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Real estate has been a driving force in the Greater Toronto Area economy for several years, though the COVID-19 crisis has hit the housing market hard in the last several weeks. The still-emerging economic impacts of the situation are causing many home builders to take a step back and reassess how they conduct sales. Collecdev is one developer moving forward with digital solutions to the problems brought on by the temporary inability to continue regular in-person sales and marketing activity.
Collecdev is using a few different platforms to keep the home buying experience accessible and efficient for purchasers and realtors, including a digital marketing software known as Blackline 2.0. This platform acts as an online replacement for presentation centres, offering a range of similar features for prospective home buyers that include interactive 3D architectural models, suite selections and views, and side-by-side floorplan comparisons. Taking cues from social media, the platform allows agents and purchasers to “share” brochures, floorplans and pricing with each other via the mobile app. "We had a forward-thinking vision and were the early adopters of these softwares, which proved essential during these times," said Natascha Pieper, VP of Sales and Marketing at Collecdev.
While extremely useful in weathering the storm we're all currently navigating, the platform has actually been in use by Collecdev for some time now, with use naturally ramping up in the wake of COVID-19 related closures. "Collecdev was an early adopter of Blackline," reads a statement from Tim Ng, Principal at AdHoc Studio and Blackline. "Collecdev's team saw the opportunity and advantages of having an online sales centre platform that allowed their team to sell real estate from anywhere."
The decor programs for recently-marketed projects Tretti and Westwood Gardens utilized interactive 3D visualization software, known as Interactive Abode, which allows buyers to digitally select finishes and decor which are then rendered into an interactive screen on their mobile devices, desktop, or laptop. This approach, already in use well before COVID-19, has been especially useful with physical distancing protocols in place nationwide.
For actual sales of units, Collecdev has been leveraging interactive software called Avesdo, which offers more benefits than just keeping people at a safe distance. One major benefit is the platform's automation of what would otherwise be tedious and time-consuming processes like signing every page of an Agreement of Purchase and Sale. Integrated online sales tools accommodate for dynamic changes to inventory and pricing, giving agents immediate accessibility.
Looking to the future, technologies like these will surely remain popular after the pandemic loosens its grip on society. Presentation centres may return to the equation in full force, though the attractiveness of making such important life decisions from the comfort of home can only grow in the years to come. These innovations are especially useful to those with accessibility or sensory issues looking to avoid the crowd-based sales events that were a big factor in pre-COVID marketing campaigns, as well as buyers looking to relocate from out of town with no means to visit a sales centre.
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