I saw this on Twitter this afternoon and it just seemed like a conversation that needs to take place.
What do you think?
@justinfarris: Managment who takes the personalization out of leasing is “REALLY” missing the boat! Fri 28 Nov 14:09 via TweetDeck
Which seemed to be a clear response to:
@Eric_Urbane: Meet one of our new Leasing Consultants, Sassy Miss Avatar. ApartmentVeteran Fri 28 Nov 13:14 via web
I think there is merit in both positions and I am very interested to see how this plays out for Eric and his team. I see the cleverness in the experience one might have with the medium but would have a hard time retorting against the position Justin has taken. I see people getting engaged in the avatar and not to digress but I see Sassy ending up MIA only to be found upon a move out inspection at some point in the future. Eric, you might want to anchor her down in some way.
I look forward to some worthy discussion on this one. M
0 Responses
Wow, this is interesting. Our industry has taken huge strides in de-personalizing the leasing process by moving most of the functions online. And most of my clients are very happy with that. And it appears, so are their prospects.
Back in 1999, I remember when JPI was investigating the idea of having holograms in their leasing offices. The idea was that prospects would be greeted by a holographic leasing professional who could basically walk them through the early stages of the leasing process. I’ve got to say, I would have found this to be absolutely fascinating had it worked out.
I’ve visited sites where the part of the leasing program that most prospects liked was the 42″ dual flat screen interactive leasing kiosk. Basically, the leasing team said that once the prospect got to playing with it, they were hooked. I’ve seen sites where the leasing professionals urge the prospects to complete their leases online at an adjacent kiosk; it provides both privacy and ease of application completion for them. And Camden has had great success with their ‘lease online’ program where they accept an electronic signature for the lease itself.
Do I think that there are issues with de-personalizing the process? Absolutely. I’ve trained at sites where the leasing professionals simply have an emotional disconnect from the prospect due to their requirements of completing an online guest card.
But from that particular property, and what I have seen so far, it really comes down to a training issue. The companies that are able to successfully match high tech with ‘high touch’ (that is, personalization of some sort or offering a low tech version of the leasing process) will- in my opinion – definitely succeed.
Take me for example. Even though I’m not a Gen Y tech lover, I rarely choose to interact with people for my accomodations when I travel. I book my flight, car and hotel online. I skip the check in couter at the airport, getting my boarding pass on my own. My rental car is ready and waiting for me and all I do is show my driver’s license when I leave the lot. I can reserve the actual room I want from the hotel’s floor/tier plan for some hotels and can self check at the kiosk. And I have no complaints about that.
If I want interaction, I can skip all the self service and go for the human touch.
Here’s what I think it boils down to: The companies that DON’T offer a mixture are not only missing the boat; they’re gonna be stuck on the pier for a long, long time watching all those happy prospects float away with someone who offers a choice.
Just my two cents. Enjoy the rest of your Thanksgiving weekend one and all.
LT
LT,
As always, thank you for the thoughtful and insightful feedback.
The point you make about is choice is one I find interesting. And, the self serve examples you use are very relevant. I know I always look for the least human contact when I need a service as I think humans just muddy the transaction. That is not to mention that nothing burns me more than the up-sell. Self service allows me the choice to avoid that.
Another point I find interesting is that all of the self serve examples listed above are low ticket low risk items. For discussion sake, I think an apartment is a medium to high risk transaction given all the variables not least of which is the total spend. I wonder at what point, what dollar amount and at what level of complexity do you want the expert human personal touch for guidance, counsel and comfort.
Thank you again LT. M
Mike, Happy Thanksgiving. Hope yours was great, we have had a terrific holiday so far
Glad to see our recent post may have stirred some conversation, and thanks for picking up on that. I am a little late to the party here, but would like to weigh in. It is interesting to follow both your and LT’s comment, in that if I am reading each of you right, you do not want more interaction. I suggest that this is not likely what we would be preaching to our staff, but when we are honest with
ourselves, sales people get in the way.
A couple points, I am not a marketing guy; I am a property owner first, trying my best to market the assets we own and manage. I am doing off the wall things because I am seeing stellar results, both with occupancy, retention and financially. Of all states, we are doing these crazy things in MI, which is ranked last or close to last on the economic pole. It is tough here. I have no one to convince but myself. If the crazy things work, we benefit, if they don’t it costs me real money, mine, not someone else.
Frankly, I think most, (not all) of the folks out there marketing stuff today haven’t a clue, they are spending someone other peoples money, not theirs, not really knowing what works and what doesn’t. The world has changed, and fast, but I digress.
The point of my post is not about a wacky avatar, which may or may not work, (LT has already weighed in (which I greatly respect) that it is dumb and brand inconsistent and it may be, we will see, but I am doing it anyway, I believe it will be a hit) The point is that if we can have a real time online conversation, via texting with a prospect, we are communicating on THEIR TERMS, in a venue that THEY prefer. And, based on what I am hearing and seeing First Hand from the prospects, they do not want to take the time to tour with a leasing person. However, as questions arise as they as they are self touring, they want answers, right then, and text message is THEIR communication Channel of Choice.
We welcome constructive feedback, as we all collectively help adapt change as to how apartments are leased.
Hey! I didn’t say it was dumb you goofball! 🙂 And I am not saying that I prefer little to no interaction. What I am saying is that a CHOICE needs to be offered, which is exactly what you are doing. My only concern on your avatar (originally) was that I didn’t get your choice of avatars (the aviator). I think it will definitely appeal to some or maybe all of your clientele. I NEVER say something is dumb; I just wanted you to rethink your avatar of choice is all.
Our industry often confuses the transaction with the relationship. I don’t need (or in many cases, want) to talk to anyone just to get the basic information about your property. Give me what I need, and I’ll engage you when I’m ready for more.
Like Mike and Lisa, I’m willing to invest some of my time to make sure my mundane banking, investing and travel transactions are completed to my satisfaction. And now that that’s the world I’m accustomed to, I think it’s annoying when a leasing professional wants to sit down with me, “discuss my needs,” and fill out a guestcard by hand.
From what I’ve seen so far, I’m uneasy about how apartment companies are approaching SMS marketing. As a prospect, I’m not giving you my phone number to instantly be spammed by someone who wants to chat. Please give me a link (preferably one that’s viewable on my phone), then give me options: send me an email, call me, let me call you, etc.
Ultimately, if we do this self-service thing right, we’ll be able to provide better service to our prospects and residents much more efficiently. If we continue to assume that manual, mundane transactions equal a relationship with our residents, is it any wonder why those residents move on when they’re free to look for something better?
Mike,
Thank you as always for participating in the conversation.
You bring up a good point in the way of SMS being taken in the direction of interruption marketing. I agree that would not be the best application of that medium. I agree that if I request the information then I have given you permission. It will be important for us not to take that permission to lightly. It might require us to ask one additional question, such as; “Would you like one of our information consultants to contact you right now?”
The other point I would bring up here is that I think industry professionals have to be careful to view the world through the lens of the end user. That is to suggest that there may be a percentage of the population that views the manual and mundane transaction as a good thing. I am thinking specifically of Boomer parents who participate heavily in the apartment hunting process. I think the point LT made about choice is a good one in this respect.
Good stuff Mike.
Hope you and yours had a great Thanksgiving.
M
Oh, where to begin on this one??? Well, let me first say, thanks to Mike for sharing what started on Twitter. I will touch base with Justin and see if he would like to weigh in here as well.
I really like this concept Eric. Where text marketing is so impersonal, maybe your avatar brings a little personality. I think some may have misinterpreted what you are trying to accomplish here as “depersonalizing”, but I see what you’re doing as a way to add some personality to text messaging. This, in my mind, helps to bring value.
Now, I’m not sure what an online avatar will achieve for you other than a wow factor, but I think it may tie to something you said toward the end of your post: “What if the whole way in which residents leased apartments was based on their Experience.” I don’t think this is a “what if” question of the future, but a reality today.
Of course residents today lease based on their experience. They also will pay a premium based on their experience. Their experience will drive them to choose you over a competitor that might be cheaper and have more square footage. It’s all about the experience whether it is in person or online.
Why do people still go to the mall to buy stuff when it’s all online? For the experience. Why do people still go to a dealership to buy a car? For the driving experience. Why do people go buy an expensive steak dinner and marked up wine? For the experience. Why do people go to Whole Foods or Fresh Market? For the experience.
While technology has opened many doors of communication with our customers, it is still the experience they are seeking. We no longer hide our prices, we share as many photos as we can, and we even offer them the ability to reserve or lease online. As we have made these changes, we must keep in mind that we do this in an effort to improve the customer’s experience AND increase the value of our product. If you are incorporating technology for other reasons (i.e.- reduce expenses, b/c it’s cool, b/c our customers demand it, etc.) then I feel you are missing the point.
I like that a few commenting here used the airline, hotel, and travel industries as examples. I believe these are examples of industries that implemented technology in a way that improves the customer experience, but has actually reduced the value of the product they sell. It used to be that we would choose a flight, hotel, etc. based on the reputation of the company in addition to price. Now price is really the only factor in determining travel plans (unless you are frequent flyer/rewards member of some kind).
I make this point as I feel we must be cautious when implementing technology. While we want to insure our customers have multiple ways to communicate with us and learn about what we offer, we don’t want to commoditize ourselves. Your home is more than a seat on a plane, a rental car that gets you from point A to B, or a pillow to rest your head for a night or two. All of these are disposible and can be changed the next time you need to make that choice. Your home is where you keep your valuables, where build your life and family, where you invest a majority of your paycheck, and where you make a 12 month commitment or longer. If we believe an apartment home is another item to be placed into a shopping cart online then we are making a mistake. These are investments and property that are unique and should not be compared to a seat on a plane, a television, or other widgets that can be booked or purchased online.
I will close by saying, while the way we communicate with our customers is changing, I believe people still enjoy buying from people. Technology should complement the way our customer’s buy from us, but be cautious in thinking that technology can replace true human to human interaction. We talk so much about the relationships we have with our residents online and in person. We talk about how we need to strengthen those relationships by communicating more with them on multiple platforms. Why would we treat our prospects any different? Use the technology to lead your customers into a true and personal relationship with you and your company. That will bring you value and help to “break from apartment commodity.”
All:
Very interesting thoughts here and quite a lot for an owner (or asset manager) to digest. I find myself agreeing with Lisa’s desire to be left alone when making choices about things like travel; if I know how to complete a transaction, please leave me alone and let me do it. At the same time, reading Mark’s comment, I found myself thinking about Nordstrom (or Marshall Fields) and ‘the experience’. Sometimes, I want to be told that I am an important customer.
When I talk to my management companies I always emphasize the moments of soft selling when we can engage a resident in a non-transactional environment. Once a month I encourage the head of leasing and the service manager to station themselves at the mailboxes to catch folks coming home. It gives them a chance to ask about resident satisfaction, discuss events, and make appointments for service calls. We try to do all sorts of things like that — engage a resident as a person, not a commission.
For an Avatar to be successful, and I’m sure Urbane already has this laid out, you must create a style guide for everyone to use. The tone, vocabulary, responsiveness (solve it directly vs. escalate) must be consistent. You don’t have to pass the Turing test, but it should be more than just a phone tree.
Will
Thank you to everyone for the conversation and feedback, it is much appreciated. there are a few things I care to articulate herein for clarity,
1) The first reason we are embarking this venture is to enhance the Residents Experience. We have focused a lot on the Residents Experience with much success, this experiment is just an extension of that.
2) We are attempting to Lower our Labor Cost per Lease, by renting more apartments with less people.
Our model will launch in the next ten days, and by years end we will have some feedback, which we promise to share with everyone.
Just catching up with a few thoughts. I have enjoyed reading your dialogue. I can almost “hear you”, but not really. There is no audio — what’s up with that Lisa? Isn’t that technology available? (Skype for blogging?). The software will be readily available some day and customers will be talking with us on-line. We will be seeing and hearing them in real time on line. It will soon become the trend and I am convinced that you will be the first to translate it for our industry. Think of the dimension this will add.
I agree that the challenge is to enhance the customer’s in-person experience in EVERY WAY and in ANY way possible; Starbucks is another great example.
Every contact along the marketing path is an opportunity. The integrity of experience marketing depends on how far into the resident relationship it is extended.
If a positive experience cannot be sustained during residency, it may be perceived as a gimmick.
Fun is an appealing experience to market. It is more difficult to sustain, but very possible.
Jeep is making this work with their
Have Fun Out There marketing Campaign. And it is working. Below is an excerpt from http://www.threeminds.organic.com
“At the time of this writing, a search of ‘Jeep’ on Flickr.com yields 99,794 results. That may seem rather inconsequential when you consider the volume of user-gen photography on Flickr, or the entire web for that matter. But consider this – that’s 30K more than if you search ‘Toyota’ or ‘Coke’; 50K more than ‘Nike’ or ‘Chevy’; 80K more than ‘Scion’. I think our strategy folks say it best…”Jeep people don’t collect things, they collect experiences.”END QUOTE
I tapped into fun and have been using it in my marketing and customer satisfaction action plans wherever possible.
Kim, Hi
Thanks so much for stopping by. Your comments about Jeep are outstanding, and a compelling reason to forge ahead with Experience Marketing with a twist or two of “Fun”