ADVERTISING. There is an old saying that some times people complain about it, but they would miss if it were not there. People advertise everything from paper clips to Lear jets, hoping to increase interest in their products.

Advertising a property for rent or sale is one of the time-honoured ways of reaching potential buyers. The Myanmar Times polled several of the country’s biggest property developers to find out what they feel about the power of advertising.

As director of Golden Flower Construction, U Myat Nyein says his company strongly believes in the power of advertising. Previous campaigns have proven successful, so now Golden Flower has embraced it wholeheartedly, often advertising their properties across the media.

“I find it very effective advertising in newspapers and on television. Potential buyers are interested in our ads as we choose carefully – not only the actors and actress, but also the music and all aspects. Not very long ago we used (famous comedians) Pwint and Moe Di to act in one of our advertisements and children were interested in it and sang the song in those advertisements,” he said.

Golden Flower takes note of the market and the season when they decide how much advertising to do for a project. “If the market situation is cool, we advertise more frequently to draw attention to our project,” U Myat Nyein said.

While U Myat Nyein is an enthusiastic believer in the power of advertising to sell property, at Shine Construction, director U Aung Zaw Win says that after 10 years in the business, he believes that advertising can send out misleading signals.

“If we advertised a lot, buyers might think that the company is in financial trouble and they may hesitate about buying from that company. That is why we gave serious consideration to advertising and in the end decided against it,” he said.

U Aung Zaw Win said that his company was interested in keeping a low profile and preferred to spend money on the quality of the buildings rather than on advertising, given the coolness of the current market.

“Advertising costs a lot of money. The increasing price of construction materials and the cool property market has caused us financial problems and we have to try really hard to finish all our projects’” he said.

Two other realtors interviewed by Myanmar Times said that no matter what the market is like, they view advertising as an essential part of the business.

Ko Maung Maung Zay Linn of Tet Lan, which advertises in newspapers, said, “Many people are not daring enough to come into the office and inquire about the price of houses, so it is better to advertise in the newspaper. They can make up their mind and then they can come here.”

Hlaing Tun Tun Real Estate’s Ko Ye Myint agrees that potential buyers want to see all the details before they start talking to sales staff. “Potential buyers get to know the prices and they can compare prices between one township and another and choose the best one for them.

Consumers often find that having many advertisements available in a newspaper or journal does help them with their decisions. Homebuyer Ma Moe Moe was looking for a suitable house for a long time without success. She did not know much about the price of houses and was nervous about bargaining.

She says when she started consulting advertisements in journals she soon found what she was looking for.

“If it were not for the journals, I would not have been able to find the house,” said Ma Moe Moe, who has just bought a house in Botahtaung township.

Ma Snow from Future Com Advertising said that advertising was an essential communication between buyers and sellers.

“Advertising can help improve a business. The important thing is to properly plan to communicate to the target market, which must be in line with the objective of the business,” said Ma Snow.