'Sales in the City' - (or, How To Meet The Needs Of The Single Female Homebuyer)

51% of all American women are single! This is probably not a surprise to most of the design center managers who are in touch with their clientele, but the single woman home buyer is now making 22% of all US home purchases!Builders are starting to listen to what this home buyer wants and needs in their home, and the experience they seek in the home purchase experience.

While writing an upcoming article for OPTIONS Magazine (Peninsula Publishing), I began to see just how much opportunity there is in gearing our sales approach to this consumer, and offering the amenities she needs.Despite the title of this post, this segment is not just the young, urban career woman. Single woman home purchasers are young singles, single moms, middle-aged singles and active adults. Each of these groups has specific needs your design center staff can speak to.

Meagan Kato, a consumer strategist, indicates there are five values that will help you connect to this woman: Empowerment, Identity, Control, Security and Family. She will relate to lifestyle photos of a single mom, or of a single woman entertaining friends for dinner. Ask manufacturer partners for point-of-sale signing and marketing materials designed with this segment in mind.

From a merchandising perspective, it is very important that your design center feel as 'retail' and consumer centric as possible. She will expect nothing less. This consumer will gather information and research from many different arena's, including gathering friend's advice, printed material, the Internet, and repeat visits to your design center (and to the competitor's, I will also add). An electronic selection tool/virtual design center is a fabulous selling tool that will also give this consumer the information she wants at the time she needs it. (Hearth and Home has been very successful reaching this consumer using the Envision selection and education tool).

For more information, please read the upcoming article in OPTIONS Magazine .
Andrea Learned is one of the most respected resources on marketing to women.
You may contact me to discuss merchandising, marketing and creating a new home purchase experience to best meet and exceed the expectations of this important consumer!

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The Design Minds at Hearth and Home Blog is geared to support design center staff and new construction industry in selling options and upgrades to the new home consumer. Contact Krisann Parker-Brown for merchandising or marketing support of your design center.


Krisann Parker-Brown is the merchandising manager for Hearth and Home Technologies, the leading manufacturer and retailer of fireplaces and hearth systems. Krisann supports design centers and new construction builders in presenting Heat & Glo, Heatilator and Quadra-Fire hearth systems, and consulting on design center merchandising, point of sale and the consumer experience. Contact her at brownkr@hearthnhome.com or 952-985-6537

International Retail Design Conference

I am really starting to get excited about the upcoming International Retail Design Conference next week. An annual conference put on by VM+SD magazine, the best and brightest of the retail and store design profession will be in attendence. The meeting will be held in Buckhead, (Atlanta),a great location to explore new retail trends.

Be sure that I will be searching for ideas to help us create a great consumer experience in design centers! I am very thankful to work for an organization who understands the importance of continuing to raise the standards of the customer environment and experience! The bar has been raised! Here are some of the sessions I am most excited about:

Trends in European Retail
High-Impact Retail Graphics
Targeting the Baby Boomer Woman
Spotlight on Lighting Trends
Merging Brands, Merging Design
World Retail Tour—Off the Beaten Path
Reinventing America's Malls
Immersing Customers in the Experience
IRDC Retail Tour: Atlantic Station
Retailer of the Year: Best Buy
Selling the Importance of Design

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The Design Minds at Hearth and Home Blog is geared to support design center staff and new construction industry in selling options and upgrades to the new home consumer. Contact Krisann Parker-Brown for merchandising or marketing support of your design center.

Krisann Parker-Brown is the merchandising manager for Hearth and Home Technologies, the leading manufacturer and retailer of fireplaces and hearth systems. Krisann supports design centers and new construction builders in presenting Heat & Glo, Heatilator and Quadra-Fire hearth systems, and consulting on design center merchandising, point of sale and the consumer experience. Contact her at brownkr@hearthnhome.com or 952-985-6537


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Reaching the Hispanic Homebuying Consumer

One of the most exciting parts of my job is creating marketing and merchandising methods to reach specific target markets. I think it is very exciting to see more and more manufacturers, home builders and other shelter categories seek out and reach out to the many rich groups that make up the 'American Consumer'.

I love the recent work I have been doing with our Heat & Glo, Heatilator and Quadra-Fire brands, on creating Spanish language signing. It makes so much sense, and the feedback has been outstanding thus far! I have recently also been doing some work with some National home builders on reaching the Hispanic market.

I am very excited to announce an article I wrote on the Hispanic consumer being published in Raising Standards Magazine. Raising Standards magazine is an East Coast publication for design centers, the magazine focus is increasing sales through design center options sales. The photos in the magazine are always beautiful, great to share with your design center staffs. (You don't have to be on the East Coast to get a free subscription)







Subscribe here (free) :Raising Standards Magazine









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The Design Minds at Hearth and Home Blog is geared to support design center staff and new construction industry in selling options and upgrades to the new home consumer. Contact Krisann Parker-Brown for merchandising or marketing support of your design center.

Krisann Parker-Brown is the merchandising manager for Hearth and Home Technologies, the leading manufacturer and retailer of fireplaces and hearth systems. Krisann supports design centers and new construction builders in presenting Heat & Glo, Heatilator and Quadra-Fire hearth systems, and consulting on design center merchandising, point of sale and the consumer experience. Contact her at brownkr@hearthnhome.com or 952-985-6537

Design Minds at Hearth and Home

Thanks for checking out the 'Design Minds' blog. My world involves working with new home design centers every day, and helping them serve their customer and drive more business by creating the best possible retail experience. After all, a home is most likely the largest purchase a consumer will ever complete!

Subscribe to get the latest updates, and please email me links and examples of great content to share with our peers. Let me know what questions and topics are challenging in your design center world.

Hearth and Home is the leading manufacturer of Hearth Systems, including the top three brands of fireplaces and stoves: Heat & Glo, Heatilator and Quadra-Fire.

________________________________________________________________

The Design Minds at Hearth and Home Blog is geared to support design center staff and new construction industry in selling options and upgrades to the new home consumer. Contact Krisann Parker-Brown for merchandising or marketing support of your design center.

Krisann Parker-Brown is the merchandising manager for Hearth and Home Technologies, the leading manufacturer and retailer of fireplaces and hearth systems. Krisann supports design centers and new construction builders in presenting Heat & Glo, Heatilator and Quadra-Fire hearth systems, and consulting on design center merchandising, point of sale and the consumer experience. Contact her at brownkr@hearthnhome.com or 952-985-6537