Social Media for Apartments

I recently ordered "Meatball Sundae," one of Seth Godin's newest books. I haven't even finished it yet and I'm already inspired inmany ways (that almost always happens after I read anything Seth has written or discussed) to think about how I do my job. In my case, the "meatballs" in this book are apartment homes. They are something everyone needs and lots of people sell. The "sundae" portion relates to new media and how sometimes two things that are great independently don't always go well together (hence the "meatball sundae" analogy).

A few weeks ago one of my colleagues called to ask my advice for a new client she was advising in Atlanta. We went through the normal things like visiting local businesses, improving the property's curb appeal, and then we got into the social media and "new marketing" she wanted to create for the property. Even though many of us have been using MySpace and Facebook for months (even years), it's a relatively new thing for apartment communities to reach out via those sites. I think it's great, but I don't think you should create online profiles for your properties just for the sake of doing so. You need to have a purpose. In my opinion, the main reasons to go online are to speak to your customers on a level that they prefer and to allow them to communicate with you (and each other). If you go with those things in mind everything else falls into place. In case you don't believe me, just ask Eric Brown of Urbane Apartments in Royal Oak, MI. He has created an amazing buzz around his properties using very little money, thus properly serving meatballs covered in cheese and tomato sauce instead of whipped cream and cherries.

• MySpace- If you're not already on MySpace, I think you missed the boat. It's a nice place to display pictures and for users to become your "friend," but there isn't a forum for your customers to communicate (aside from comments). Apartment communities were doing this a lot about 2 years ago (I think Bell Partners actually required all of their properties to list themselves on MySpace), but that's not really the trend right now.
• Facebook- I'm actually a recent Facebook convert and I like it more than MySpace (both personally and professionally). I was surprised to see how many of my professional colleagues were using it to reach out to each other. That leads me to believe that other professionals are using it and they are usually the target audience for apartment advertising. Use this link to sign up your property (individual pages are different than those for a company).
• Twitter - I am all about Twitter and I have been for quite a while. It's taken some time for more people to get online, but now it's the most popular of all social media sites. Hundreds of companies are online reaching out to their customers and it could be very useful for our industry. Bell Partners and McKinley are two companies that have started tweeting company news. In addition to that, Twitter could also be a great place to target specific apartments (maybe from your Hot Sheet). I use it to follow other multifamily executives and our conversations become a great idea sharing forum. You can follow me @DavidKotowski.
• Craigslist- Who isn't posting ads on Craigslist? Everyone should be doing this and many companies are making it easier to create nice looking ads (instead of the boring text and image only ones that are standard). Rentlinx and Postlets are two sites that allow you to create ads and post for free. MyNewPlace customers can sign up for the free service. I've used the MNP version and it's very simple and well designed.
• YouTube - Videos are the best way to promote yourself. I've been doing them for several years and they can be made pretty easily (read my previous article here in case you need information on how to do that). For Rent Magazine has done a lot to expand their video offerings and now make their videos available on YouTube and many other sites.
• 12seconds - I believe that this is going to be the next hot thing. Seriously. I'd compare it to Twitter (where you have a limit of 140 characters), except with videos. You post videos that are 12 seconds long and I think it is a great way to communicate using videos that are quick and informative.
• Yelp - I love Yelp. I've been Yelping for almost 3 years and they have a great free service for business owners. Owners and managers of apartments should verify their communities at biz.yelp.com. You can also reach out through Yelp and offer specials and make announcements. They actually have community managers in several large cities throughout the US, Canada, and England. Some cities get more use than others, so check out your local Yelp community to gauge its usefulness in your market. I found it particularly helpful in Atlanta. Since Yelp is prides itself on "Real People. Real Reviews." it is important that you join as a business owner and not as a regular Yelper. Site users recognize when people join just to shill their company. If you do that you will be publicly humiliated and that's not good for business.

Honestly, I don't even think it's necessary to be on any of these sites. Some of them help you make your sundae, but you can do it all yourself. I am a big believer in the power of having your own blog to sell your meatballs. Read more about that here.

What's working for you? I'd love to hear about other success stories.