MARONDA HOMES
DIGITAL MARKETING, BRANDING, PRINT ADVERTISING & WEBSITE REDESIGN
For more than 40 years, Maronda was known nationally as a builder of large homes with limited options at an affordable price. As the company evolved, they diversified their offerings to feature more luxurious homes. Acting as an internal business consultant and part of the leadership team, Ange launched robust campaigns to showcase the new product designs and increase brand awareness.
One of the first challenges was defining a consistent brand presence online. Within the 7 divisions across 5 states, Maronda was using 4 different versions of the company logo, 2 different color schemes, and 7 different uses of those items in varied ways. A single logo and brand use specifications were developed to aid brand recognition online. The 7 divisions agreed to utilize this same branding on print materials and signage bringing together a cohesive brand presence for the fist time since Maronda was established in 1973.
Other campaigns developed and managed include: professional photography, videos, 360 walkthroughs, product renders and floorplan layouts, and sitemaps to maximize the functionality of the site and create a consistent brand throughout the separate divisions. Social media marketing, email templates, email marketing, website analytics, CRM, Custom CMS with lead tracking systems, search engine marketing (retargeting campaigns), facebook paid advertising, blog design and blogging, customer portal design, AdWords campaigns, landing pages design, press releases, online listing sites, traditional commercial advertising.
SKILLS UTILIZED:
CONCEPTUAL DESIGNS
Blog Redesign
Much like the website, the existing blog was not mobile-friendly and required an update to be consistent with the updated online branding. Although there were over 800 blogs written, they were hard to find as they were organized by geography and did not contain additional filters for categories like ‘Financing’ that aided the user experience. The updated blog was optimized on WordPress with tools to allow non-technical staff to publish blogs that were SEO optimized for relevant terms as part of our content strategy. Each website author was illustrated with a hand-drawn gravatar and biography that showcased their talent and distinctive writing style. Through these diverse authors, we gave a voice to our different buyer profiles and increased engagement online.
Responsive Website Redesign
The existing website required a signification transformation to become competitive and drive more sales. The appearance was outdated and featured products with inconsistent or inaccurate information. At 44,000 pages, the site was massive so traditional project planning methodologies were utilized to ensure the project scope was accurate, milestone progress was communicated efficiently, and the overall initiative came in on-time and within budget. The resulting site was responsive, SEO optimized using best practices, designed for lead-generation / conversion, content-rich and visually appealing with a focus on user experience. Data was fed from the internal database to minimize maintenance and keep information accurate.
Customer Web Portal Design
When building a new home, buyers love to be involved with the process and watch their dreams become reality. To better meet those needs, Maronda developed an online customer portal that provided access to electronic sales agreements, product purchases and color selections, progress photographs and a construction schedule overview. Buyer profiles were integrated with their Facebook accounts to facilitate social sharing furthering our brand recognition campaigns.Other simple features include contact information for sales an construction managers to streamline communications as well as helpful FAQ’s that address common questions quickly. In an on-demand society, this type of portal is essential to meeting the needs of buyers.
“The little menial tasks I used to have to do for marketing were taken off my plate when you developed this department. And then I could actually focus on selling instead of marketing everything. I went from selling 9 million dollars a year to 15 million dollars a year! Thank you Ange for all you do for me and for us (the sales staff).”
COMMERCIAL ADVERTISING
“I am thoroughly impressed with your digital marketing program at Maronda. You built a top-notch program and team which is rare in home building. Your willingness to be involved with New Home Star and to share your insights with me are so valuable. I really appreciate all of your help.”
BRAND IDENTITY, PRINT MARKETING, PHOTOGRAPHY VIDEOS & SIGNAGE
