Throughout the year, we hear of absolutely amazing companies who are driving innovation within the multifamily industry.  So we are starting a new program to showcase some of these incredible companies once a month, and in the process, negotiate a special deal specifically for our Insider community.  This month's feature is Community Rewards by Modern Message.

Company Showcase:  Community Rewards by Modern Message

(Important:  Don't forget to scroll to the bottom to see the discount we have negotiated for Insiders!)

Using social media is pretty easy, but using social media effectively is a whole different story.  We've seen a lot of communities try hard but ultimately miss the mark when it comes to getting prospects and residents engaged with their online locations, such as their Fan Page.  So this is what Modern Message attempts to tackle - they make it incredibly simple to get residents and prospects engaged with their apartment community, in exchange for prizes and fame within their community.  Each community has the potential to incentivize certain actions in exchange for earning points, which can lead to a selection of prizes for each resident or prospect who plays the Community Rewards "game". 

For example, resident referrals are worth their weight in gold for apartment communities, and Community Rewards makes it incredibly easy and beneficial for residents to spread the word.  For apartment managers, the program automatically tracks resident referrals through their friends' social profiles:

Now, your residents are actively endorsing your community and referring their friends!  Trust me, screenshots do not do this service justice - it is an incredible system from top to bottom.  Here is a list of other valuable actions that Modern Message incentivizes your residents to participate in:  (This list is customizable)

• Like, follow, and +1 your community
• Write a testimonial about your community
• Share your community via Facebook
• Share your community via Twitter
• Email their friends about your community
• Rate your community
• Share a recent Fan Page post from the community
• Post a picture of the community to Instagram with Hashtags
• Play a "Scratch and Win" game for a chance to win prizes
• FAME.  Through the app, your community now has a "Leaderboard", where residents who are incredibly engaged can be showcased.  (See picture below)
• Coming in the future?  If you are a fan of partnership marketing, imagine having the ability to give points to residents and prospects for liking local businesses that partner with you!  That feature isn't available yet, but we discussed it, and shows the potential for future options.  Also, they are working on offering points for signing up for online payments, for checking in at a property event, for paying rent on time, and for completing a property survey!

As you can see in the screenshots, residents and prospects get points for participating in the program.  Some will be competitive by nature and want to simply be at the top of the leaderboard.   But many will play for the prizes, such as gift cards to Amazon, Target, Starbucks, Gap, iTunes, Nike, etc. 

Potential prizes are only limited by your imagination!  Communities have the flexibility to offer any sort of prizes they like, whether it is rent discounts, reserved parking spot access, or even create another partnership marketing opportunity with gift cards to local restaurants or stores.

Bonus for Insiders

I found this quote on their home page, and I have to say that it sums up my experience quite well. 

"I haven't been this impressed with an apartment marketing tool in a long time." Joe Goodwin SVP Marketing - Asset Campus Housing

We agree with Joe on this one, so we are happy to have Modern Message be the first recommended company in the updated Supplier Spotlight program!

We have negotiated a special deal for Insiders - If you sign up right away, you receive 25 free gift cards to give away through the service!  Use Promo Code MFI14 to get the special deal!

Note:  Not only do each of you get a special deal with this code, but this program also helps support Multifamily Insiders so we can continue to bring you educational and networking opportunities.