It's a sad fact of life that 50% of marriages end in divorce. Combine that fact with these staggering statistics: 67% of second and 74% of third marriages end in divorce. What does this mean for the apartment industry?
It means lots of single people looking for new homes. Rather than viewing this as capitalizing on someone else's misery, you should view it as saving the day. They need a home- often quickly. You provide homes and a community of people to support them in this new uncertain time of their lives. By making this big step easier on new divorcees and their children, you look like a super hero.
In order to aide this group of transitioning people, you first have to find them, right?
- Make friends with local divorce attorneys- they can refer their clients to you. Partnering with them the same way you would a locator- they may not live at your community, but they could be rewarded for their referrals. Better yet, if you have attorneys that live onsite, have an honest conversation with them about the benefits of referring their clients. (Tip: understandably, they may not want to refer their clients to live right next to them, so consider offering them rewards for referrals to sister communities to give everyone a little more space.)
- Be sure to be consistent in your advertising with city employees- especially those in courthouses and the DMV (where people go to change their names). Explain that your intentions are to help families going through tough times as opposed to poaching defenseless divorcees and your message will be spread far and wide. It never hurts to have friends in these offices!
- And last but not least, don't forget the local schools. Parents trust teachers and other school staff to take care of their children, so you can bet they'll ask around at the school when they need a new place to live. Keep on the radar of the school employees by regularly taking goodies such as number two pencils, big bottles of hand sanitizer and any other goodies that schools are short on. Not sure? Ask! They'll be happy to tell you what they need. Attach your marketing materials and be sure to try to chat up as many people as possible. Your friendly attitude is what they will remember most when a mom or dad comes to them for relocation suggestions.