Agreed, something short and sweet.

What we have instructed our property managers to do is to respond to all posts. If it is a negative review, we ask that they apologize for the inconvenience, offer an explanation/solution and offer their contact information (e-mail address and phone number) if the resident needs further assistance. If it is a good review, we ask that the managers thank the resident for the review and also include their contact information. Just good, basic customer service.

When it comes to residents being disrespectful and using foul language etc., I think it's best to take the high road. We obviously don't want the managers getting into cat fights with residents, and if our management is responding in a professional manner and offering solutions that the resident is refusing to take, I think that it shows that the resident just wants to complain and has no interest resolving anything. This makes their unflattering reviews have less credibility. Also, if a poster does use foul language, I think that the post can possibly be removed according to the user agreement on AptRatings.com. AptRatings doesn't want their site to be associated with vulgar or obscene language. If this sort of situation is an issue for anyone, it's something worth looking into.

@Melissa-- I want to commend your management company for taking proactive steps. You mentioned about someone tweeting about your community in a negative way. Your recent decision to make a twitter presence is an excellent one.

Not only do people complain by nature but they also complain where they feel there is no presence to subdue them.

Here is an example. Remember Hurricane Katrina and they result that came from the lack of police "presence". There was absolute chaos because there was nothing in place to keep the citizens in check.

On the flip side, I went through Hurricane Wilma in South Florida personally. Here was the difference between the 2 storms. There was a strong police "presence" before and after the storm. As a result, when people were going through the same things..no gas, no water, no food--their presence kept civil obedience in check.

Now management companies are not policeman, but the same secular responsibility is necessary to be where your residents are. If you are a voice where they are a voice, I believe that their voice will tone down some as a result of your "presence"

Again Kudos to your company for making that step forward and being a voice where your residents are voicing.

Thanks Lissa and Jonathon. Great analogy on hurricane story. That's an eye opening way to interpret and also offers an easy way to train others about the consumer behavior at a beginner level. I also like the advice to take the high road. People who know me in my market know that I say that phrase all the time:)

My organization is in the early stages of creating policy and standards of social media management. I handle Colorado but when I uncover issues in other markets its important to let the affected market know about it.

Lisa and All Multifamily Insiders,

Finally there is a solution for owners and managers that are fed up with sites like ApartmentRatings.com and ApartmentReviews.net!

To see some live examples of properties that have currently been rated and are posted live on the web site, please type in the following city searches:

-- Rochester Hills, MI
-- Bloomingdale, IL
-- West Chester, OH
http://www.apartmentgrade.com/search

Best regards,

Leigh Curry
lcurry@curryconduit.com

Hi Leigh,

I am happy to see that finally someone has taken the initiative to launch a rating delivery vehicle more impartial for the apartment prospect trying to get "real" user feedback about apartment communities. Trip advisor has been around for a while and is a good example of another industry offering just that-advice. Of course it is sprinkled with ads and promotions; I believe the end user does not mind navigating through a little of that for good info.

Having said this I have some questions:
When I clicked on a specific apartment community I was sent to Apartments.com. Is this an off shoot of their platform? Also, I noted that when I tried to go back to the ratings page the site was a bit stubborn-it took me a few tries to break loose and get back.

I did not find the actual ratings. Where do I go to see them? Is it just the number of stars or can users view the comments? If they are there I missed them and users will not give a site much credibility without data. (Authenticity is the buzz word).

Oh and just a FYI~I clicked on the apartments in Michigan and noted that the search did not work when specific pricing and number of bedrooms were selected-it only gave info for all ranges all styles so to speak.

New products always need a few kinks to iron out and I hope this new tool will deliver what the end user really wants, because once it does it will change our industry for the better.

Good luck with the new endeavor,

Rebecca Rosario

Hi Rebecca,

Thanks for your rapid response and enthusiasm. Your response is very similar to the many other apartment owners and managers who think this idea has been way too long in the works.

ApartmentGrade.com is not an ILS -- nor has any affiliation with any ILS. If you notice, ApartmentGrade.com only provides generic property information to the prospective renter. To get more specific information on the property, the prospective resident must click on the links embedded in the site. These links go directly to the ILS that the owner/manager has chosen -- in this case Apartments.com.

The mission at ApartmentGrade.com is to provide our web site visitors with an honest assessment of the overall living experience at those communities that are listed.

As for errors, I should have mentioned in my initial e-mail that this is truly a BETA web site. Sorry. You and others are bound to find many other errors as well -- but I really appreciate you pointing them out and have already submitted them to the technical team. I would encourage others users to do the same.

With "Ratings", in the next few days if you click on this area, a pop-up box will appear and explain the criteria used to determine the rating. It will not however give an individual breakdown of how that specific property's rating was calculated.

I really appreciate your note and would encourage you and everyone else in the industry to call me with any other questions, ideas, or even better, how to participate in this program -- at no cost.

The criteria of our rating is based on only 7 questions.

Again, to see some live examples of properties that have currently been rated and are posted live on the web site, please type in the following city searches:

-- Rochester Hills, MI
-- Bloomingdale, IL
-- West Chester, OH
http://www.apartmentgrade.com/search

Best regards,
Leigh Curry
609-882-3868
lcurry@curryconduit.com

Okay..am I following this right that owners can choose what ratings to show? Is that correct?

Every property manager should respond to negative ratings, very professionally and be courteous. Let the other viewers decide then for themselves.

Stepping outside of our apartment world and looking at how retailers are embracing social media in holiday marketing may fire up some ideas in our own brainwaves while the inactivity on some may may us say "hunh." Check 'em out.

JCPenney uses its Facebook page mostly for Customer Service. When customers post complaints or praise to the retailer's FB wall, Penneys jumps in to address them offering personal assistance and thanking customers for posting the comment. From the Facebook page, they link buyers to other sources NOT Penneys such as CheapToday.com trying to please, even if means directing the buyer away from Penneys. Wow.

Toys'R'Us has Shaquille O'Neal tweeting his "Shaq-a-Claus" challenge to his more than 2.6 million Twitter followers. The goal is to donate $1 to charity for every new Facebook fan created. While the Tweeting is going, their Facebook presence encourages customer feedback through surveys. There are queries on fave or Not fave board games or Disney characters. Toys'R'Us has been named an "exemplar brand 2009" by Advertising Age for responding to fans and managing customer reaction. On Twitter, the brand used tweets to drive traffic to Facebook with offers and surveys, coupons and discounts.

Best Buy has it's television commercials linked with a social media tie-in featuring it's "Twelpforce Carolers" offering gift advice. It's YouTube Channel offers chucklicious behind-the-scenes footages of actual employees trying out for the Twelpforce Carolers. Best Buy is learning how to lead the conversation on Facebook as opposed to simply responding to customer complaints, but when it comes down to customer interaction, BestBuy has it locked and loaded on Twitter. The @Twelpforce is a force to be reckoned with.

Abercrombie & Fitch is an example a who-woulda-thunk-it that a teen retailer has a large lack of involvement in their social media space. Their following of 540,000 fans consists primarily of kids responding to the A&F casting call for models. There's no response to customer comments and questions, though most comments are positive. Many comments are requests for a store in their area...but still no reply from A&F. Are they passing up a major opportunity to engage this group? Another tidbit to note: their Twitter account boasts 7591 followers...but hasn't tweeted since July 11th.

And then there's Target - the brand touted for its current youthful appeal is (and I quote this part) "appearing to be deaf to negative comments and fans' personal promotion. They broadcast videos and articles without ever responding to comments such as "extremely disappointed in Target's customer service". Some customers use the fan section to promote their own agendas resulting in other customers asking Target to "please remove/delete the trashy posts on your site"...no action, no response. Yikes.

Bottom line, most of the big guys are finding and demonstrating that Facebook isn't a broadcast channel, it's a chance to foster conversation with customers. Some are getting it. Some are not.
I wish that I had thought of @Twelpforce.