With the economy on a downward trajectory, resources are tighter than ever for clients and suppliers alike. With the clampdown on mortgage offers compounding the rising materials and labour costs property developers already face, it’s a good time to reassess spending priorities.

One thing is certain: now isn’t the time to compromise on the quality of marketing imagery. According to financial experts, the buoyant housing market looks set to take a downturn, so attracting new house buyers will most likely be harder than during the golden era of the post-lockdown years.

Deflect the effects of a housing market downturn with quality CGI that works with your budget

“The fall in mortgage lending points to a loss of momentum in the housing market, which boomed during the pandemic. Lloyds Banking Group Plc, the biggest UK mortgage lender, this week predicted house prices will grow just 1.8% this year and fall 1.4% in 2023.”

“While there are some expectations house prices will fall 4 per cent in 2023, others predict drops of up to 10 per cent by the end of 2024.”

“Mortgage approvals also fell in June, from 65,700 to 63,700, below the pre-pandemic yearly average, suggesting many homebuyers confronted with the cost-of-living crisis do not have sufficient credit quality to secure a mortgage.”

A no-nonsense approach to pricing your project

As a CGI supplier that has weathered several market crashes since we started in business, we are always careful to keep pace with changing market forces and make sure our products and services are aligned with what our clients need.

And what they don’t need. If resources are tight, so is time, and at Pixel we understand that you need answers and figures rather than cryptic solutions. While it’s difficult to price a job accurately without seeing the plans, we’re experts at what we do and can give a fair idea of what a project might cost based on what you have in mind. Unlike a lot of other suppliers, we’re happy to give ballpark figures over the phone.

We’re also one of very few suppliers with a price page, with examples to give you a better idea of what your project might cost. Our case studies aren’t just a collection of pretty pictures either. Each project has been chosen to show how we dealt with tricky issues across a wide range of project types, all with real-life budgets included, so you can see what other clients received for their money.

How we deliver a cost-effective CGI service

Key to our ethos is saving you money whenever we can, without you having to compromise on quality. We look at your development holistically: we’ll ask how you’re planning to market it, what its USPs are and what the barriers to selling might be, and we’ll always look carefully at your plans before suggesting the minimum number of CGIs needed for your core market to get a real feel for all your USPs.

Because we also produce brochures, we have a clear understanding of how your images will be used in context. Quite often clients come to us wanting more images than they really need. Image choice is one of our real strengths, and we’ll think outside the box to suggest images that do what they’re meant to do: sell your properties on time, even in a tight marketplace.

Case study: helping one client get much more for their money

Our client Gleeson Build & Develop originally wanted a kitchen shot to show the high ceilings in one of the flats. However, when we mocked this up as a white-block view, it became apparent that the room wouldn’t translate well to CG. The kitchen cupboards looked at odds with the high ceilings, so rather than being a selling point, they weren’t going to look good. The living room was also coming across as too small.

So rather than continue with it, we suggested showcasing a different flat, flat 4, and including a balcony scene as well, at dusk for that additional aspirational quality.

The resulting package was produced for the original budget. Being consultative at every stage is part of our production process, drawing on our experience to make sure you get the best possible combination of shots to do the job you need them to do.

Realistic processes, costs and timelines lead to cost-effective CGI

From the outset we’re clear about our costs, our processes and realistic timescales. We’ll always ask when you need your content and check our production schedule before we commit to delivering. It doesn’t help you to hear you’ll receive ten interior shots within ten days when that simply isn’t possible.

Styling is a key part of creating aspirational interior images that trigger your potential buyers’ subconscious buying reflexes, and it is unrealistic to expect ten spaces to be styled and created in such a time frame.

The outcome: a transparent and stress-free CGI service

At Pixel, we believe honest and effective communication is key to building the trust that cements a long-term working relationship. We’re not a one-trick pony. We take your deadlines seriously. We make our processes clear from the start, so you know how timelines are affected by your input, and we are clear about our pricing structure and what it includes.

Transparency in all these areas goes a long way to creating a stress-free service that gives you the time and freedom to concentrate on the other elements of your development, secure in the knowledge that the money you spend with us is doing the job it needs to, when you need it to.

For a free telephone consultation about your project, please call Olivia on 0161 641 9083.