Stephanie McCarty of Taylor Morrison joins Greg and Kevin on this week’s episode of The Home Builder Digital Marketing Podcast to discuss the significance of understanding what consumers expect and want when it comes to the home buying online process.
Customers have so many more choices and information than they ever have before, and home builders must figure out how to navigate that.
“If you’re in a master-planned community with seven other builders and your plans are roughly the same and your average selling price is roughly the same, how do you stand out? How do you differentiate? A lot of that comes down to what consumers care about and that conscious consumer choice of, well, how do they treat the earth? How do they treat their people? What do they prioritize as a brand?”
Consumers want more online buying options. Stephanie says,
“You can almost find anything about absolutely anything online. You can’t resist that level of consumer change in behavior, and they’re so used to shopping that way for everything else in life. There is no reason why purchasing a home needs to be any different.”
All home builders need to recognize this dramatic change in shift and get onboard together. Stephanie relates,
“Consumer adoption is our biggest X factor here. The more all builders begin to play in this space meaningfully, the more consumers will feel comfortable doing it. Do we want to have the best experience? Yes. Do we enjoy having a lead in some of this and paving the way for the industry? Absolutely, but at the end of the day, the more builders who embrace this and also catch on and dedicate time and resources to it, the better that we all will be.”
Listen to this week’s episode to learn more about customer expectations and home buying online.
About the Guest:
Stephanie McCarty joined Taylor Morrison as the Vice President of Corporate Communications in 2015 and was promoted to Chief Marketing and Communications Officer in 2018 after transforming the company culture and branding position nationwide. In her role, Ms. McCarty leads brand marketing, employee, customer and shareholder communications, media relations and PR, ESG initiatives and reporting, and crisis and issues management. In the last year, she has implemented an online customer experience strategy that includes innovative, industry-leading customer acquisition tools and products—establishing Taylor Morrison as a differentiated, progressive brand and helping to move the future of home shopping forward.
Throughout her career, Ms. McCarty has had a history of success leading communications functions for the University of Phoenix, Insight, ON Semiconductor, and McMurry, Inc. She holds a B.A. in journalism and mass communication from the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism at Arizona State University and currently sits on the Advisory Board for Zillow Group, Inc.