Oaks through the swinging wrought-iron gates at the entrance to the actual community. They were then able to see the golf course, clubhouse, exteriors of many of the homes, the 5,000-square-foot community center, swimming pool and lush landscaping — before many of the amenities were actually completed. The virtual tour also included an animated “room by room” walk-through of each home, including options, and a “fly-through” VMS of the community center’s interior. A Valuable Tool for Public Presentations The virtual tour also allowed us to share our community vision with all the parties involved with the project — not only prospects, but public officials and subcontractors, too. VMS showed everyone involved exactly what we were envisioning and left little room for misunderstanding or misinterpretation. While I have spent two or three hours at zoning board podiums during many a meeting explaining projects, the virtual model simulation cut my River Oaks presentation time down to 15 minutes and gave the board a clear picture of the scope of the project. Similarly, subcontractors were able to "see” the whole community and how their specific trade fit into the bigger picture. It also helped me more clearly point out what I needed them to do to help realize the finished product. If a picture is worth a thousand words, computer animation is worth a million words. Tying It All Together While in the process of producing the virtual reality program, we contracted a company that specializes in marketing seniors housing to develop a comprehensive marketing and media plan. They developed a plan, budget and timelines; helped us recruit a community lifestyle coordinator, our first point of contact for prospective buyers; and established our on-site information center. It didn’t take long before the information center and our virtual tour became a tourist destination. In fact, the virtual tour became so popular that we set viewing limits to guarantee that everyone had a chance to participate. With or without sales staff, visitors could view the presentation and then print out selected floor plans, elevations and other collateral information to create their own personalized brochure. We soon installed additional VMS kiosks in the builder’s sales office. Virtual Popularity Brings Success Armed with our virtual reality tour, a creative community outreach program and strong marketing collateral, we quickly generated interest in the project and offered preferred reservation agreements in mid-2002. By August 2003, we had approximately 290 people in the queue for selection of our 210 home sites. Because virtual reality tours are such a new concept in the seniors housing market, we didn’t know exactly what to expect. But we have been pleasantly surprised with the results and with our overall costs. Admittedly, VMS technology requires a substantial financial investment. Ultimately, it will save us money in other areas and we are already finding ways to cut costs without reducing our sales potential. For instance, where we had originally planned to create six models to showcase all our floor plans, because of the success of the virtual tour and the reservations it dictated, we were able to save by actually building only four. Before planning your marketing, consider using virtual reality to engage your prospects and educate others about your community. It’s a wise investment in your future success. This article appeared in the Fall 2003 issue of Seniors’ Housing News, a publication of the NAHB Seniors Housing Council. Dick Willhoit is the owner of Estrella Associates, Inc., a privately held California-based corporation specializing in land development, private account construction and construction management. His current project, River Oaks, is a 200-acre community with 481 residential units, an elementary school, RV/self-storage, neighborhood commercial center and a golf course. River Oaks won two Legacy 2000 Best in Planning “On the Boards” by the Home Builders Association of the Central Coast, which named Willhoit its Builder of the Year in 1996. For more information, e-mail Willhoit or call him at 805-238-1031. | 
One of the most daunting challenges of building an active adult community (or almost any community, for that matter) is marketing before the models or amenities have been built. In exploring ways to pre-sell or at least pre-reserve your home sites, consider using Virtual Model Simulations (VMS) or virtual reality programs. Animators can work with the builder/developer, civil engineer, architect and landscape architect to create a virtual tour of every aspect of your community. 