I know it sounds weird at first but everything was questionable when it first got its start right? I’ve been doing some research with apartment dwellers trying to figure out what activities they enjoy doing personally and how their management company could possible incorporate their desires into their retention plans.

I had an interesting conversation with a young lady named Carly who told me how much she missed dancing. She’s now in her early thirties, very health conscious and always looking for new and exciting ways to burn a few extra calories.

After talking for a while we concluded that her property attracted young, active professionals who were always open to experiencing new things and meeting new people. I asked her if her property hosted events and like many she said yes but she never goes and most of the time most people don’t go.

I proposed to her the idea of starting a dance troupe on the property that would perform at each event. She along with the property manager could decide the parameters and if it would be co-ed. Perhaps she could do different groups, one for teens and one for young adults. We threw around a few ideas and I could tell she was excited.

Think about it. Your property has a dance or cheer troupe that gets together once a week in the clubhouse or out on the tennis court to practice. This builds instant bonds that in turn gains you more loyal residents. Not only that, this guarantees their appearance at your events which more than likely guarantees everyone in their household showing up to watch them perform.

It is also a built in feature for all of your events. Can you imagine how interesting it will be to come out and see the “Oaktown Estate Steppers”? Your residents will look forward to their creativity, skits, uniforms and maybe even themed routines. They will look forward to hearing them chanting and cheering about how much they appreciate the residents.

Your team will also enjoy the idea of getting their neighbors to come out. They will discuss it with neighbors in passing and or promote it within your online portal. Who wants to practice and perfect a performance and have no one to show it to? This idea is perfect for those of you looking to increase morale and build participation for your events.

We believe that the reason events came up as such a low priority in recent surveys as a reason for residents to stay is because most of the time people do not attend. There’s a huge benefit in offering incentives and legitimate reasons to come out to events outside of the typical come out and meet your neighbors pitch.

Let’s face it…for many it feels too forced and down right awkward but when you begin to engage your residents and form genuine alliances you don’t have to work so hard to get their attention and their participation.

Dare to be a trailblazer and begin to focus on building communities within your communities or feel free to give me a call and I’ll be happy to show you how.

Talisa Lavarry

Founder

Resident Keepers