May 12, 2023

Real Estate

Generation Z, also known as the Digital Generation, consists of those born between 1997 and 2012. This generation is skeptical about taking the leap into first-time home ownership, and they are discouraged by the challenging feeling of figuring out how to buy their first home. In fact, the percentage of Gen Z that feel they will never be able to purchase a home on their own has increased from 27% in 2019 to over 33% of the generation’s population today. 

Has the American Dream become a Pipe Dream? Are the roadblocks to home ownership real or perceived? Are they weighing all the long-term benefits of home ownership? Let’s take a look at this conundrum, including where we can be proactive from a marketing perspective to help this generation see the opportunity to embark on this rite of passage into adulthood.

Perceived obstacles Gen Z faces

Right now, the dream of home ownership is clouded by so many factors that the future seems dismal for this digital generation. Everything from crushing student loans to rising interest rates and job insecurity all play a role in this recoil from a first-time home purchase. According to the National Association of Realtors (NAR), the average age of first-time home buyers is now 36 years old, up from 33 years old just last year, adding even more time before Gen Z is in the average home buying years. According to a Freddie Mac survey in November of 2022, Gen Z adults identified the following as the top five hurdles to homeownership:

chart

Another obstacle in the way of home-buying decisions for Gen Z is their anxiety about making large purchases. They remember what happened during the recession and the pain felt by so many families as they lost their jobs and homes. Although this is a lasting image, there is a silver lining to this recollection.  While some were affected directly by the recession, they did learn from those whose parents were prepared for the downturn and were good financial stewards, capable of navigating through it. Keeping the hope alive that even though tough times might come again, there is a way to pass through them.

For Gen Z, who were in college or graduated during the COVID-19 pandemic, there is a prolonged period of living at home. The extension of living under their parent’s roofs delayed this significant milestone even further, making it more difficult to achieve. This had an impact on their readiness and timing to purchase their first home.

The competitiveness of home buying in the past 18 months has caused a lot of Gen Z to rethink their first-time purchase. High prices, all-cash offers, over-bidding, and “as-is/no inspection” purchases all played a role in the downturn of homebuying activity.

These roadblocks have real stopping power which led to the market responding in ways to help this generation, and others bridge the gap between first-time home buying and first-time home feeling. As a result, we are seeing an increase in build-to-rent options from developers, providing a gap fill between true ownership and the feeling of ownership. We also see first-time buyers investing in smaller, outer market homes, and keeping them for rental properties or second homes.

This perspective would not be complete without the recognition that technology has changed the home-buying game for Gen Z in a material way. This digital generation looks to technology first for solutions and options, which is no different when buying a home. The ability to search, identify, walk, and purchase a home without ever having set foot inside the door is here and Gen Z has embraced it. YouTube and other social platforms have demystified the home-buying process to a large degree.  This includes step-by-step instructions available on our smartphones, with links to the tools to make it happen. Ironically, however, with all this technology at their disposal, one area of hands-on, in-person interaction which remains important includes the use of a realtor to help with the final execution of the purchase.

Of course, technology includes AI applications and other capabilities. We’ve highlighted a few AI tools here real estate marketers  should all be aware of.

  1. Zillow 3D Home: Allows realtors to create virtual tours of properties using Ai-generated 3D models. This tool allows you to create a 3D model of the property and make it available for the clients to walk through the property virtually.
  1. Homie: An Ai-powered virtual home-buying assistant. This tool uses natural language processing and machine learning to communicate with buyers, answer their questions, and assist them through the home-buying process.
  2. Hyro: Conversational AI that provides an around-the-clock agent to step in whenever your agents can’t, capturing every lead from call centers, SMS and web-based inquiries.

For a more comprehensive dive into AI in Real Estate, check out this article from Maverick: Unlock the Power of AI Tools to Boost Real Estate Marketing.

It is clear, the market has met Gen Z where they are with a variety of options to help usher this digital generation calmly into first-time home ownership. Home builders will continue to include affordable housing in their portfolios, Zillow and Redfin are making it easy for Gen Z to browse homes from their couches, and we, as marketers, can help too. Here are a few strategies to consider when marketing real estate to Gen Z.

Leveraging technology

  • AI
  • Virtual tours

Educational and empathetic communication

  • Trustworthy messaging
  • Emotional aspects of homeownership

Demystifying homeownership

  • Industry is cyclical
  • First home isn’t forever home

In the end, Gen Z will continue to age, and as they do, we will be right alongside them to understand how they are feeling about their first-time home purchase to ensure we are prepared to intersect with them along their future buying journey. At Schaefer, our focus on the Real Estate development market means we stay up to the minute on not only the realities of the market but importantly the mindset of the home buyer. We understand how to best develop your brand, tell your story, and, most importantly, how, and where to intersect with homebuyers of all ages to drive action.

Podimetrics had a strong story to tell
— and a new brand to build

Podimetrics Brand Logos

Situation

Diabetes is one of the top health issues in the United States. In fact, costs for diabetes care are more than 400% higher than cancer. One of the leading drivers of that cost is amputation resulting from Diabetic Foot Ulcers (DFUs), which results in a limb being amputated every four minutes due to diabetes.

To combat this, Podimetrics developed a web-enabled, remote temperature monitoring system designed to identify the risk of DFUs before symptoms are visibly present — and drive significant cost savings by avoiding costly amputations.

Schaefer took the reins on translating this innovative system into a compelling narrative that would reach key audiences and encourage payor adoption.

Goals: 

  • Support the market launch of a new, breakthrough product
  • Differentiate Podimetrics from competing solutions
  • Explain the system and its benefits to payors and HCPs
  • Support rollout to a low-tech patient base with clear, user-friendly materials
Podimetrics Materials

Strategy

Our team was tasked with creating a new brand and executing multi-channel communications to differentiate Podimetrics and drive sales conversations.

To reach the various audiences, we decided that two specific objectives must be achieved: First, the brand story must be humanized and brought to life in a manner that would resonate with payors, physicians and patients. Second, communications and user pathways should be simplified, to ensure that the relevant messages were reaching each audience and business objectives were being reached.

Podimetrics Website Mockup

Solution

Viewing Podimetrics’ system as something akin to a “canary in the coalmine,” Schaefer used this metaphor to create a consistent brand story that clearly conveyed the benefits of early detection — including the estimate that more than 70% of diabetic foot amputations could be prevented through early detection.

From there, Schaefer conducted a User Experience audit to find opportunities to improve communication throughout the customer journey. We then launched a full suite of materials to support the sales team, including an updated website, product videos, stationary package, and other sales support materials.

For end users, Schaefer also created product packaging that was as user-friendly as the device itself. Knowing the patient profile was less tech-savvy, we scrutinized every aspect of packaging and product setup to ensure everything remained simple, intuitive and frictionless.

Podimetrics Device

Results

Schaefer effectively positioned Podimetrics as a new, holistic system that uncovers and prevents extremity complications from diabetes. This differentiation is allowing Podimetrics to compete for significant national payor contracts, as well as establish notable partnerships with strategic allies such as the American Diabetes Association.

Summary

For diabetic foot wounds, early detection is essential for avoiding amputation and reducing costs. The “canary in a coalmine” solution helped humanize and simplify a complex technology and gave both internal and external audiences a better understanding of its purpose and its benefit. Today, a growing number of payors, physicians and patients are becoming aware of the potential benefit of the Podimetrics system.

Podimetrics Logo

Situation: City branding is important

Famous for its trailblazing history, Fort Worth still embraces its reputation as a “City of Opportunity.” Quickly becoming an epicenter of growth and innovation, Fort Worth offers an inviting community, talented workforce, and incredibly low cost of living, attracting people and corporations from all over the world looking to move or expand into one of the nation’s fastest-growing cities.  

Fort Worth Economic Development Campaign Branding

The goal of every city on the rise is to attract new business and talent while strengthening the industries already established. To accomplish that, the City of Fort Worth Economic Development team selected Schaefer as the agency of record for a three-year partnership to create the city’s first-ever economic development and business attraction initiative. The partnership is part of the city’s five-year strategic plan and plays a key role in positioning Fort Worth as a place of purpose where businesses and people can leverage the city’s incredible potential to create the future they want to see. 

Goals: 

  • Establish a story that connects Fort Worth’s heritage with its future
  • Develop a multi-phase, multi-year campaign to drive awareness and attract new business
  • Highlight Fort Worth’s economic incentives and competitive edge in  business, culture and community
  • Reach key business decision-makers to advance economic development
  • Elevate Fort Worth on a national and international stage
  • Foster collaborative conversations between key stakeholders in the public and private sector

We started with a question: what makes Fort Worth and its people so unique? The answer was simple. A pioneering spirit that dated back to the 1800s and still stood strong today. As the first-ever economic development campaign for the city, Schaefer was in a unique position to lead strategy from inception. 

Where Innovation Begins

We recognized the importance of storytelling in establishing the city’s position in the eyes of our target audiences. A good story would amplify the message, build credibility, create a strong sense of community and offer nuggets of authenticity and purpose that truly make Fort Worth stand out. 

Known as the point where the west begins, Fort Worth has always promised possibility, innovation and prosperity. Unlike some of the larger, competitive cities, opportunity isn’t a new promise, it’s woven into the very fabric of Fort Worth. To communicate that, we built messaging around the idea that no matter what you’re looking for — relocation, expansion, opportunity  – it can successfully begin in Fort Worth. 

Building equity through identity

In order to build equity, Fort Worth Economic Development first needed an identity. We leveraged their voice, tone and values to create an independent identity that was flexible enough to work alongside the city’s existing branding, and strong enough to communicate the impact of their initiatives.

City of Fort Worth Inner/Outer Market

Schaefer then crafted a multi-faceted campaign that unified strategy, creative and media to promote Fort Worth’s business advantages among corporate decision-makers, site selection consultants and local business owners. The campaign further cemented Fort Worth as a city of growth and opportunity, while highlighting its competitive edge as a leader in innovation who works hard to meet the needs of the businesses who chose Fort Worth. 

City of Fort Worth Digital Banners
City of Fort Worth Interactive and Print

Solution: Fueling growth and connections online

Revamping the website to reflect the new brand campaign was vital to communicate key messaging. As the central platform that business leaders, stakeholders and prospective residents visit to find relevant information about the city, the website confirmed Fort Worth’s proven economic landscape with tangible proof points our audience would find attractive. 

With this in mind, we included demographics, workforce statistics and other data points that leverage Fort Worth’s resources against competitor cities. A strategic mix of traditional and digital media, including paid search targeted prospects helped drive traffic back to the website. Knowing our target audience sets and strategically placing ads in places they frequented (in person and online) expanded Fort Worth’s presence on the list of key business destinations in the US. 

After 8 months in market, our team identified a list of top engaged companies. The insights we gathered included a list of prospects from target industry sectors with the potential to increase the size of the labor force and generate millions in economic output for the city of Fort Worth. These key insights have helped us to strengthen our marketing approach in more specifically targeting like prospects.

Results:

FW Economic Development Heat Map

During the first 8 months of the campaign, we created an anchor site that served multiple economic development organizations with one source. 

  • 88% of total site traffic driven by paid media
    • 44% derived from prospecting emails delivered to corporate decision-makers, site selection consultants and other key decision makers in select target outer markets
  • 98% increase in new site traffic from key markets and industries
    • 55K new visitors 
    • Significant engagement achieved in Los Angeles, Chicago and Raleigh-Durham markets, which were key target markets within the initiative
  • As a result of this increase in traffic to our website, Fort Worth continues to receive organic recognition as a top place in the U.S. to start a business. This is a direct result of the growth in widespread awareness for Fort Worth as a great place to live, work and do business. 

By the end of Year 1, we developed strategic partnerships with key economic development influencers in the region and positively impacted corporate relocation and expansion for the city of Fort Worth, drawing business from two key industries — Aerospace and Defense, and Mobility Innovation.

Northpointe is a new master-planned community by Lennar that offers young families an ideal place to call home. Before opening to homebuyers, we needed to build the Northpointe brand to engage a wide audience and drive home that master-planned communities provide a practical and enriching lifestyle for young families at an unmatched value. 

Understanding Northpointe’s Local Competition

Before offering any strategic recommendations, our team performed an in-depth competitive analysis to better understand the local market and isolate any opportunities for competitive differentiation. One specific challenge was that some of Northpointe’s competitors used the word 

“North” in their brand name, which required us to offer direction that differentiated the Northpointe brand through visuals and copy. 

Finding Brand Differentiation

Since Northpointe was in the pre-construction phase, we had to develop the brand from the ground up, setting the tone for the community to offer potential homebuyers a sense of home and depict a reliable place where friends and family can gather and enjoy each other and the community. Furthermore, we needed to create a flexible set of brand assets that the Northpointe team could leverage internally and in future marketing campaigns.

Our discovery process revealed that Northpointe is incredibly accessible and cost-effective, and an excellent option for young families seeking to buy their first home. More than that, Northpointe offers residents fantastic amenities without compromising on an excellent price point. So, we leaned into creating an attainable, yet elevated brand that appealed to people who are ready to put down roots.

Building a Fluid Creative Platform

The landscape was an important part of how the community was planned, so we tethered the brand story to the scenic views and natural beauty surrounding the area. We positioned Northpointe as the attainable, unique option and highlighted the scenic nature surrounding the community to illustrate its natural beauty and striking topography that envelopes the community.

The brand mark is quiet and subtle and the arrow above the “N” signifies the true North where home lies. The color palette is natural, but vibrant and balances the reserved nature of the brand mark.

Our tagline “When home calls, head North” is emotive, aspirational and strong, which further elevates the subdued nature of the brand mark. It also illustrates the beauty of home and touches on the natural surroundings that make Northpointe such a valuable place to live.

The stylistic complements we developed for the brand helped create a sense of place that can be used throughout the community. These pieces will weave the community together and keep the feel built within the brand alive throughout.

Results

  • Crafted a brand that will attract and engage new homebuyers
  • Created a flexible brand that is simple and seamless for Northpointe’s internal team to utilize 
  • Extended the brand through community elements like trail-markers, landmarks and wayfinding solutions 

With new leadership in place the Fort Worth Chamber sought to revitalize the market’s perception within the Fort Worth business community and beyond. Schaefer was selected as their agency partner to lead them in developing and communicating the Chamber’s renewed energy and focus. The primary strategic imperatives were to both sustain the support of local businesses, while also expanding the Chamber’s economic development efforts beyond Fort Worth.

A Refreshed Position focused on New Energy, New Business

Each of our brand initiatives begins with a critical analysis of an organization’s strengths, weaknesses, and differentiators. For the Fort Worth Chamber, we identified the opportunity to capitalize on the legacy of the organization while creating a more defined and contemporary position that was current with today’s business climate. For the refresh, we saw an opportunity to stay true to who we are as a city and people, and root the Chamber’s new identity in the trailblazing spirit that has always defined Fort Worth. 

We needed to reposition the Fort Worth Chamber from the outdated organization many perceived it to be to the vibrant connector, advocate and driver of economic development they are today. Tapping into the exuberant energy of the Chamber’s new leadership, we focused on positioning the brand as an energetic organization that provides new business opportunities to trailblazers and entrepreneurs alike.

A Trailblazing Identity

Through our archetyping process, the agency established the organization as a Hero persona, defined by strength, courage, commitment, and a drive to move things forward. Using the Hero archetype as a foundation, our creative team explored a multitude of solutions for the new Chamber brand. In keeping with our process of immersion, the team explored other related and competitive organizational brands, the history of Fort Worth and the Chamber to inspire the recommended design solutions.

A key objective in creating the new brand identity was to build a flexible system that could be used across platforms and multiple team members. The new identity has been seamlessly incorporated into the marketing efforts of the Chamber’s internal team and provides a malleable brand kit that they can use for years to come.

Check out our case study to learn more about the refreshed Fort Worth Chamber of Commerce identity.

Introducing The New Frontier of Business in Fort Worth

To introduce the refreshed and refocused Fort Worth Chamber, we leveraged the creativity of the new brand identity and launched the “This is the New Frontier” campaign. The campaign was a fresh way to communicate the future of the Chamber and its role in Fort Worth’s economic development to existing members and new business prospects. We wanted to create a campaign that was uniquely Fort Worth and nodded to the legacy and history of the Chamber, while highlighting the exciting new opportunities that our city offers moving into the future.

To focus on the energy of the new Chamber, we captured authentic video footage and photography using real Chamber members. The tone of the assets are impactful, positive and motivational and highlights the frontier of the future on which the Chamber sits and actively cultivates. The final campaign is aspirational and confident and communicates that Fort Worth is a place where people roll up their sleeves and get to work. To launch the campaign, we used a targeted media strategy consisting of automated direct email, paid social, paid search and community influencers leveraging the rich assets we captured in the video production and photo shoot.

Results:

This campaign aimed at promoting the Fort Worth Chamber’s launch into the regional market and their renewed emphasis on driving and supporting business growth in the city. It led to an  increase in lead generation, memberships and interest in partnerships with the Chamber. 

  • 1.9 Million Media Impressions
    • 5.3K Paid Search
    • 246.6K Paid Social
    • 1.2M Display
    • 396.5K External Email 
  • Web Traffic Growth 
    • 46% Increase in Direct Traffic
    • 64% Increase in User Engagement 
    • 19.5% CTR from Paid Search – 5x the industry average 
  • 230 Form Fills in 74 Days
    • 66% Increase in Contact Us Submission 
    • 34% Increase in Membership Inquiries

Schaefer Advertising is a valued strategic partner of the Fort Worth Chamber of Commerce. When we embarked on a complete overhaul of our brand, they provided subject matter expertise, thought leadership, and made the process an enjoyable one – no small feat! I would highly recommend Ken, Sara and the entire Schaefer team for any organization whose stakeholders demand excellence and a legacy brand in the Fort Worth community.

– Katie Douglass, EVP, Marketing

Situation

Mobility and innovation districts are places where pioneers make critical advancements in logistics and supply chain modernization. It’s also a place where technology breakthroughs are developed that can affect billions of people. They are critical to advancing how consumer and commercial operations move forward to improve lives everywhere. The challenge with innovation districts is communicating a tangible concept that resonates with valuable audiences and encourages entrepreneurs, scientists and business leaders to utilize the district’s capability.

We partnered with the AllianceTexas Mobility Innovation Zone to create a flexible identity package that communicates all the intangible benefits this testing ecosystem can provide mobility visionaries and their teams.

Making Intangible Value Tangible

We partnered with the MIZ team and entered into extensive discovery sessions to better understand where MIZ stands in the market and how we can highlight their value proposition and boost awareness of the one-of-a-kind opportunity that the MIZ offers mobility innovators. In marketing the MIZ, our first charge was to articulate the opportunity that the MIZ offers to technology innovators by creating a vision for something that did not yet exist.

MIZ Design System

Through this discovery the Schaefer team identified that the AllianceTexas MIZ was a genuinely unique blend of people, places and things, structured in a manner unlike any other innovation zones. We leveraged this differentiation into a defining position and archetype to inform the subsequent brand identity and campaign creative development. This allowed us to tangibly define the value that the MIZ brings to entrepreneurs and innovators that elect to use their district and capabilities. Ultimately, this helps the MIZ advocate for new businesses and create long term partnerships with innovative companies that bring jobs to North Texas and innovation to the mobility industry. 

Messaging Full-Scale Innovation

We crafted “Innovation from the Ground Up” as a key message to clearly position the opportunity of the innovation zone. It nods to the full-scale capabilities of the MIZ and communicates it as a place where mobility innovators can push the boundaries of now to discover what’s next and do it all—ideation to implementation—at the MIZ.

Deploying a Detailed Digital Activation

We launched the updated identity with the “Innovation from the Ground Up” campaign, which introduced the MIZ as the premier, pioneering testing, scaling and commercialization ecosystem. The campaign solved three key communications requirements: promoting the MIZ brand, communicating the surface capabilities, and promoting the airspace utility. This reflects the total MIZ ecosystem and communicates it as a flexible, utilitarian space that is open for business across the mobility industry. 

We developed a multichannel digital marketing plan to launch the “Innovation from the Ground Up” campaign, utilizing paid media, native and sponsored content, email drip campaign and display banners. For paid ad placements, we strategically chose publications that resonated with our target audiences in the logistics, aviation and entrepreneurship industries. The campaign also engaged prospects directly through a targeted email campaign, which encouraged website form fills to contact the MIZ to use their testing ecosystem.  Ultimately, the digital strategy is successfully creating extensive brand awareness and driving both engagement and conversions from high value prospects which has yielded new business partnerships for the MIZ.

Early Results:

  • 300% increase in form fills MoM since beginning of campaign
  • 82% increase in Contact Us form fills
  • Display impressions increased nearly 200% MoM resulting in 141% more clicks
  • 34% increase in new website users
  • Improved brand exposure and market saturation

Challenge:

M. Kangerga & Bro Management (MKB) is a commercial real estate investment company that focuses on self-storage opportunities. The family-owned business has been around for more than 100 years—historic, yet brandless in their industry. To strike the right note, Schaefer partnered with MKB to develop their brand identity and expand brand visibility and credibility as the company sought investment partners.

Working Forward

The purpose of the MKB rebrand was to modernize the brand tone and visual aesthetics to not just live on, but inspire confidence and empower decisions among investors and new business leads. As the company expanded relationships with third-party investors, they needed a brand identity that leveraged their heritage into an authentic look with a very updated, polished feeling. 

Goals:

  • Capture history and legacy in new brand identity
  • Create a presence online to establish credibility and appeal to new investors
  • Create new marketing materials for investor pitches 

A Nod to the Past, Present and Future

Stylistically, we wanted the new creative platform to pull through the heritage of the brand, but not feel old. We created a mark that nods to MKB’s roots, but also reflects where they are right now and where their company is heading. The primary logo has a quiet confidence, and the typeface’s nuanced letterforms illustrates the imperfections – but staying power – of carving into stone, which is a nod to the company’s impressive history.

The typography we chose is based on Jandus, which leverages strong architectural characters, friendly rounded corners and classic simplicity that can stand the test of time, just like MKB.

We selected a minimal color palette of dark charcoal and muted gold and cream, which represent the history and tradition that serve as the very foundation for MKB’s success, while also indicating their steadfastness and lasting nature. These colors work together to communicate that MKB is a trusted leader in commercial property investment and that their long history is full of decades of success.

Results

  • Cohesive brand development       
  • Logo recommendations and
  • Color palette, font solutions
  • Complementary stylistic assets
  • Brand standards
  • Web design
  • Narrative + messaging

When branding a company, it’s important to thoroughly understand the company’s principles and how they want to be known in the hearts and minds of their prospects. For MKB, we created a comprehensive brand identity that captures the history of over 100 years of successful business ventures and indicates that the brand will be around for many more fruitful years to come. 

January 20, 2021

Blazing the trail

Challenge

The Fort Worth Chamber of Commerce has served the business community within the Fort Worth area since the late 1800s, playing a pivotal role in nearly every major milestone that has occurred in the city. Moving into 2020, the Chamber’s CEO of over 30 years retired, opening the door for a new, visionary leadership team to continue the Chamber’s momentum in driving forward the success and growth of Fort Worth business.

Opportunity

The emerging Chamber team developed a specific vision and strategic plan to capture and sustain growth for the City of Fort Worth, serving as both the champion for existing businesses while executing aggressive economic development efforts. Critical to the success of this plan was to reintroduce the Chamber to our business community, influencers, and new prospects in a manner that would enlighten them to the value of the city and engage them with the Chamber. To accomplish this successfully, the Chamber team partnered with Schaefer Advertising to refine the communications platform and brand identity.

Approach

Each of our brand initiatives begins with a critical analysis of an organization’s strengths, weaknesses, and differentiators. We immerse ourselves in the vision of the company, including all marketing and business objectives. With the FW Chamber, we identified the opportunity to capitalize on the legacy of the organization while creating a more defined and contemporary position that was current with today’s business climate. Through the development of a Brand Archetype, coupled with a defined brand position and targeted key messages, we created a communications platform that the Chamber can use in their marketing efforts moving forward. This platform also fully informed the creative development of a new brand identity.

A Heroic New Mark

Our exploration process revealed that the Chamber was defined as a Hero archetype, a persona defined by strength, courage, commitment, and a drive to move things forward. Taking direction from that archetype, our creative team explored a multitude of solutions for the new Chamber brand. In keeping with our process of immersion, the team explored other related and competitive organizational brands, the history of Fort Worth, and the Chamber to inspire the recommended design solutions.

The resulting mark is simple, bold, and includes a star as a subtle nod to a boot spur and a connection to the prior iteration of their logo. The new identity evolves their brand to better represent the community it serves and the institutions it champions.

When we took ownership of Lilyana marketing, the community needed a brand that better connected homebuyers to the true joys of living in this community.

Honing in on Key Differentiators

This community is far from cookie-cutter, so it only made sense to highlight the factors that make it stand out in a cluttered and crowded market. For Lilyana, it’s the conveniences and lifestyle that make it a truly special place to call home. With more than 50-acres of green space, the community is packed with natural amenities, numerous parks and things for homeowners to do outdoors. All of which keep the community and people connected. 

A Refocused Brand Position

Lilyana is located in Celina, a peaceful, up-and-coming town remote enough to harbor tranquility and close enough to Frisco to take advantage of its entertainment, energy and everything it has to offer. When we began to evolve the brand position, we pulled the thread of accessible tranquility to show prospective homebuyers that it is possible to have it all when you live at Lilyana. 

Communicating Joy and Tranquility 

We needed a way to portray the very real, and often intangible, qualities that make this community so special. By incorporating bubbles as a visual element, we were able to communicate the true value of a Hillwood community—connection, comfort and an ethos rooted in community. All while positioning Lilyana as a place to pause and enjoy the moment.

In addition to visually refreshing the brand, we also revitalized the brand language to communicate joy in the Lilyana lifestyle. “A place to embrace life’s moments” communicates that Lilyana is a community for people to slow down and enjoy their lives – right here, right now.

Building a comprehensive brand story gives real estate brands more space to have meaningful conversations with home buyers. Developing Lilyana’s position in a cluttered and competitive space helped the brand stand out, and ultimately led to more home sales.

Let’s start by getting to know you a little better. Tell us about yourself.

I was born and raised in Fort Worth, and the only time I’ve left here for an extended period of time was when I went to Austin for school for four years. I’ve always loved living here, and I really enjoyed visiting Fort Worth when I was in school because it seems like every few months Fort Worth is growing and changing. 

I have one sibling, a younger brother, and he goes to UT as well – we come from a big Longhorn family. Both of my parents went to UT, some of my grandparents, tons of my cousins, aunts and uncles went there, too.

I love Texas sports – I grew up playing softball and field hockey, which I played from seventh grade into high school. My current dog is named Dak – after Dak Prescott – and my last dog’s name was Romo – after the other Cowboys’ quarterback.

What’s something you love to do?

I love to travel, but it’s obviously been a tough year for the travel industry. My goal pre-covid was to visit a new place every single year. I’ve been to a chunk of cool places out of the country, but I’d like to explore more US cities. 

What’s your favorite place?

I really like the beach, but I don’t love the ocean. I like the sand, and I don’t mind boats, but I’d rather enjoy the ocean from a comfortable distance. I also really like the mountains – I love Colorado for how diverse it is; a lot of hiking, biking and skiing in Colorado.

 What do you love about the job?

I just love the spontaneity and the constant changes that advertising has. There’s always new projects and the space is constantly evolving. I don’t think we’ll ever reach a stage where advertising is mundane or boring.

If you could do anything besides what you are doing now, what would you do professionally?

I would own a restaurant and/or write a cookbook. 

What is the last thing you binge-watched?

Greys Anatomy, hands-down. There are rumors that it’s the last season, and I would be crushed. Although, they’ve gone on for a while, so they’re running out of storylines. I just hope that they end it on a high note.

What’s your favorite book?

Favorite book is American Royals, and it’s about what it would be like to have a royal family in America. It’s fiction, but it’s interesting and entertaining. I’ve always been fascinated with the royal family; there’s so much legacy there.

If you could live in any sitcom, which would it be?

I would probably say The Office because it’s such a classic. When you don’t know what to watch, just put it on. It’s a feel-good, funny show and the characters just can’t be beaten.

If you had to eat one thing for the rest of your life, what would it be?

Sushi. I can go into a sushi restaurant and enjoy anything on the menu. 

What’s your favorite children’s story?

The Olivia books by Ian Falconer. Olivia is a pig, and her professions and adventures change every book – in one book she’s a pilot, another book she’s a scientist, and in another she’s helping with Christmas. I just love those books. My middle name is also Olivia, so I really connected with that series early on.

If you had an extra hour of free time every day, what would you spend it doing?

I would put an extra hour into the morning and spend it having coffee. I’m so much more productive in the morning; I’d add an hour and just spend it working and drinking coffee. 

Any words of advice?

Wake up every day and choose to be happy. I think it’s definitely a choice, and it can be easy to let things get to you and stray away from that. But, choosing to be happy is such a key to being successful and enjoying your life, which is why we’re all here. 

Why Schaefer?

As a person who has grown up in Fort Worth, working at Schaefer has always been a goal of mine. It was a familiar place when I was in high school and people from Schaefer came into our school to speak about advertising and the industry, and it was always attractive to me that they were invested in the people of Fort Worth. I also love that Schaefer invests in the people that work here: we’re invested in the numerical growth of the agency, but we’re also really focused on growing the individual and improving their strengths and making them a more capable person. I love that the people here genuinely care about each other.

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