One of the most fun things about my job at Marketri is that I get to research and test out new social media and marketing tools. What makes that process even better is when my research results in a discovery that either helps us achieve our goals internally, or that might help our clients to achieve their marketing goals. The only thing that tops this is when the tables are turned and the client tells me about a new tool! This is precisely what happened to me this week. I received an email from one of our clients letting me know about a new site called Houzz and telling me to give it a look. Needless to say, I jumped into detective mode and started looking into this site.
What is Houzz?
Houzz is Web site that brings together architects, designers, builders, contractors and the people who are interested in their services. It is essentially like Pinterest but strictly for home design. Houzz has been called the ?Wikipedia of interior and exterior design? by CNN and has one of the largest databases of home design ideas online. Houzz allows both consumers and building/design professionals to sign up and start sharing ideas and information.
After creating an account, users can browse tons of design ideas and high resolution photos by almost any imaginable category. Houzz gives you the option to view ideas by design style, space type, metro area and more. As you sift through the images you have the option to add photos to your own personalized ?ideabooks? with the simple click of a button. You can create multiple ideabooks to organize different design ideas, such as by design style or perhaps by ideas for a particular part of the house. During my experimentation I had a little too much fun dreaming about a huge new closet!
In addition to ideabooks, Houzz also gives users the option to upload their own photos, recommend photos to others and to participate in discussions. Users can filter by discussion topics and participate in the conversation. In this forum, people ask questions and weigh in on everything from the source of materials to specific design issues or inquiries. Needless to say, I quickly found this site just as addictive as the reviews said it was.
How do professionals benefit?
While I enjoyed testing out the features of Houzz from the consumer perspective, my purpose really was to understand how our clients ? professionals in the building and design industry- could benefit by using this site. What I found is that Houzz can be an excellent marketing tool for architects, designers, and home builders because it gives them another platform where they can found by prospects.
Like individuals using the site, professionals can create an account and share ideas. Professionals can fill out their profiles with information about their firm and a link to their Web site. They can also add photo albums of all of their projects to showcase the work that they do. This is a great way to communicate the style, quality and variety of work that your firm can offer.
These photo albums ultimately become the basis of users? ?ideabooks? and recommendations. Not only will users click on the photos to learn more about the company/individual behind the work, but they also have the ability to share their ?finds? with others either within?Houzz or on other social media sites like Facebook (that are linked to the Houzz site).? In addition to showcasing their work, professionals can also build credibility and thought leadership among their target audience, by searching for questions in the discussion area and answering those that they have experience with.
Not only am I looking forward to adding more photos to my own personal ideabooks on Houzz, but I am also interested to see the business results that this site can achieve for our clients once they establish their presence. Are you on Houzz? We would love you hear any business success stories that have come from this site!
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