This one might hit home, especially if you’ve ever thought about scaling your building business or standing out in a crowded market.

A bit more about what we talked about on the pod last week.

A few years back, I found myself in the middle of a pretty wild experiment. It was one of those “go big or go broke” moments. And to be honest, we nearly didn’t go for it. But we did and that experiment turned into Avondale Homes, now a well-known acreage builder in Southeast Queensland.

There’s a lot more to the story too. Some of the twists, lessons, and behind-the-scenes stuff we’ll share down the track. But for now, here’s a wrap of what Pete and I chatted about on the pod.

Where do I begin?

Back in 2018, I caught up with a bloke named Daryl Meehan. He was the former GM of Clarendon Homes and had a clear goal he wanted to go head-to-head with the big names like G.J. Gardner. No mucking around. He had the experience. What he needed was the platform and presence to make it happen.

We pitched him a concept: build a brand from scratch. Luxury acreage homes. A tight geographic focus. And a simple, elegant message. The idea was to start lean. A basic logo, some renders, and a landing page. No massive budget. No display home. Just a digital setup and a belief that we could draw the right customers in with the right message.

He wasn’t totally sold.

He said to me, ‘I just don’t believe it’s going to work.’

“So I said, ‘Put your money where your mouth is and do it.’”

And we did. We built the brand, fronted the marketing, and launched it with Google Ads targeting acreage buyers looking for something a bit premium. Nothing fancy. Just sharp renders and a clear message of aspiration.

Then came the kicker we used what we call “strategic illusion”. We printed a few signs, stuck them on vacant land, snapped some pics and pushed it out on socials. Gave people the sense that this was a brand already in market, already moving. In reality, we’d just kicked it off.

It was engineered social proof.

“Fake it before you make it,” I said on the podcast.

But seriously, that is how that brand started.

Why share the story?

The reason this worked isn’t magic. It’s marketing plus trust. Daryl was a legit builder. He had a track record, and once we got leads in the door, he could convert them by building real trust and offering a quality product.

“You’ve just got to get some awareness with the clients and get a conversation,” I said. “As soon as you have that conversation, that’s where you build the trust.”

Then COVID hit. Everyone started fleeing to Queensland, looking for land, home offices, space. It was the perfect storm, and we were already set up with the brand, the systems, and the builder.

It raises a big question: are clients loyal to builder brands? Or just to whoever earns their trust first?

Are people brand loyal?

To the major ones like the Metricons and G.J.s, maybe. But for the smaller builders, it’s about that first contact, just getting in the conversation.

If you’re a smaller builder wondering how to grow, or thinking you need a huge budget to look credible, take this as proof that you don’t. What you need is:

• A solid builder with a good reputation
• Clean branding and an offer that makes sense
• A way to create conversations with your ideal customer

Avondale is now a household name in acreage circles, and it started as a landing page with no homes built under the new brand. That should tell you something.

We didn’t know if it would work. But we backed ourselves, kept it simple, and gave people a reason to reach out. It’s not about being flashy. It’s about showing up clearly and credibly and having the building chops to back it up when the phone rings.

There’s a lot more to the story too. Some cool things we did that others weren’t in the market and got us attention, and a name for doing things differently because we knew post the process of getting the phone to ring, the next BIG thing was trust. That was a wild time and I’m extremely grateful and proud of what we did.

So here’s the question what could happen if you backed your next big idea, even if it’s just a logo, a landing page, and a hunch?

If you’re interested in this concept, have a look at a couple of the articles we published over the weekend about knowing your customer and social proof.

Author: Aaron Ng

Aaron has worked for some of the nation’s largest developers and home builders in the marketing arena, before founding one of QLD’s largest construction focused marketing agencies. He is passionate about all elements of marketing and customer experience across the industry.