35 years on, my land project marketing approach hasn't changed

Some things never change, even when everything around us seems to.

We're constantly being told we are living through extraordinary times. Technology is moving faster than ever. There's an app for almost everything, and now an AI agent waiting to do the rest.

All of that is true. But when I think about the way people make big decisions, I'm not sure the fundamentals have changed nearly as much as we think.

About 35 years ago I was working on a land estate. Until then, much of my job involved mowing blocks, replacing pegs and putting up lot signs. Then one weekend I was told to put on a jacket and tie and sit in the sales office.

The first couple walked in at about 10 o'clock on a bright Saturday morning. Within a few minutes, two things became obvious. They had no idea how the process of buying land and building a home worked. And neither did I.

So rather than pretend I had all the answers, I told them we'd work through it together.

There were phone calls to other people in the sales team, calls to local builders, bits of information being pulled together and, eventually, I drew them a basic flow chart showing what happened from the holding deposit through to contracts, finance, building and settlement.

It wasn't sophisticated, but they understood it. By the end, they were ready to pay a holding deposit.

I remember being surprised by that. It was a lot of money and a big decision, so I told them to go home and think about it. I'd hold the block overnight. If they still wanted it the next day, they could come back.

They did. That experience stayed with me.

Buyers don't really want to be sold. They want to understand what they are doing.

They want someone to make the process clearer, remove the confusion and help them work out whether the decision is right for them.

Thirty-five years later, that remains the basis of how I think about selling property.

The technology is better. The data automation is better. Communication is faster. AI will make many parts of the process easier again.

But none of that replaces the basic job. Help people understand a complex decision. Make the complex simple, and the simple compelling.

Do that well, and the sale usually follows.

Christopher Lowry is the founder and managing director of Urban. The views expressed are his own.