Page 83 - 100 Great Marketing Ideas (100 Great Ideas)

an accountant. Laurie Barratt’s contribution to the housebuilding
scene in Britain was not so much in the building of the houses, but
in creative ways of paying for them.

Barratt introduced trade-in to the housing market, buying people’s
existing homes so that they could buy a Barratt home in one easy
transaction. Barratt introduced the idea of selling starter homes
already furnished, so that first-time buyers would not have to find
the money for a deposit and for furnishing the home all at once.
He introduced a system of lending people the deposits to buy their
homes—using a deferred loan that would not be repaid until the
homeowner’s income allowed. This was a major selling point during
the 2008/2009 credit squeeze, when first-time buyers were unable
to get mortgages unless they had a substantial deposit.

In 2008 he also introduced a price guarantee—anyone buying a
Barratt home would have the price guaranteed if they sold within
the next three years.

Making it easy to pay meant that Barratt went from a standing start
in 1958 to being one of Britain’s biggest housebuilders.

In practice

• Be creative. People can already borrow from their banks—you

need to go a step further.

• Don’t overstretch yourself—offering a top-up loan or deposit is

fine, but ideally it shouldn’t exceed your profit on the deal.

• Make it simple for people. If they can get the goods by signing

a few forms, that’s a lot easier than having to go to their bank to
borrow money.

• Consider what people are able and willing to pay, and build your

package around that.

74 • 100 GREAT MARKETING IDEAS