Chapter 11- Market Research: A tool for generating ideas.

The first few pages of this chapter are definitions so here it goes:

Due diligence: research conducted before buying a real estate property
Entitlements: research completed to understand the most desirable zoning and deelopment conditions to seek
Programming: research conducted to determine the sequence, product mix, and amenities
Project positioning: research that informs the market niche for the project
Sales: research to determine the most efficient marketing and sales programs

To begin, market researchers examine both the macro (political structure, demographics, sociocultural attitudes, etc.) and micro (suppliers, consumers, competitors) market levels.

Summary of marketing concepts relevant to the development process:

• marketing is a social and managerial process
• wgroups get weat they want and need by exchanging products of value with each other
• marketing occurs because humas have needs
• products can sometimes satisfy these
• Products can be obtained in several ways
• most people acquire goods by exchange so we specialize in one thing
  
• Market size depends on the amount of need or want and their ability to pay for those needs/wants
  
• a marketer is someone looking for one or more prospects who might engage in a exchange of values
• Marketing management: perhaps the most intuitive of the bunch, marketing management is the process of planning and executing the conception, pricing, promotion and distribution of goods, services, and ideas to create exchanges with target groups that satisfy customer's and organization's goals.

4 ways buyers and sellers are linked:

1. sellers send goods or services produced by industry
2. sellers communicate to the market
3. sellers receive information from buyers
4. sellers receive money from buyers

Leasing agents are responsible for keeping the market interested past the early stages.

Market research should determine how to address the following:

Product Positioning

• figuring out who is the product going to be most interesting to and targetting those people
  

Product type and characteristics

• style, quality of finishes
• buyer's preferences

Amenities

• part of the primary real estate offering
• e.g. spacious entry ways, health club, VIP parking

Product Mix

• the amount and placement of different sizes and types of the product
• e.g. percent distribution of unit sizes and types

Price Points

• Components of a pricing model

Absorption rates

• how fast demand will absorb the product.

Purpose of market study:

• determine the size of the market
• come up with conclusions on financial inputs such as projected absorption rates, product mix, and price points.
  
• determine the target market for marketing strategy
• useful info for other stakeholders
• gets the info you need to secure a loan

***just remember that market analysis never certain and that location is prob the most important part of development

Ten Crit Questions that Market Research Must Answer

1. What are the types of trends in this type of development?
• important because market research cannot determine future trends--it takes your own observations or that of a trend setter like Rachel Zoe or Urban Eye's Melena Ryzik.
• The book suggests that you look at trends over time and actually try to predict the future yourself. Some of us are better at that than others. Know thyself.
• if you aren't good at this or you are but you don't trust your judgement, there are techniques!
• interview stakeholders and leaders in the industry, read periodicals, write down key messages from each source and make a spreadsheet of the info.
  
• Planners are pretty rad at this component because we are constantly in the know about all population trends and we are typically pretty hip.
  
2. What is the current market?
• profile current buyers and tenants to reveal potential customers
• find out who they are and something about their lives
• demographics/statistics are good right about now
• you can find these on the census but you should know that because you went to census camp.
  
3. What is the depth of this market?
• find out what the potential size is
• The book has nothing to offer in terms of technique about this except to let you know that it is "quite a challenge."
4. What are the market's perceived values?
• Demographics
• statistical data
• questioning potential clients
• psychographics
• sweet vocab word meaning the study of psychological profiles of potential buyers
5. What opportunities and challenges does the current market profile create?
• figuring out how to reconcile people's wants and aversions (NIMBYism)
• SWOT anal
• study all people affected by project to be sure you will have public support
6. How do you determine and gain an understanding of your target market?
• narrow the target market
• use one of these:
• focus groups
• surveys
7. What are market positions, development programs, price points, absorption, and lessons learned for competitive projects? Who are their buyers?
• look for info about competing projects and their marketing materials and their sales centers
• websites
• brochures
• sales kits
• sales center (after you have well thought out questions)
• third party reviews
8. What are the market positions, development programs, price points, absorption, and lessons learned for competitive projects? Who are their buyers?

fuck i just realized this is chapter 11 which i think meg did already so im going to stop there.

?s ask Rachel