Tailoring Solutions for You – Design Basics’ Concierge Service

by Michele Weaver | Aug 18, 2020 | Problems Solved

Adding new home plans to your portfolio is risky. Will the design attract buyers? How much will that home cost to build?

Design Basics’ Concierge Service is designed to help you minimize such risks. We know what is selling in terms of home design. Based on your goals (e.g., affordability); restrictions (e.g., 40-foot maximum building widths); and target market or specific customer needs (e.g. multi-generational households); we can recommend popular home designs that improve your odds of success.

After discussing what you are looking for in a home design, we’ll research our entire library of home plans to recommend top designs that meet your needs, saving you time! While it is easy for everyone to search home designs on our website, with heightened knowledge of our plans and search methodologies, our plan specialists often identify ideal home designs that may otherwise be missed or overlooked. In addition, we may recognize that a certain plan, with minor modifications, might be exactly what you are looking for.

What is the value of working with a plan specialist? You may have the requisite accounting knowledge and software, but you work with a CPA. You might be tech-savvy, but you hire a website design company. Residential design is a similar specialty. Is that neat amenity a fad, or destined to become a “must-have”? Was the home value-engineered, helping with your budget concerns? Our plan specialists are your home design consultants, tailoring recommendations and solutions based on your situation and needs.

Upon request, we can even review your existing design portfolio to identify gaps and opportunities we feel could be better addressed through design to help you sell more homes. Over 60 million Americans live in multi-generational households. Which of your home designs address this market’s needs? You have four one-story homes, which account for half of your sales, yet they all have “snout” garages and the writing is on the wall – several new neighborhoods are requiring flush or recessed garages.

Kickstart Your Neighborhood℠

Design Basics is a builder-oriented home plan design firm. With our Kickstart Program, you can get up to five sets of construction drawings for estimating purposes per year for just $100 each, including the corresponding elevation and floorplan presentation artwork for marketing. You will also enjoy plan and product discounts, FREE upgrades, and more!

Neighborhood in a Box®

Our Neighborhood in a Box Program can save you 50% when buying four or more home plans! Choose from pre-configured neighborhoods or build your own when you choose from over 1,300 designs.

Builder Plan Sets

A great floor plan with multiple elevations. Create a cohesive look for your neighborhood with builder plan sets at a discounted price.

Sample Builder Plan Set (#42376)

In addition, our home plans can be licensed for construction on a single-build or unlimited-build basis. Your plan specialist will be happy to discuss ways to get the most for your home design investment. Contact us today about our individually-tailored Concierge Service: 800.947.7526

For more resources on thoughtful design:

Cover Photo: <a href=”https://www.freepik.com/photos/business”>Business photo created by nensuria – www.freepik.com</a>

Watch Your Language!

by Michele Weaver | Jan 14, 2020 | Great Design

Tap into buyers’ emotions with solution-based selling.

The numbers are in, and they look good! The home’s width and square footage fit nicely, the exterior style plus design amenities should attract buyers, and the cost estimates suggest you can make a decent profit. You want to get this new plan to market and give the presentation artwork to your marketing person to showcase on your website. Interestingly, how you describe the home online will have a significant impact on its appeal. Take a look at these three approaches:

Approach 1: The Teglia Place is a brand-new 1642 square foot, three-bedroom ranch with two and one-half bathrooms. This exciting design features an open entertaining area with cathedral ceiling, island kitchen, and walk-in pantry. There are two sinks and a five-foot shower in the owner’s suite, and the walk-in closet has a direct connection to the laundry room. The laundry room can also be accessed from the rear foyer entry from the garage, where you’ll also find a bench topped by lockers and drop zone. There’s even the option of foregoing the powder bath to gain large walk-in closets in both secondary bedrooms!

Approach 2: The Teglia Place is a brand-new 1642 square foot, three-bedroom ranch with today’s most-wanted amenities! The home showcases open entertaining under a cathedral ceiling, lots of natural light, and extra kitchen storage with its double-deep island and walk-in pantry. Positioned for maximum privacy, the owner’s suite also offers interesting ceiling detail in the bedroom, two sinks, toilet privacy, and a spacious five-foot shower in the bathroom. Direct access between the walk-in closet and laundry room make quick work of hanging clothes straight out of the dryer. The secondary bedrooms are served by a Jack-and-Jill bathroom with two sinks. Or, opt for a centralized hall bathroom and you can have walk-in closets for both secondary bedrooms. No detail was overlooked in this home, as evidenced by the rear foyer entry from the garage with bench and lockers plus handy drop zone!

Approach 3: The Teglia Place is a brand-new 1642 square foot, three-bedroom ranch with great livability! Too often we arrive home and everything we’re carrying ends up on the kitchen island. Imagine entering in from the garage and being greeted by a drop zone cabinet to corral clutter, plus a bench and cubbies or lockers to organize coats, backpacks, and everything needed for school tomorrow. A cathedral ceiling dramatically unifies the open socializing area for memorable entertaining, and in the kitchen, back-to-back base island cabinets provide extra storage right where you need it making it easy to find what you’re looking for. Re-live daily the simple joys of an over-sized shower you experienced at that resort in your new owner’s bathroom. Tired of carrying overflowing laundry baskets around? What could be more convenient than a direct connection with the laundry room so that in just a couple steps you’re hanging clothes up straight out of the dryer? Finally, consider which you would prefer: a private Jack-and-Jill bathroom with two sinks for the secondary bedrooms and separate powder bath for guests; or a centralized hall bathroom and large walk-in closets for the secondary bedrooms providing room for everything!

Approach 1 is Joe Friday’s “Just the facts, ma’am.” Efficient, rational, and informative, yet uninspiring, “the walk-in closet has a direct connection to the laundry room.”

Approach 2 is better because it evolves facts into features and benefits, “direct access between the walk-in closet and laundry room making quick work of hanging clothes straight out of the dryer.”

Approach 3 better engages the reader by using a solutions-based approach, “Tired of carrying overflowing laundry baskets around? What could be more convenient than a direct connection with the laundry room so that in just a couple steps you’re hanging clothes up straight out of the dryer?”

Just like buyer expectations, new home marketing, continues to evolve. Thirty years ago, builders could get away with simply listing the home’s amenities. Then the world caught on to selling features and their benefits. But we can, and must, do better – focusing on people’s needs and solving problems.

At Design Basics, we have the tools to help you stand out from other builders:

Thoughtful Design Amenities
Builder-Centric℠ Program
Woman-Centric Matters!® Program
Builder Success Stories – learn about other local builders and how they are successful through home design, marketing, and sales!

Home Plan Co-Creation

by Michele Weaver | Nov 19, 2019 | Great Design

You want your home buyers to make changes to your home plans. Let’s face it, you’d love to offer a home plan that’s right for each and every buyer, but realistically you can’t; therefore, you want buyers to make changes so the home design fits their needs. The tweaks buyers want to make are very personal and significant to them – after all, they’re probably spending a little bit more to achieve those changes in order to get the home that’s “just right.”

Home buyers are more committed to you and to their home if they see themselves involved in co-creating it. Prospects who take the time to dive deep into a home design, mentally “moving in,” have pretty much sold themselves on that design and on you as their builder.

Those buyers come to see themselves as “having designed their own home.” Without getting into the legal issues of authorship, copyright, and ownership of the plan, many times the buyers believe they created the resulting home design. They may give you some credit, “Oh, we started with their ‘Amelia’ plan, but we changed it.” This is one time when it’s best to keep your ego at bay.

The buyers believe their version of the plan is “better.” And, it is – for them. This is an opportune time to compliment them on the modifications they directed. Doing so furthers rapport, they come to like you even more and trust that you are the right builder for them.

Who you have modifying the plan matters. Design Basics home plan Construction Licenses allow the builder or other qualified local professional to make changes to our home plans. So, why do so many customers used Design Basics Plan Customization Designers to alter the plans? Quite simply, our Designers do more than just make the requested modifications. They take the time to get to know why the changes are desired and may be able to suggest alternative solutions that achieve the customer’s goals better, and/or more economically. Further, our Designers may recognize and be able to suggest additional opportunities afforded by the desired alterations that the buyers would love!

At Design Basics, we have the tools to help you stand out from other builders:

Thoughtful Design Amenities
Builder-Centric℠ Program
Woman-Centric Matters!® Program
Builder Success Stories – learn about other local builders and how they are successful through home design, marketing, and sales!

Cover Photo: <a href=”https://www.freepik.com/free-photos-vectors/business”>Business photo created by freepik – www.freepik.com</a>

Tailoring Solutions for You – Design Basics’ Concierge Service

Watch Your Language!

Tap into buyers’ emotions with solution-based selling.

Home Plan Co-Creation

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