Cover Story: Successful partnering helps housebuilders

Grain connect

Happy homeowners are connected to a speedy broadband service on moving day, thanks to Grain Connect, who understand the importance of broadband connectivity

Working in partnership with some of the UK’s biggest and best-known housebuilders, Grain is connecting new build homes across the country with one of the fastest full fibre broadband services available. A change in customer needs, with a greater reliance on broadband for work and entertainment, means the industry is more in demand than ever and Grain are geared to meet the needs of their clients at every turn. 

From Aberdeen to the south coast, Grain delivers a reliable service at unbeatable prices to both clients and homeowners alike. With some of the most advanced technology and Gigabit speeds, Grain has got everyone talking. So how does it work? Grain provides homeowners with a dedicated fibre path, meaning they benefit from a congestion free connection in their new build home.

For housebuilders, a dedicated Grain Project Manager ensures each home is connected and tested prior to Legal Completion, as well as providing great technical solutions, and a well communicated and cost-effective service. This ticks all the boxes for housebuilders, resulting in happy customers all round!

This is clear from the amazing feedback housebuilders have been receiving from customers. Savvy homeowners see broadband connection as a vital utility – it is no longer just water, gas or electric they need on day one. Buyers want to be able to move in and connect straight away, whether for setting up a home office, syncing their smart devices or ordering a well-deserved takeaway. In addition to these practicalities, there are also financial benefits. It has been widely reported that superfast fibre connections can add thousands of pounds to a homes value.

While the importance of a broadband connection is not news to housebuilders, the change in customer behaviour due to the pandemic has pushed the need to make broadband a greater priority – after all, happy customers and a hassle free customer experience are what it’s all about! 

Richard Robinson, Managing Director of Grain Connect, discusses the Grain service and what it means for housebuilders and their customers:

What makes Grain different?

“We believe in the customer journey. It’s about giving the customers a fast and reliable connection the moment they walk through the door, without the need to pick up the phone. Why burden home buyers even more when it’s already a very stressful time in their life?”

How does the partnership with housebuilders work?

“Developers are currently fearful of selling broadband as one of the sales points in their homes. You might ask why when it can add £30,000 to the value of a home. It’s simply because historically they’ve not been able to rely on it being ready when the customer moves in, but our partnership renews that confidence and helps the developer realise some of that value.” 

What is the offer for new homeowners?

“Most importantly new homeowners get a free, no obligation trial. After this, they have the option to stick with us and opt for one of our packages, all of which offer better speeds and reliability at unbeatable prices. It is a win for the customer and a win for the sales team selling the home.”

What response do you see from homeowners?

“The proof really is in the pudding, with about 80% of customers choosing to take our service after their free trial.” 

How are customer expectations changing?

“Life in lockdown has changed in many obvious ways, including working from home and home schooling. However the trends that haven’t changed is the increase in devices. We’ve seen nearly a  50% increase in the number of devices in each home and as more of these are connected, reliability becomes more important than ever.” 

Why is this important to housebuilders?

“When choosing who to use as your telecoms provider(s) make sure you are choosing one that enables the customers to have back up technology build into the infrastructure. This allows the customer to have a reliable internet connection delivered on time, allowing you to be able to use it as a sales pitch to housebuyers.

What feedback do you receive from housebuilders?

“The best feedback for us is continued support, every site we have ever worked on has resulted in us winning further work with that developer.”

 

 

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Media contact

Rebecca Morpeth Spayne,
Editor, Showhome Magazine

Tel: +44 (0) 1622 823 922
Email: editor@yourshow-home.com

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