Building Emotional Connections with Home Buyers: Insights from Kate Jarrell

Kate Jarrell starts the discussion by reminding home builders that purchasing a home is, at its core, an emotional decision. While the structural integrity of a house is essential, the emotional connection a buyer forms with their future home is equally crucial. Kate emphasizes, “I think one thing that sometimes home builders forget is the buying experience is primarily still emotional for so many people. Yes, we need a house. Yes, we need those four walls. We need those walls to be sturdy and the plumbing and electrical to be safe and secure. But at the end of the day, it is still an emotional decision.”

Homebuilders must recognize that their clients are human beings with needs, desires, and a longing for safety and security for their families. Kate encourages the industry to add a human element to their approach, reminding them that real people will call these houses their homes behind the blueprints and construction sites. She emphasizes that “being able to add in that human element is a huge part of it. Sometimes, it’s easy to forget, especially as we get into the day-to-day of grading land and building foundations and framing. It’s so easy to forget that these are going to be real people living in our homes and to still make it all about them.”

Kate and her team like to delve into customer personas to connect emotionally with home buyers. She believes understanding the potential buyers’ identity is the key to providing exceptional customer service throughout the home-buying journey. Kate says, “my team and I like to discuss through customer personas who are actually purchasing our homes, and the answer changes per market… It’s going to change, so we want to make it as personal as possible. And with the knowledge of that customer persona, go back to our sales teams and say, ‘Hey guys, while you’re getting the client when they’re coming into your sales center, marketing is responsible for capturing them online, on the web, through digital media, maybe through design.”

Kate highlights the importance of a consistent customer experience, emphasizing that every touchpoint along the buyer’s journey should be aligned and offer the best of the company. She believes marketing plays a pivotal role in capturing potential buyers’ attention and interest, especially in the early stages of the funnel, where customers often make initial connections with the brand.

In the world of home building, it’s essential to recognize the emotional significance of the home-buying process. Kate Jarrell’s insights shed light on the importance of connecting with buyers on a human level, understanding their unique personas, and ensuring a seamless and consistent customer experience. By acknowledging the emotional aspects of the journey, homebuilders can forge stronger relationships with their customers, making the home-buying experience more rewarding and satisfying for all parties involved. 

To delve deeper into the discussion, be sure to listen to the latest episode of The Home Builder Digital Marketing Podcast.

Joining the real estate industry in 2012 as a property manager, Kate Jarrell now leads the marketing team at True Homes as Operations Partner of Marketing. Using her unique fusion of creativity and innovation, Kate supports True Homes in our endeavor to provide more life for their clients, trade partners, employees, and stakeholders. Along with having an in-house graphic design team, the True Homes marketing team also excels in digital marketing, social media, email campaigns, event marketing, corporate branding, and more. Kate is a NALP and CAM designate, an educator for the GCAA, and a national speaker and trainer. She lives in Charlotte, NC, with her husband, two perfect children, a cat, and dogs.

As President of  Blue Tangerine , Greg uses digital marketing to help home builders grow sales. Greg began developing home builder websites in late 1999 and has been hooked ever since. The tools have matured since that time, but one thing hasn’t changed: the goal to grow sales!

In 2006, as VP of Operations for eCalton, Greg purchased the company and achieved his dream of owning his own business, renaming it Blue Tangerine Solutions. In 2014, he partnered with Triad Analytics to expand the agency’s marketing services. In 2017, the companies merged and became today’s Blue Tangerine.

Greg enjoys teaching the techniques and skills that he’s learned. He can explain complex technical topics in easy-to-understand language. He has presented at the International Builders’ Show (IBS), the Southeast Building Conference, the Best Home Building Practices Summit, as well as other webinars and events. He is proud to be a host of the  Home Builder Digital Marketing Summit  and Podcast.

Greg has an MBA from North Carolina State University and a BS degree in Computer Science from Brigham Young University. He is Google Ads and Google Analytics certified.

Kevin is a former professional cyclist and Olympic Alternate as well as a highly decorated former United States Marine. His many productive years in the cycling industry landed him a very successful career in the Motorcycle/Automobile industry. His belief in and practice of relationship selling catapulted him from floor sales to GM of the largest Motorcycle Dealer network in the United States in less than 5 years.

Disenchanted with the auto industry due to unscrupulous business practices, he then joined the team at Outhouse and led the team to the largest sales growth in the company’s history since the downturn. He’s an expert in Interactive Builder Web and Marketing Content, 3D Rendering, Animation, Drafting, Matterport, and Print Marketing Collateral. Leaving Outhouse on good terms, Kevin is now part of the team at Zonda, representing the  Livabl  Listings and Virtual platform.