Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, February 7, 1993 TAG: 9302080297
SECTION: HOMES PAGE: D-5 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: CHARLYNE H. McWILLIAMS STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
BOONE & CO. RETURNING TO AIR
One of the Roanoke Valley's largest real estate firms is launching another television show, a marketing tool that attempts to sell houses in prospective buyers' living rooms.Boone & Co. Realtors will begin airing its Sunday Homes Showcase next Sunday. It will broadcast at 11:30 a.m. on WDBJ-TV.
With interest rates as low as they are and the increase in buyer interest, it's time to get back into the television market, said Sue Gotwalt, Boone's vice president in charge of marketing.
"A younger generation of buyers uses television for education and entertainment," she said. "That's the medium they use, so we need to be there."
Boone quit airing a similar 3-year-old show in 1990 because of the recession, she said. Before going off the air, however, she said the agency's sales increased 15 percent to 20 percent during that time. Although she said it would be unfair to attribute the increase totally to the television venture, it helped.
The new show is being produced by Home Show Productions, an independent production company based in Milwaukee, Wis. Gotwalt said local photographers are being used for the material and the production company will compile the information and supply a hostess for the show.
Home Show Productions produces about 60 similar shows a week for realty companies across the country, she said. That's one reason Boone decided to use the company instead of producing the show itself.
The agency started work on reviving the television homes show last September, Gotwalt said.
Some of the research included timing it to avoid conflict with local church services. Gotwalt said Boone called several of the area's larger churches - including Baptist, Methodist and Roman Catholic congregations - to see if there was a conflict. She said the company found that many of the services wouldn't run concurrently with the 30-minute television show.
Boone's agents will buy spots to show homes they have listed and where open houses will be held later that same day, Gotwalt said. It's not only a great time to catch a possible buyer but to show the homes to other agents who might have interested clients.
Several local businesses, including Appalachian Power Co., Holdren's Inc., Moore's Lumber and Building Suppliers and Holiday Inn-Hotel Tanglewood, have bought 30-second advertising spots, which help finance the show. Gotwalt would not disclose the price for such spots, but she did say it cost $3,500 to $3,700 to produce each show.
After five months, Gotwalt said the agency will review the show's effectiveness and discuss its future. For now, the plan is to air the show through this year.