Multifamily Marketing
Apartment Marketing: Friends of Followers
Quick hit on this Friday following a holiday.
Friends of Followers
Suffice it to say that we should not only be marketing to the people that we want to live in our apartment communities but also the connections those people have. Think about it, in the world of ratings and reviews and social sharing platforms, people reach out to friends, family and total strangers for advice on where to live.
It’s not a novel concept but I am curious what you are doing to reach those groups?
I have been thinking a lot about how to make an impact on that group and how to compel them to talk about our communities when faced with the question. “Where would you live if you were looking for an apartment?” Or, “I am searching for a new place to live, what apartment community or area of town would you recommend?”
I want my communities to be tip of tongue when their connections ask for their advisement.
What Are You Doing to Make Sure Your Community is Tip of Tongue?
You tip of tongue thinking multifamily manic,
M
Apartment Podcasting Marketing
“For corporate marketers, podcasting is low-hanging fruit.” – Paul Gillin
Low Hanging Fruit
Caught this video over at businessgrow where Michael Stelzner of Social Media Examiner throws down his 18 to 24 month content marketing prediction. It’s an interesting thought and one that I am trying to wrap my head around as it relates to marketing apartments. His thought comes in near the end of the four-minute vid:
Your wondering about apartment podcast marketing multifamily manic,
M
Apartment Marketing Brass Tacks
“You need the kind of objectivity that makes you forget everything you’ve heard, clear the table, and do a factual study like a scientist would.” – Steve Wozniak
Short and sweet question(s) post today.
Do you ever feel like using social media to marketing apartments is like trying to smash a square peg into a round hole? Do you get the sense that we are trying so hard to make it work just because we just want it to? As opposed to following the advice of Steve W. and clearing the tables for some hard-core study of the real impact it is or is not making?
Have we been clouded by the hint of success we have seen from any one of the many mediums out there? A lease or two from Facebook, a lead from Twitter or a conversation stimulated by a killer resident function and we are quick to tout the success.
Have you found the effort to be worth the result? Do you think the real successes are down the road and over time?
In the end, content is not king – people are. People move business. And, people in relationship talk about businesses they like to do business with. Believe it or not – they usually do that offline.
Is it time to clear the table?
Your brass tacks multifamily maniac,
M
photo credit: blog mosaic
Apartment Marketing Minute: Experiment
“Don’t be afraid to get creative and experiment with your marketing” – Mike Volpe
Easier said than done, right? Who has the time to set back and be creative anymore? A day in the life of a property management professional would demonstrate that it is near impossible to give time to brainstorming new ideas. Heck, it’s hard enough to execute the things that matter most like; customer service, curb appeal, leasing, retention and accounting. But, being creative is not really all that hard.
Experiment in Creativity
I think the key is to think in smaller chunks. Experimenting could be as simple as leading your Craigslist ad with the words Compelling Lifestyle as opposed to Free Rent. It could be as simple as shifting the photos on your website to lead with interior pics as opposed to exterior pics. Maybe do night pics of the exterior in lieu of day pics. It could be that you change your telephone greeting to include, “I can help you,” in lieu of “How can I help you?” No matter the topic, the key is to think smaller chunks.
The Point
Don’t think of creativity in apartment marketing as a big daunting task reserved for the select few who were gifted with the talent of pumping out cool ideas. I would posit that every one of them, at one time or another, experimented with the little things. And, at some point over a long bit of time, their portfolios of coolness grew more and more pronounced.
So do some experimenting today and don’t be afraid to start small.
Your always experimenting in creativity multifamily maniac,
M
Apartment Loss to Lease – How do you book it?
In the spirit of the upcoming 2012 budget season; I wanted to recycle this post. This is a subject of much debate in our office and I am interested in what the industry thinks.
Loss to Lease
There is a question floating around our office along the lines of, “What do you book in loss to lease line of your budget?” Also, “On a percentage basis, where do you like to see that number trend?” With that question comes a number of schools of thought but no real definitive answer. And, that being said, I am not sure there is a right way or a wrong way to look at it. In the end, it all shakes out in the Rental Income line. That said, there is value in tracking the discount from new vs. renewals and even budgeted rental increases that drive the loss to lease margins.
Our current practice is to book both discounts from new sales and renewals to a single loss to lease line. And, we try keep the loss to lease number at two to three percent of the the gross potential or top line – if you will.
Here are a couple of schools of thought to throw out there:
What gets booked in loss to lease?
1. The only thing that gets booked in the loss to lease line is discounts from market on new leases only. Renewals that maintain any discount from the top line should be booked as a concession.
2. Any discount from market gets booked as an upfront or recurring concession – be it a new lease or a renewal that transacts at a rate lower than the top line.
Where should loss to lease trend as it relates to the top line?
1. The number should be maintain between two to three percent of your top line
2. The number will trend at nearly ten percent of your top line
Is there real value in tracking loss to lease as a line item?
If it all shakes out in the rental income number – is there any real value [up market or down market] to tracking this number?
I’m curious to hear your thoughts. I am really curious to hear from those of you that are utilizing LRO as I think you have done away with the concept of loss to lease – correct?
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