Mount Holly, NJ – January 3, 2011: With year-end sales results complete, more home builders selected MARK SYSTEMS software during 2010 than ever before, according to Donald Scattergood, MARK SYSTEMS Vice President for Sales and Marketing. Total sales volume in 2010 increased 172% in units, and 211% in dollars over the combined sales of 2008 and 2009, and eclipsed the previous sales record from 2006 by more than 19%.
“2010 started off with our best 1st quarter in history, and the sales volume never really slowed down,” Scattergood said. “In fact, we closed the year with our best 4th quarter ever, capped off by Rausch Coleman Homes, the largest builder in Arkansas and Oklahoma”.
“With the outlook for new home construction improving in 2011, builders who spent the last two years refining processes and streamlining staff are taking the time now to put the tools in place to manage increased production volumes without additional staff” said Mark Finelli, President of MARK SYSTEMS. “Interestingly, we’ve seen increased activity in every sector of the market, from 20 unit semi-custom builders to 1,000 unit-plus regional builders. It all comes down to the same goal: build more homes, more efficiently, with less people.”
Geographically, builders from all across the country chose MARK SYSTEMS software this year, many in areas not typically known for home building activity. While new customers included builders in traditionally strong areas like Atlanta and Houston, places like Albuquerque NM, Tulsa OK, New Hampshire, and Lubbock TX showed very strong market penetration. Surprisingly, even builders in hard hit areas like Tampa, Orlando and Arizona selected MARK SYSTEMS software over the last 12 months.
The single-source, single-database nature of MARK SYSTEMS software was a significant factor in this year’s record sales results, according to new MARK SYSTEMS home builder clients. “We reviewed many software products before selecting MARK SYSTEMS IHMS (Integrated Homebuilder Management System)” said Tom French, President of French Brothers Homes in Albuquerque, NM. “The problem with most is that they require multiple products to do what MARK SYSTEMS software does with one, and the cost to keep them all talking together properly, both in terms of dollars and man power, was much more than we could justify in this economy. Any small improvement in functionality with these systems is more than offset by the operational complexity” French said.
Technological advancement in the software has helped drive sales and market share gains, according to Scott Duman, Vice President and CTO of MARK SYSTEMS. “Our conversion to a Java platform allows our customers to significantly reduce costs and take advantage of cloud-based computing,” Duman said. “Along with our optimization for Apple products, particularly the iPad, MARK SYSTEMS software gives residential builders and developers more choices than ever before over how they meet their computing needs.”
MARK SYSTEMS expects to continue this momentum into 2011. “We’ll of course be at the International Builders’ Show in Orlando (booth W4949) from January 12th through the 15th, and we’ve got some very aggressive discounts in place to help jump start sales in the new year,” Donald Scattergood said. “Builders that visit us at IBS can see for themselves why so many home builders are selecting MARK SYSTEMS, and can save thousands of dollars at the same time,” Scattergood said.
