Kevin Cross

"Centex Homes is excited to have Carl join our marketing department," said Kevin Cross, strategic marketing manager.

Kevin Cross, assistant marketing director for Centex Homes, said that construction of the town homes is not expected to begin until October, but initial development will start in August.Cross said prices will start in the $120,000 range.

Kevin Cross, senior regional marketing analyst for Centex Homes' Southeast Region, agrees that it is difficult to track the amount of traffic and buyers that are coming from the Internet.

"Unfortunately, what you get from customers at the point of sale is usually not accurate. At least 50 percent of traffic will say that they came in because they were just driving by and saw the entry signs. That's the last thing on their mind as they walk in the door so that's what they say even though they may have seen an ad or been on the Internet," he said.

The best way to determine Internet usage and the effectiveness of your Internet advertising, Cross said, is to follow up with buyers after the purchase.

"You have to really dig in to find out if people used the Internet and if so, how much was it a determining factor in their purchase," he said.

Centex is currently in the midst of conducting these kinds of surveys. Preliminarily, Cross said he guesses that one-third of their sales office traffic have been to their website.

Kevin Cross, senior regional marketing analyst for Centex Homes' Southeast Region, agrees that it is difficult to track the amount of traffic and buyers that are coming from the Internet.

"Unfortunately, what you get from customers at the point of sale is usually not accurate. At least 50 percent of traffic will say that they came in because they were just driving by and saw the entry signs. That's the last thing on their mind as they walk in the door so that's what they say even though they may have seen an ad or been on the Internet," he said.

The best way to determine Internet usage and the effectiveness of your Internet advertising, Cross said, is to follow up with buyers after the purchase.

"You have to really dig in to find out if people used the Internet and if so, how much was it a determining factor in their purchase," he said.

Centex is currently in the midst of conducting these kinds of surveys. Preliminarily, Cross said he guesses that one-third of their sales office traffic have been to their website.

As far as budgeting goes, Cross is currently spending about 5 percent of his advertising budget on the Internet and says they "could probably spend more."

His advice to other builders is to figure out what they want to accomplish through the Internet before determining how much they will invest. A builder who wants to raise name and image awareness will want to use the Internet differently than one who wants to generate leads.

"As with most things, you have to come up with a strategy and spend according to that strategy," he said.

Kevin Cross of Centex Homes

Sisler Johnston outlined the importance of professionally decorated model homes and how a decorated model can benefit a homebuilder's bottom line. According to Sisler Johnston, the formula for profit begins with a beautifully designed model home by a licensed interior designer. "A well designed model home will increase traffic," she explained, "traffic increases sales, sales increase profit."

Breakfast attendees listened as she discussed top design trends, how to select a designer, how to work with the designer, the elements of a contract and money savings techniques.

"If the pace of condo sales here continues, Jacksonville will close 35 percent more condos than last year," says Kevin Cross, Strategic Marketing Manager for Centex Homes.