We audited one of our student housing portfolios a few months back (about 12 properties), and identified ~$50,000-70,000 / year in bloated ad spend. If you are looking to do the same and potentially cut ad spend, read on…

We started by implementing a CRM to track things like lead source, and lead stage in the pipeline. Powerful optimizations begin with good data.

Once we'd collected a year's worth of data, we were able to do some actual analysis on marketing performance overall.

1. Our client was in a highly seasonal market, being in student housing and there were three months a year where their cost per lease was ¼ that of other months. We doubled down during our busy months to pre-lease and get ahead so we could pull back during slow times. Some months we cut spend altogether.
2. We started tracking leads and leases according to the channel they came from (I.e. Zillow, Apartments.com, Google PPC, etc). We also looked at cost per lead, and cost per lease. One ILS cost about 3x more per lease than the next competitor. By pulling those promo packages, and increasing our investment in winners we cut out tens of thousands in bloat.
3. We kept a finger on the pulse of traffic and lead volume throughout our leasing season and adjusted as needed (and still are). So far, our budget is down dramatically from the year before, and we're 85% pre-leased for Fall 2024.

Quick disclaimer – I'm leaving out the names of winning and losing channels because I believe that some markets perform differently than others. I.e. there are apartments.com markets, zillow markets, etc,. I believe it is important to collect data from your particular market, and do your research to make the most of your campaign.

As a finance guy turned marketer, data and analytics get me excited. I believe that good tracking, and simple analysis can lead to powerful returns from both a cost and an ROI standpoint.