Last August I wrote a post comparing cited marketing sources from 2007-2010 for the J.C. Hart portfolio as a whole.  The purpose of the post was to show off how our shifted marketing spend away from print has resulted in successes from reinvestment into our own websites and search engine optimization efforts.  In the last couple years we have also reduced our ILS spend and allocated more of our marketing budget to our online efforts.  In my previous post I included some partial data from 2011, but wanted to share where we ended up the year. In 2011 we continued to see print slip down.  We used print on very limited number properties.  The majority of those investments were from brand new lease-up communities in suburban Indianapolis.  We actually had fewer leases attributed to the print guides in 2011 vs. 2010.  This was very interesting as we completed construction and the lease up of 2 properties in 2011 and used print throughout the year for each property.  In 2010 we did not use print through out the year for both communities but saw more success.  It's pretty clear that print's no longer the source it once was, and this was just one more way to prove it to me. Throughout 2011 we were no longer listed with Rent.com.  This was the only ILS we dropped in 2011 and we did get fewer leases cited overall from ILSs as a result.  In 2010 we had 78 leases attributed to Rent.com, but in 2011 we...

By Linda Day Harrison, theBrokerList, Chicago, IL As property owners and managers we need to change our thinking about marketing. For instance, do you have a B2B (business to business) marketing message or do you just focus on B2C (business to consumer) marketing? I would guess that many of you have B2C messages down pat, but fail to focus on B2B. The reason the real estate management industry does not look at itself as playing in the B2B world is due to a myriad of things, but the most pertinent being our training and how we’ve been taught to present ourselves to the marketplace.     For instance, a typical business report about the economy focuses on consumer spending, retail, housing starts, home buyers, and the stock market. There is no mention of the terms we are familiar with, such as number of units, total square feet, vacancy, occupancy, tenants, building improvements, and leases signed. There is no connection to our industry metrics and benchmarks. Our data and statistics are not tracked due to the nature of our business model. It is as if our industry is a forgotten piece of the economic pie. For this reason, I think there is a disconnect in how we really fit into the picture. My intent is to turn the tables and give you some tips on how to improve your B2B marketing messages by giving you the confidence to realize that we are vital to our communities. The B2B marketing message you create...

Last month in the article “The Top Secret Apartment Marketing Weapon: Your Maintenance Team,” I shared my positive experience with a hotel housekeeper and how it made me wonder about the effect a maintenance staff can have on marketing an apartment property. Curious to learn what others thought, I posted some questions in a couple of multifamily LinkedIn groups and Multifamily Insiders: Does your maintenance staff greet your residents? If so, is it in a warm and friendly manner? Does the maintenance staff take the time to learn names of residents, family, and pets? Does your maintenance staff ask residents if they are experiencing any problems? Is your maintenance staff empowered to create a service request or, better yet, fix the problem on the spot if time allows? Based on responses, the bottom line is that property owners and managers view their maintenance teams as important and effective marketers. According to those who responded, maintenance employees can offer a “warm fuzzy” to residents (in some cases they can be considered like family) and “can make or break your asset’s performance.” One even suggested offering tours of the maintenance facility when showing around potential residents. Consider this hypothetical example from one online respondent: Let’s say an apartment property averages six service requests per unit each year. If we assume that the average apartment property has 200 units, a maintenance staff could potentially interact with residents at least 100 percent more than the leasing staff. Think about that. With that amount of...

Pinterest may have a copyright problem. With a recent infusion of venture capital and an explosion of popularity among women, the social network is poised to break into the big leagues. But Pinterest’s selling point – users ‘pinning’ online images onto personal bulletin boards – could also be a major weakness. The web is full of copyright infringement – some malicious, some accidental. Before you put your company’s name on a social media page, you should understand how that site is affected, and how they deal with the problem. Pinterest is a special case because the site’s whole premise revolves around re-using other people’s images. Many brands and individuals are happy for the exposure, as demonstrated by the profusion of ‘Pin It’ buttons across the web. But users can post any image on their computer, and not everyone wants their content re-published. Pinterest responds to infringement claims in accordance with the Digital Media Copyright Act. As you evaluate Pinterest, take time to consider your own social media practices, as well as the way your vendors treat copyright issues. Ask suppliers to verify that they post only text and images they own, or are allowed to post under digital license. This is the only way to keep on the right side of the law. Ensure that your communities provide marketers and social media vendors with text, images or videos they own or are licensed to use. If photos include residents, they must give their permission to publish the images. This can be accomplished...

Like it or not, Facebook isn't afraid to make big changes. And with their announcements earlier this week, they're going to be making some very big changes to business pages, as well as a number of other tools for marketers using the site. We'll focus on the business page updates for now ... trust me, these updates alone will keep you busy for a while. Here are a few of the biggest changes coming to your page(s): Cover Photo The most visible change to the page is the cover photo. (AdAge has a nice roundup of what some big brands are doing with their pages.) The cover image for brand pages is the same size as for individual profiles: 850 pixels wide by 315 pixels tall. Facebook has a few restrictions on what you can include in your cover image -- you can't use the cover image for “promotions, coupons, or advertisements,” and you shouldn't use the image as a call to action (you can't even ask visitors to like your page). That said, it's a wonderful opportunity to display a striking photo of your community or your team. A word of caution here: Facebook is notorious for compressing images, which can really screw with the beautiful cover photo you've created. Once you have your image ready, go to your page's photo albums and add the image through the uploader there. Make sure you select "High Quality" to keep Facebook from squashing your photo too much. No More Default Landing Tab...

When recently asked about which skill I felt was the most important for a real estate developer to possess, I was stumped for about thirty seconds (which is an eternity when someone is staring at you and waiting). My mind raced. How could I not just rattle-off something well thought out and brilliant? Shouldn’t this be a question that every developer must be able to answer without flinching? Well- I flinched. But at the end of that short eternity, my answer was ‘They must be great storytellers.’    I say this for one simple reason: At his most basic level, the developer is a master salesman. We sell our visions and dreams to our investment committees, the communities in which we work, municipalities, equity partners and debt providers, and eventually to the end user.   So what makes someone a great storyteller?   1.       VALUES. More specifically, understanding what your audience values. Unlike a Dr. Seuss fairytale, the developers’ story is intended to illicit a response. It is designed to excite and sway the audience to allow us to build, help the designers understand our vision, invest in our project, lease or purchase from us, etc.  Our story will only connect with the listener if it appeals to what they value. For instance, telling a County Commissioner about how much money you stand to make will not excite them…hearing that same story, your equity partner will be quite pleased. 2.       FOCUS. A good storyteller understands that they are only providing...

I just wanted to share with you some recent insights we gained from a nationwide survey of more than 500 college students in which we asked them about the types of information sources they use when looking for a place to live. No surprise, but Google scores highest among college students as they continue to turn away from traditional advertising – such as ads in campus newspapers – and instead go online to shop for apartments. Fifty-three percent of students we surveyed ranked Google/internet searches as most important in helping them find a place to live. Friends’ recommendations and those from parents followed at 37 percent and 27 percent, respectively. They identified Facebook, ads in the student newspaper, student activities sponsored by apartment communities and online ads/promotions as least important in helping them find an apartment.Our survey also found that 98 percent of college students use Google Search to find information online, and 71 percent of the students ranked Google as the most important website/application they use. Google was followed in order of importance by university websites and Facebook. The students said they rarely turned to Twitter or Google+, which is still relatively new. In fact, the majority of students surveyed said they never use Twitter. We also found that when looking for an apartment, few students use apartment-specific websites, such as apartments.com or apartmentguide.com. Our survey showed they prefer to simply use Internet search engines to find information about apartment communities. As expected, they also placed greater importance on digital...

Valentine’s Day has come and gone, but once again the occasion raised the question; is it a day full of love and romance, or simply an over-glamorized “Hallmark” holiday? During the week of the fourteenth, the topic of Valentine’s took over social media platforms everywhere, as an inundation of tweets and posts told the tale of two hearts, one positive and one negative. As “#HappyValentine’sDay” was a trending topic on Twitter, “#Happytobesingle” followed close behind from those who were not as enthused. Whether the array of red and pink decor, flower bouquets and chocolate heart boxes leave you feeling tickled pink or filled with anxiety and despair, Valentine’s Day still provides some informative takeaways for your business.   1. Don’t limit your gestures to special occasions, spread the love year-round.Although holidays are an appropriate opportunity to show someone you care, provide gifts to family and friends and maybe partake in the annual mingling with relatives, these kind gestures ought to become habit all year long—and your marketing efforts should follow suit. Building relationships and engaging with residents must be an ongoing occurrence, especially in your social media interactions. Share the love each day by setting aside time to interact with residents through social media.   2. Spice things up.Monotony and routine have no place on Valentine’s Day, nor should they appear in your marketing. Keep residents involved and engaged by using different communications outlets and messages. Explore new ways to attract residents while also adding value for current renters. Have you...

By Linda Day Harrison, theBrokerList, Chicago, IL Do you manage your property, or does it manage you? This should be at the forefront of your mind every day. This question is meant to keep you on track and focused. Why? Because property management is an industry that can make or break you! As property managers we are the ultimate in multi-tasking. We know that anyone can become a property manager, but the ones that truly standout and differentiate themselves are the ones that manage their building. Not the other way around. There can be constant interruptions and challenges throughout any given day. The day starts out fine until you get a call about a flooded property, or an unexpected customer complaint. Now you need to drop what you are doing and attend to the crisis at hand. As you begin to tackle this new challenge, it is best to keep reminding yourself that you manage the building, the building does not manage you! When the flood hits, do you have a contingency plan? Why is the customer complaining? Analyze the issue and address the problem. The number one solution is to be proactive. Do all you can to prevent these issues from happening again. Manage it and do not just react to it! When an issue arises, it must be broken down into the smallest components in order to find the reason or cause. Once it has been solved, it is time to develop a new approach or plan so that...

As we look back on 2011, many would classify it as the year that social media finally reached critical mass. Facebook alone amassed more than 800 million users worldwide, and with so many of your residents’ conversations now taking place on Facebook, it’s important that your community has a thriving presence there. Hectic schedules and occasional bouts of writers block impact us all, but remember the words of wisdom below, and you’ll be able to create a vibrant community as you manage your Facebook page with consistency. Secret #1: Setting Goals is the Foundation for SuccessOk, so this probably isn’t the best-kept secret, but setting goals is critical for Facebook success. And you’d be surprised at how few businesses do this well. It’s all too easy to simply make the occasional post to Facebook and call it a day. Setting goals help you avoid the Facebook graveyard – a page with no activity, few interactions and limited engagement with fans. At a minimum, set these two goals: (1) Get 100 percent of your residents who are on Facebook to “like” your page. Sure, it’s aggressive. But having involved residents is ultimately the reason why you’re even on Facebook.  Engaged fans are great for business. (2) Set goals for communicating with your residents at least once per day about topics that aren’t sales- or marketing-related. It can be as simple as letting residents know that the trees are being trimmed on Saturday, and parking will be limited. Having informative conversations creates a...