Brand for Differentiation: A Case Study of Paragon Ranch

Being able to brand for differentiation can be used to your complete and full advantage—if you know how to wield it. For Zipcode Creative client, Paragon Ranch, it was vital to find a way to serve up differentiation to attract the right residents. It came in the somewhat-unlikely form of pickleball (the fastest growing sport in the U.S.)

Paragon Ranch is a newly launched multifamily development just outside of Cincinnati, Ohio. It’s attracting prospective residents who want to lead a more elite lifestyle, in a way that is attainable. So finding outside-of-the-box recreational amenities to offer, like pickleball and golf, was a good way to create interest and demand.

Follow along as we walk through the ways high-value experiences can create brand differentiation (and how), especially at Paragon Ranch.

Background and Context

ABOUT PARAGON RANCH

Paragon Ranch is the first new build of its kind in the area in a decade. It brings exceptional service and is targeted to both young professionals and empty nesters. Being located close to the city and to nature allows residents to find a good balance between work and play. 

The goal of Paragon Ranch was to create a spacious, sanctuary-like living experience to get away from never-ending home maintenance to-do lists and pressing work deadlines—to focus solely on leisure.

TRENDS IN MULTIFAMILY AMENITIES

Unique amenities are popping up everywhere. Pickleball, which used to be the domain of senior living offerings, is now becoming much more popular in conventional communities. The active tennis-badminton sport is suddenly resonating with a younger, more diverse audience—including the young professional audience that Paragon Ranch was working toward capturing. Golf is also popular with the younger set, and Paragon Ranch’s amenities feature a golf simulator, as well.

LOCATION ANALYSIS

Given Paragon Ranch’s location, between plenty of outdoor recreational adventures, it’s able to draw a demographic that’s focused on sports, and values both outdoor activities and social experiences. Pickleball can’t be played alone—so creating the opportunity for teamwork and physical activity was an ideal amenity offering.

Research and Strategy

Of course, what good is an amenity if you’re not sure how it will land with the ideal residents?

INSIGHT GATHERING

By gathering research focused on the local demographic and their interests, we were able to help Paragon Ranch inform the branding. We specifically discovered a heavy local interest in (and passion for):

• Sports
• Recreation
• Golf
• Outdoor activities in fair weather

Taking each of these and lining it up with the community brand’s goals and messaging was a surefire way to give the people—that the community wanted—what they want. We used research to our advantage, and it helped form the ideal resident profile we could more closely target. With more data and knowledge, comes better strategy and improved differentiation.

IMPORTANCE OF IRP (IDEAL RESIDENT PROFILE)

The IRP shaped every bit of our branding efforts—knowing what kind of voice would resonate with them, identifying what priorities needed to be, and what kinds of values would make sense to reach the IRP. Making sure the branding worked with the prospective residents’ preferences and lifestyle aspirations (relaxation, outdoor activity, social time) helped us guide the amenity offerings and focus the messaging around what would be most vital to the community’s success.

LINKING STRATEGY AND DIFFERENTIATION

As we’ve noted before in other blogs and posts, competition is fierce out there in the multifamily world. Crafting a way to differentiate your brand is the best set-yourself-apart strategy we can think of. 

By using pickleball as an amenity focus (aligning with the IRP’s priorities and desires) we’re helping place Paragon Ranch top-of-mind for prospects. It’s not common for communities to place a pickleball court front and center in their lineup of offerings. But that’s how Paragon Ranch is going to stake its unique claim.

remove this text inline or in the module Content settings. You can also style every aspect of this content in the module Design settings and even apply custom CSS to this text in the module Advanced settings.

Brand Development and Concept

VISUAL AND VERBAL CONCEPTS

Based on a country club experience with amenities on par with something exclusive and sporty—the core of the brand gets combined with accessible distinction. By creating refined and aspirational messaging focused on outdoor options and sport-related amenities, Paragon Ranch was crafted to attract sports and outdoor enthusiasts.

Visually, the fonts recall an old school sport uniform script. The logomark echoes the lines of sport courts. The stock photos use pickleball as a focal point. Everything about it says: active and luxe-lite.

The brand voice itself used some aspects to steer clear of too-casual or silly of a brand voice. By using brand attributes like “timeless” “connected” and “optimistic” the brand voice could stay grounded and have wide appeal, but still offer a professional and engaging tone. This gave a sense of the quality of lifestyle that residents could look forward to at Paragon Ranch.

FUTURE EXECUTION

As for implementing these brand identity elements, Paragon Ranch hasn’t yet opened for pre-leasing, but is expected in 2025. When pre-leasing begins, telling the full brand story and using every (branded) visual at their disposal will help them enhance their differentiation. 

For example, for every marketing channel, there’s a way to weave in that “elite” sporting theme. From pickleball tournament resident events to golf gear giveaways for new leases signed, the strategy options are endless. 

Paragon Ranch is paving the way with multifamily branding with recreational amenities as part of its core identity. By using a brand strategy to attract residents that want what they offer, they’ve set up their community to stand out in the market.