- Details
- Category: Properties
- 27 May 2014
- Written by Amor Maclang
HONESTLY speaking, I feel like I occupy sort of a strange niche in the world. I am a marketing communications specialist and have spent quite a number of years helping No. 1 and 2 brands across various segments establish viable business models.
At the same time, I am also somebody who helps develop businesses—property development included—from the ground up. And it’s because of that, that I see the world from two different directions. You might not think these worlds are very divergent from each other but in actual practice, the way marketing people think and the way that business development people think are very different. For example, let’s look at a big, looming, hairy issue coming up, which is the Asean Economic Community (AEC).
The year 2015 is slowly shaping to become a year of milestones for Asean countries, as we formally await the realization of the AEC. This is anchored on the provisions and policies set by Asean member-countries as one, unified regional economic bloc. Now we all know that the Asean Free Trade Area (Afta) is supposed to be a great boon to the regional economy because it’s going to liberalize trade by reducing taxes and tariffs. But like most blessings, this one is actually mixed because some of our most promising industries are just not geared for regional competition.
A couple of months back, I actually discussed the implications of Afta to the Philippines based on a number of disciplines. Once the AEC formally takes effect, there will be a more liberalized trading among the Asean countries—Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. Such a development easily creates a vast economic market composed of 600 million people, which accounts for at least 8 percent of the global population, spread across 4.6 million square meters of prime real estate. This will be a direct result of the removal of both tariff and non-tariff barriers on both goods and services among the member nations, and is expected to facilitate the creation of deeper, better economic relationships with our partners in the region.
Aside from this, local developers will also get a more favorable access to a bigger resource—the regional workforce—that is eyed to play a significant role in fueling a stronger exchange of best industry practices and ideas among the AEC participants. There will also be a greater demand for skilled laborers to help the local property sector sustain the increased level of property development.
Cooperation over competition
Some property developers often find themselves intently studying the marketing strategies of their competitors, adapting the foundations of these strategies, and basically putting their own spin into what has actually been done.
When engaging in the business of property development, the traditional mindset has been to battle against competitors and engage them in all-out war. This way of thinking has been a cornerstone of capitalism and economics for so long that to think otherwise would be close to sacrilegious. However, this is a different time and what passed off as gospel in the past needs to be reassessed. In an increasingly global real-estate market with open borders and lowered tariffs, engaging in direct competition with foreign players might not be the most ideal scenario for any Filipino developer.
This particular thrust has been one of the key insights that we have been sharing to our real-estate clients—and to other brands from other fields, as well—as we help them prepare for the Asean integration. According to Yayu Javier, current president of the Philippine Marketing Association (PMA), what people need to understand about the Asean integration is that it seeks to “bring together the best of each country, its people, resources, companies, and make the Asean region more globally competitive…bringing together different players to work as one, and create a competitive offering to the global market.”
One thing we can also expect from the entry of other regional players can be the sudden surge in construction activity. With more industry players carrying more diverse concepts, we might see a host of mixed-use residential districts, retail, commercial and office hubs, and key infrastructures—airports, sea ports and many others more—racing to dot the skyline all at the same time. Also, there will be a significantly higher rate of consumer spending given the huge inflow of goods and services. This will then drive the development of more lifestyle-centric developments, such as malls, retail complexes and properties anchored on tourism, across the archipelago.
The impact of marketing
The role of marketing here is primarily focused on how the concepts and property developments can be best appreciated by the market.
Yes, one particular project can be appreciated because, say, for example, it is affordable, but it can also be appreciated because it speaks of the values that genuinely reflect the developer’s identity. Maybe also because it’s “packaged” differently. Or because the overall feel appeals to the design sensibilities of the market they serve. Or, maybe because of the simple reason that it’s classier. There are so many ways you can appreciate a development but what’s important is it all ties back to what you stand for.
The only message I would like to share is this: If we can teach our market to appreciate developments that truly speak of our values as Filipinos, as stewards of Mother Nature, as people who try to promote elements of sustainability in every way we can, then maybe we can teach the rest of the world to appreciate it, too. Before we open our gates to the rest of the Asean, and before you think you have to duplicate the sins of our neighbors in order to compete with them, maybe you should consider that we can teach people to appreciate and nurture the elements that make us who we are.
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