unit mixes and pricing. I hate seeing builders who only look to past numbers and comparables when planning their mixes, as any changes in the market will kill their project. Builders/developers need to look to the future when planning the buildings.... but, thats all just my opinion!

Hey, dont forget about Canderel. We just developed a new technology that will show a digital building model in context with the actual neighbourhood surrounding. Looks like the building is built and in the actual location.
I was also at the DX3 conference today and have some great ideas for new location based marketing using mobile technology. So, wait for a little while to find some new marketing concepts coming from our side.

^^agreed! Canderel is always doing really awesome campaigns. At DNA3 they had a killer rendering where you could alter the time of day, that was in a cross-section of the layout. It was fantastic. They are always up to something cool.
Looking forward to what you have lined up above!

From what I understand, Buzzbuzz's revenue model came from developer demand not from the original design/function for the website (buzzbuzzhomes.com) Correct?
I think that in itself is enough to say that there is an aspect of the market that is lacking and still needing to be flushed out and saturated.
There is still a long ways to go to show brick and mortar developers that the future of marketing is online based but I'm glad you guys have at least pointed them in the right directions.

I've always found it odd that developers continue to develop pointless flash based websites for their projects. Do you ever notice that the actual developer's official website rarely ranks in the top ten in google search results? It's all "VIP" realtors that have more key words and higher ranking sites that rank at the top. The Walsh Group who seems to handle the majority of these sites has it quite easy these days. Not much change in that department in a decade. A simple tweak to a more searchable website with a user friendly splash page would generate thousands of direct leads to the developer site and likely make them more $$$ and of course expand their database.
I smell a change in the development world with some of the smaller developers climbing up the ladder. SAY NO TO FLASH! Oh, one more thing, developers: Nobody appreciates the obnoxious music you blast on your home page!

Simeon said:
From what I understand, Buzzbuzz's revenue model came from developer demand not from the original design/function for the website (buzzbuzzhomes.com) Correct?

Correct. BuzzBuzzHome's revenue is based on builders advertising throughout the site. That said, the lack of a service like BuzzBuzzHome (basically, MLS for new-construction) is not due to builders being in the "stone age", it was due to the fact that there was no centralized organization to display such information.
Roughly 90% of home buyers start their search online, before contacting an agent, and they want to see EVERYTHING that is available in on one website. No matter how advanced builders are, they would not be showing every property like BuzzBuzzHome does.

Ara said:
I've always found it odd that developers continue to develop pointless flash based websites for their projects.

Agreed. Flash based websites are great for visuals, but kills the builders on SEO, and thus could mean that the builders are losing money by having to pay more commission. That said, on the GTA the Realtors currently dominate the market, and often builders are seeing the commissions as a form of advertising.

Ara said:
Nobody appreciates the obnoxious music you blast on your home page!

Ugh. I hate music on a site. If there is sound, it should be set to "off" at first, and people should have to opt in to turning it on!

@Ara have to agree on The Walsh group sites. Perhaps one of the most interesting projects in terms of promotions was Backstage with the Name the condo, registration numbers were huge. However it would seem that the majority of sales are done by agents regardless. And why not, if agents, one are going to support the project and two talk it up on their websites and social media the development in essence have downloaded a significant portion of their marketing costs to agents.

Graham Connaughton, Broker
Sotheby's International Realty Canada Brokerage
gconnaughton@sothebysrealty.ca
twitter @gconnaughton
647.500.3798

All:
At a Meta level all the things you are talking about here, are covered here in my book: www.BrandingBuildingsBetter.com. It's free for developers -- just sign up and we'll mail you one.
I find that one of the biggest obstacles to change in the development business is accounting. With no line item to code non-project-specific marketing and branding initiatives to, developer marketing staff are forced to keep experimentation and technology advancement accountable to specific projects; projects that oft-times have marketing budgets pre-set from years of experience by the company as a % of gross sales. Digital/new tech isn't replacing the old ways, it's an additional expense, so it mucks up the proforma. Fix that, and you'll see a lot of envelope-pushing.
Leaders like Riz at Canderel (take a bow Riz) are really doing great things, and hopefully the rest of the industry is watching.
David Allison

Matthew said:
Hey @Simeon,

Three potential reasons in Canada might be:
1. Land developers are traditionally a very brick-and-mortar business, where the people who run the companies started on the construction sites. As such, many builders that I know barely know how to turn on a computer!
2. The market has been HOT for a long time, and builders/developers have not had to adopt to the times like other industries.
3. What they do WORKS!
But, that is all changing.
When I started BuzzBuzzHome 2+ years ago, most builders that I met with barely knew how to turn on a computer, let alone understand the internet-machine! We are now starting to see builders and developers get more active online, and we are starting to see more activity in this space.
We are also starting to see sales centres get very technologically advanced in terms of their touch screen technologies, and interactive displays. Of course, there is a lot more that can be done, but at the end of the day, most of these projects are selling out in no time, and as such we are not seeing builders see the need to put much more money into the already very expensive sales centres.
All of that said, of course I would love to see HUGE advances in this field. There is so much more that can be done on the marketing and advertising side, especially in the online world. But, it all comes down to dollars and cents, and these builders know that their current system is working, so why change?
Two great campaigns in the past year:
1. Name Our Condo campaign for Backstage by Cityzen
2. Karma Condos by Lifetime and CentreCourt.
Would love to hear other opinions, and thoughts.
Matthew Slutsky,
President / Co-founder, BuzzBuzzHome Corp.

Couldn't agree more. Although not Marketing, Conasys introduced a digital new home manual into the marketplace about 4 years ago. To say it was a challenge would be an understatement. Matthew's points above are exactly what we have found, "if it ain't broke don't fix it" type mentality. That being said, builders/developers don't have it easy. Take green technology for example, it is a hot topic and there are many initiatives to advance sustainable building practises, but most consumers simply aren't willing to pay more for a "green home." The builders ultimately have to find a way to keep their prices competitive while meeting expectations of the market; challenging at the best of times, and even more so when the market isn't hot.

I think at the end of the day, all of these arguments can be summed up by a fairly simple statement:
The Cost of Change vs. Potential Benefit of Change isn't apparent enough to developers who are ALREADY making money doing things the way that they are used to.
The argument that I've been having with developers and marketers alike for the last year or so is that THIS is the time to invest in new tech and innovative ways of marketing. Why settle with reaching the locals with an ad when you have the technology and ability to take it global? Don't wait until you are scraping by or cutting your budgets to start implementing changes. The best time to explore is in an upswing.
At the end of the day, I still think that people underestimate the demand for Canadian products from other markets. Canada has been very lucky with the good press it has received internationally over the past years and heaven forbid that turn around. But if it did, we'd be in the same race as the UK, Austraila, Thailand and others are (to name a few).. except we'd be quite behind.
But hey, thats just my 2 cents.

^^What type of innovative ideas would you like to see builder/developers doing more of in their marketing?

Well my mum always told me, If I'm good at something, I should never do it for free ^^
But in general, I would like to see developers branching away from the traditional project marketer to developer relationship. I think traditional sales centres are dated, expensive and could be recreated much more efficiently.
The problem is that the project marketing firms have to justify all spending to the developers and if/when something doesn't go quite as planned, the blame is placed on the marketer, making them a lot less likely to 'push the envelope'. On the other side, you have the developers that have all their services in house, meaning they are either big enough to feel like they don't NEED to explore new options or there is just too much bureaucracy to try.
I could expand but I feel that it could get a bit lengthy.

@Simeon, are you in real-estate marketing in Vancouver?
I have seen a lot of really cool stuff coming out in Vancouver. This one story by PilotHouse really caught my attention: http://blog.buzzbuzzhome.com/2011/12/welcome-to-the-sales-centre-of-tomorrow-pilothouses-in-real-theatre-offers-potential-buyers-a-unique-experience.html It is kind of the opposite of what you are talking about, as in it is a really big sales centre, but it is such a cool and unique idea, taking advantage of some great technologies.

@Matthew, I have been in RE marketing in Vancouver for the past 2 years.. before that I was living/working in China.
I have seen the Pilothouse centre out here and it is awesome. That is the kind of stuff that I want to see more of. Just take that one step further; put that whole experience online and we've got a real winner.