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Apartment Marketing: Print Advertising for Dummies

Jan 18th, 2010
by daisynguyen.
4 comments

 I was recently invited to be a “pro” for an event at the local apartment association in my area, MHA. One of the recurring questions was, “What elements make up a successful marketing plan?”

 For me, marketing apartments is a multi-step process. A successful marketing plan must understand the different steps, set goals for each step, and find ways to achieve those goals.

 For this blog article, I’m going to focus on Print Advertising as one element of a marketing plan. Your apartment community may or may not have a Print Advertising element, but if it DOES, you’ll want to read this article.

 What do you think the purpose of your print advertisement is? When I ask this question, most managers, leasing agents, marketers tell me, “the purpose of print advertising is to lease apartments.” To some extent, yes, however, the real goal of print advertising is to 1.) STAND OUT, 2.) BE MEMORABLE, 3.) GET YOUR PROSPECTS TO SEEK MORE INFO. (i.e. get your prospects to your website!)

(Picture provided by TMAN2003 on flickr through creative commons license.) 

The end goal of ALL of your marketing & leasing efforts should be to lease apartments. Your Print advertising has to do the 3 things outlined above.

 Have you looked at a FOR RENT Magazine or APARTMENT FINDER Magazine lately? (I am not affiliated with either FOR RENT or APARTMENT FINDER in any way.) In my area, there is probably 200 different choices of apartments in the magazine. As a prospect, the magazine is AWESOME, as it aggregates many of the available choices. However, from YOUR apartment’s standpoint, you should start thinking about HOW DO I 1.) STAND OUT, 2.) BE MEMORABLE, 3.) GET PROSPECTS TO SEEK MORE INFO. (i.e. get your prospects to your website!)

 Last year, I did a focus group at an apartment complex and asked the renters, what they wanted to see out of advertisements. They came up with the typical list of about 10 items long, including pricing, location, amenities, etc. Makes sense. When you look at an apartment magazine, most of the ads have several bullet points highlighting what they feel is best about their apartment community.

 During this same focus group, we asked the renters to leaf through an apartment magazine and pick out the advertisement that they were most drawn to. 100% of the focus group selected an ad that had nothing but a BIG fancy picture, the website, phone# and the name of the apartment community.

 What we found: What people want and what they are drawn to (i.e. sticks out, is memorable, makes them seek out more information) are 2 DIFFERENT things. We then decided that the goal of our print advertising HAD to be 1.) STAND OUT, 2.) BE MEMORABLE, 3.) GET PROSPECTS TO SEEK MORE INFO. (i.e. get your prospects to your website!)

 I’m not advocating that you take the pricing out of your print ads (maybe your pricing IS the memorable thing) - what I AM saying is that YOU must decide what the purpose of your print ad campaign is, and find ways to meet THAT goal. (And you can have more than 1 goal for an element.) Once you figure that out, go back and discuss ALL the elements of your marketing campaign, outline goals for each step, and try to meet THAT goal for THAT step. Don’t try to lease apartments when what you need to do is CAPTURE someone’s attention and get them to WANT to find out more about your apartment community.

 Here are some sample goals that have worked in the past:

 1.) Goal of print advertising is to drive people to our website.

 2.) Goal of our website is to get prospects to pick up the phone and call us.

 3.) Goal of the phone call is to get prospect to commit to a tour.

 4.) Goal of the leasing tour is to get the prospect to lease the apartment.

 Depending on your community, your marketing resources, you may have different elements, and different goals. Decide what those elements are, how to make them successful, and meet your marketing goals!

Don’t get it? RENT SODA. GET IT!

-Daisy Nguyen in Minneapolis, Minnesota MN

CEO

RENTSODA-small

Business & Marketing Consulting to the Apartment Industry

Web: RentSoda.com   Email: Daisy {at} RentSoda(.)com

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Land of Opportunity or BUST! Do You See the Land of Opportunity?

Jan 6th, 2010
by daisynguyen.
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Have you ever noticed the people who complain about the lack of opportunities are also the ones that are the first to say they are too busy to join, have too much work to do, can’t take on another project, and are the ones turning away perfectly good opportunities? Complain, complain, complain, blah, blah, blah. If I were ole “Opportunity,” I would knock on another door too.

(Picture provided by Dominic’s Pics on Flickr through Creative Commons license.)

How can you position yourself to invite more opportunity?

1. Stop Complaining. Not only is this a negative, unproductive opportunity, you can’t hear when opportunity DOES knock.

2. Choose one of the following statements for the day:

A. I make things happen!

B. Things happen to me.

Hopefully, you chose option A. You’re one step closer to inviting more opportunity! If you have chosen B, there’s no one who can help you. Go back to bed. Wake up tomorrow and choose A.

3. HELP yourself. If there is a lack of opportunity in your life, stop and figure out WHY. Take some responsibility on WHY you are in this situation – and take a step to move yourself OUT of the situation. If it’s because you don’t have a degree, sign up for 1 class. Small step, but BOY, you’d be 1 class closer to a degree than you were yesterday. If you’re looking for a job, and the only place you are looking is on monster.com – you’re missing out on the majority of the job market. Most jobs never hit the classifieds! (CNNMoney.com reports over 80% of jobs are never advertised.) Figure out what you’re missing and find a way to GET IT! Stop finding excuses, start finding solutions. Make it YOUR business to be IN business. ENGAGE yourself fully!

4. Forgive yourself for any mistakes, and know that YOU are WORTHY of success beyond your wildest dreams. Most people sabotage themselves – the reason most people don’t succeed isn’t for lack of trying, its lack of belief in themselves. My favorite quote, “Whether you think you can, or you think you can’t, you’re usually right.” (Henry Ford) Why not be right about your success?

How does this apply to our apartment industry?

With this economy, so many people are singing the blues. I GET IT. It’s a tough market. So what? We’re all in this market together. If both you & I are operating in the same market, all’s fair. Go through steps 1-4 not only for yourself, but for your apartment community, for your team, for your career, for your staff. Stop complaining about the market and making excuses. Start finding solutions. Engage in your community’s success. Participate and engage in your community. Forgive yourself, your staff for not being able to run it like it WAS, and run your apartment community the way you CAN, and not the way you CAN’T.

Winston Churchill said, ”

“A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty.”

Do you see difficulties or opportunities in your future? Do you see the Land of Opportunity?

Don’t get it? RENT SODA. GET IT!

-Daisy Nguyen in Minneapolis, Minnesota MN

CEO

RENTSODA-small

Business & Marketing Consulting to the Apartment Industry

Web: RentSoda.com   Email: Daisy {at} RentSoda(.)com

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Success in the Apartment Industry: Where do you Participate, Participate, Participate?

Jan 3rd, 2010
by daisynguyen.
1 comment

So you read my PARTICIPATE in your SUCCESS article, and your new year’s resolution is to participate in your industry, your career, and your success. Where to start?

No better place than with a recommendation from your peers!

Please leave a comment on where in the industry you are participating, and any comment you feel relevent. AND, if there’s a link, GREAT!

I’ll start:

MN MHA -non-profit local apartment association: http://www.mmha.com – they have focus groups that are always looking for more volunteers. I have met some industry GREATS in these groups, and we have made a difference for our industry!

Aeon – Homes for Generations: http://aeonmn.org – this is a non-profit affordable housing provider in Minnesota. They have many volunteer oppotunities, AND, they are always looking for people who are interested in serving on the Board of Directors to apply.

I also attend several networking events put on my a local neighborhood association called the Uptown Minneapolis Association. I’ve met some AWESOME people here and now also write for the Uptown Neighborhood News through connections I made at the networking events!

What’s your New Year’s resolution to PARTICIPATE?

 Don’t get it? RENT SODA. GET IT!

-Daisy Nguyen in Minneapolis, Minnesota MN

CEO

RENTSODA-small

Business & Marketing Consulting to the Apartment Industry

Web: RentSoda.com   Email: Daisy {at} RentSoda(.)com

Become a fan of RENTSODA on facebook.  Connect with RENTSODA on LinkedIn!

Follow RENTSODA on Twitter!

Picture provided by Baratunde on Flickr through Creative Commons license.

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How To Be Successful In The Apartment Industry: Participate, Participate, Participate!

Dec 30th, 2009
by daisynguyen.
8 comments

I’ve had a LOT of conversations recently, and one topic has been a recurring theme: Success. Two recurring questions: 1.) How do we make our apartment communities more successful? 2.) How do we make OURSELVES more successful?

As a consultant and a writer of a popular industry blog, I meet with A LOT of people. I meet with EVERY kind of person in the industry from site personnel to vendors at every level, from to Regional Managers to directors to VP’s to CEO’s/COO’s/CFO’s, to developers, partners, investors & owners of apartment communities.

My answer is ALWAYS the same: PARTICIPATE, PARTICIPATE, PARTICIPATE!

1.) PARTICIPATE: Participate in something bigger and greater than your own apartment community. I KNOW you have a million things to do and there isn’t another minute you can commit to someone new, but YOUR PARTICIPATION in something greater will return ten-fold to your success at your apartment community, as well as return ten-fold in your own personal successes. I’ll go out on a limb here and say – I PROMISE that any participation you give will be returned to you ten fold. If not, give me a call, and I’ll take you to lunch and eat my words.

2.) PARTICIPATE: Don’t just JOIN your local apartment association, JOIN, PARTICIPATE, ENGAGE! There is no better way to work/network with other industry professionals in your market than at your local apartment association. Chances are, they ARE looking for volunteers to participate in committees, tasks forces, surveys, focus groups, etc. Do you think that your opinion doesn’t count? In an industry that serves this many people, YOUR opinion DOES count. For every 1 person who DOES participate, there are dozens if not hundreds of people who do NOT participate. YOUR opinion COUNTS simply because you have made a commitment and gotten involved. Is your local association too small? Help them grow and expand by getting more people involved. Hey – it’s YOUR local apartment association – make it truly YOURS.

3.) PARTICIPATE: Participate in a local non-profit in your market. This could be a local non-profit housing provider OR this could be a local non-profit community group. As with your local association, they ARE looking for volunteers for their boards, focus groups, tasks forces, surveys, fund-raisers, etc! Especially in this market and economy, they need your expertise. Find something that MOVES you and PARTICIPATE with THEM. You will be in for one of the most rewarding commitments you can make. I know it is MY most rewarding commitment – who knew that working for free has its rewards?

How does this help you with the success at your apartment community? In participating, you’ll hear from other industry professionals, like yourself (and some NOT so like you!). You’ll hear different ideas, different perspectives, different personalities. You’ll learn, you’ll grow, you’ll make new friends that can last a lifetime. You’ll meet tons of new vendors that are PARTICIPATING. – I love vendors who participate – it tells me they are committed to the industry’s success  and not just their own. You will be exposed to ideas, people, information and opportunities that you did NOT have access to prior to your participation. You’ll be the first to know about networking events hosted by your local association, notified of training opportunities produced by the local association, be in the “know” new trends and products and through your expanding network, get to know the world OUTSIDE of your box. You can take these new ideas, exposures and bring them back to your apartment and apply them to make your apartment community more successful and making you more successful. Talk about a WIN-WIN! That’s a SCORE!

In case you are wondering, I participate in my local apartment association, MN Multi-Housing Association (MHA) – one of the best and nationally recognized associations in the U.S. (http://mmha.com/ ) or check them out on facebook!

Participation with your local non-profit brings challenges and HUGE rewards. I participate in a local non-profit affordable housing provider called AEON. (Or you can check them out on facebook. I also mention them in a past blog article.) The challenges are the time commitment involved and understanding that non-profits work a little differently. The rewards are much the same as in the local apartment association – I have chosen to surround myself with other successful people who are COMMITTED to the same CAUSE that I am committed to. The people in that group are as wide as our industry – and every one of them smart, driven and a FORCE to be reckoned with. The contributions I have made by participating have been returned to me ten-fold in the form of new ideas, new connections, new perspectives and new friends.

In a world and time where it is so easy to get caught up in OUR OWN little dramas, a more global PARTICIPATION can help us bring additional focus to our apartment communities and to our own careers. It’s YOUR community, it’s YOUR career! PARTICIPATE and make it truly YOURS!

With New Year’s coming – make it a New Year’s resolution to PARTICIPATE!

 Don’t get it? RENT SODA. GET IT!

-Daisy Nguyen in Minneapolis, Minnesota MN

CEO

RENTSODA-small

Business & Marketing Consulting to the Apartment Industry

Web: RentSoda.com   Email: Daisy {at} RentSoda(.)com

Become a fan of RENTSODA on facebook.  Connect with RENTSODA on LinkedIn!

Follow RENTSODA on Twitter!

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“Professionally Managed by…” What does THAT mean?

Dec 28th, 2009
by daisynguyen.
2 comments

Recently, a close friend of mine asked me, “what does professionalism mean to you & how does it pertain to our apartment industry? I want our company to be more ‘professional’ and I want to better understand what that means.” THIS – from one of the smartest most professional people I know? I took the question seriously.

My first attempt: Duh! Professional is… you know, someone who conducts business in a professional manner – you know – a professional!! It’s one of those terms that gets thrown around a lot, but what does it REALLY mean?

I pondered some more and I realized it was a VERY relevant question to our apartment/property management/real estate development industry. There are numerous property management companies out there:  from the biggest of big – the HUGE REITS, to the smallest of small – the “mom & pop” duplexes managed by (you guessed it,) ”mom & pop.” How do we define “professional” and “professionalism” in an industry that is so wide? And, maybe more importantly, you are wondering – why would we want to? And who cares?

YOU SHOULD care. It matters to your customer. It matters to your clients. It matters to your existing and prospective employees. It is your reputation. It matters to the industry as a whole, as it is those few “unprofessional” landlords that make the rest of us look like ogres. If you claim to be “Professionally managed by ABC Management Company,“ what exactly does THAT mean?

The first image that popped into my mind when the word “professional” is mentioned is men and women in suits. But just wearing a suit doesn’t mean you are professional. There are plenty of unprofessional things done in suits these days! 

Then I thought about professional athletes – these guys do NOT wear suits at all! YET, they are definitely professional athletes nonetheless. So maybe, being “professional” means your talent is worth a lot. Then my thoughts wandered to McDonald’s – they serve burgers. The burgers are cheap. It doesn’t take talent to make cheap burgers. BUT, McDonald’s is definitely a professional organization – and a very successful one too! Not only do they sell cheap burgers where no talent is required to make the burgers, they don’t wear suits. Suits. NFL. McDonald’s.

 What did these have in common that could help me to define professionalism and how does it pertain to the apartment industry?

 It finally dawned on me, what all these had in common, and why it should matter to you:

 1.) Professionalism is all about expectations and standards. As an organization, one of the best things you can do for yourself, your clients, your employees, AND your reputation, is to set a standard. The NFL has standards for their athletes – and each team has its own standards. Everyone is expected to play at or above those standards. For McDonald’s, the standard is a very small narrow window of what the customer can expect from the restaurant, the food, and the service. Customers expect their experience to be the same or very similar at every McDonald’s whether it is a McDonald’s in downtown LA or in suburbia: It’s a McDonald’s burger. Having standards can contribute positively to your customer experience. If customers know what to expect, and they receive it (whatever THAT standard is that you’ve set) this results in a positive experience. McDonald’s has a standard, and their customers know what to expect from them. A person wanting a gourmet steak burger is not going to wander into McDonald’s and then become disappointed at the burger experience.

 What is the standard at your property or management company? Do you customers, vendors, and employees know what to expect? You have the ability to set those expectations – and more importantly increase the likelihood that the customer experience is positive – by setting realistic expectations that you have specifically trained your employees to attain.

 2.) So then, what’s up with the suits? I realized that it wasn’t about the SUITS as much as what the suits represent – it represents an image. In the NFL, each team has a uniform – which they all wear proudly. At McDonald’s – there is a uniform that serves a dual purpose – to project a consistent image of McDonald’s as well as to provide clothing that can be abused in a restaurant setting and still fit into the McDonald’s image. Does your image project “Professionally managed by ABC Apartments?” or does it say, “the uniform stinks, I hate this job, and I don’t care enough about my job to care how I look?” What image are you portraying, and does it fit into the standards that you set in #1 above?

 3.) Lastly, for an organization or a site to be “professional,” the standards of conduct and the “professional” image need to apply to everyone. – Whether it is consistency in behavior, or consistency in image, or consistency in the treatment of staff, or consistency of how residents are treated, – professional in an organization is as much about consistency as it is about standards and image. I’m not advocating that you require your maintenance staff to wear suits. What I AM advocating is there is consistency in the messages that you send. Everyone on your team needs to have the same consistent (hopefully high) level of customer service that your residents can come to expect out of their “professionally managed” apartment building.

 Is your apartment community “Professionally managed by … ” What does this mean to you?

 Don’t get it? RENT SODA. GET IT!

-Daisy Nguyen in Minneapolis, Minnesota MN

CEO

RENTSODA-small

Business & Marketing Consulting to the Apartment Industry

Web: RentSoda.com   Email: Daisy {at} RentSoda(.)com

Become a fan of RENTSODA on facebook.  Connect with RENTSODA on LinkedIn!

Follow RENTSODA on Twitter!

Image provided by Jesse Draper on Flickr through creative commons license.

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How do you FEEL? Success – It's all in the details.

Dec 18th, 2009
by daisynguyen.
3 comments

Consider these 2 statements:

1.) Things happen to me. 2.) I make things happen.

A small change in a statement can make a STATEMENT! A very subtle change to the sentence, but the way you FEEL when you say sentence #1 vs sentence #2 makes a WORLD of difference.

We are all so concentrated on the BIG picture and global problems of our businesses that many times, the little details can become forgotten or lost. Everyone is worried about their vacancy rate and their cash flow. You might have 20 apartments to lease, you’re thinking about how to stretch your budget, put together a resident party and conduct employee reviews. Who would have time for the little details – especially RIGHT NOW?

But, consider this: It IS the little details that can get you from good to GREAT, it is the little details that can make you FEEL good or feel NOT so good. If a small change in a sentence can make you FEEL so different, what kind of small changes can you make in your business that can make you, your customers, your vendors, and your staff FEEL as empowered as statement#2: I MAKE THINGS HAPPEN ?

The most basic detail we are overlooking is how we feel. Take a fresh look at everything that effects your business, and ask the question, “How do I feel when I look at this?” Because if you ask that question and can find a truthful answer, how you feel may very well be how others feel when they look at you, your product, your office, your apartment community, your business.

Let’s take for example your office/leasing space. Clear your mind and stop thinking about the million of things you have to do, need to get to, or wish you could do. Instead, clear your mind and walk into the front door of your leasing office and ask yourself, “how does it make me feel?” Does it feel warm and inviting? Does it feel cluttered? Does it feel peaceful? Is it noisey?

Take a look at these three pictures of leasing offices and see how you feel about the office and desk:

PIC#1:

 If this looks like your desk, we need to talk. The good news is, some small changes can make a HUGE difference. When I look at this picture, I feel ANXIOUS, CLUTTERED, claustrophobic, disorganized, overwhelmed. What do you feel? If your office looks even remotely like this, just think how difficult it is to lease apartments when your prospect feels anxious and disorganized when sitting in your office? Additionally, they could be thinking, “If I turn in my rent check, is she going to loose it? If I have a maintenance request, will it get completed on time?”

PIC#2:

This office looks better, but only when you compare it to office #1. There is good lighting (which makes a HUGE difference on how a space FEELS), there is seating available for prospects, BUT, the seat is covered with “stuff.” When look at this picture, I feel UNWELCOMED, BUSY, confused. This person clearly knows what they are doing, as it is somewhat organized, but it makes me feel like an intruder, as I’m not sure how I fit into this setting. (Where do I sit? If I DO get to sit in the green chair, I feel like I could be disrupting this person’s “organized chaos.” If I am a resident here, I would still feel unwelcome in this office. This is not how a prospect OR resident should feel when sitting in your office.

Pic#3:

This office is the best one of the bunch. Any clutter is neatly organized in drawers or behind screened cubes. The color pallet is soothing. The lighting is good. When I look at this picture, I FEEL calm, organized, welcome. This would be a great office to ask for that sale, sign leases, meet with residents. You can’t tell from this picture, as this office is so small that we had to get into the closet to take this picture – there IS a desk that fits and feel as calming and soothing as this office wall. There are a few small details I would recommend on this office to create an even greater sense of calm and welcome – 1.) Paint the wall space between the credenza and upper cabinets the same calming blue/teal color that is in the upper cabinets. This will create a focal point away from the printer/scanner, and away from the overhead files. 2.) Hide the wireless router. It’s wireless, it should still work in a drawer or even under the credneza. 3.) Hang the art horizontally along that wall – centered between the upper cabinets and the credenza. Again, to create a calm, soothing focal point that leads the eye away from anything that can be percieved as not calm – i.e. the printer & scanner & hole punch. Just think how many apartments can get leased in this office vs #1 or #2?

Do this exercise with your models, your print ads, your curb appeal. How do these things make you FEEL when you are looking at it? However YOU feel, you can expect your prospects, residents, visitors, and vendors to feel the same way when they walk in. It’s hard to do business, conduct business, sign leases, if people feel anxious, confused or unwelcome. Make the changes necessary for your business to be successful.

If you are having a hard time clearing your mind and doing this exercise, take pictures of the space in question, and show it to your friends, co-workers, business network, and ask them how THEY feel. From there, work on making some small adjustments to get your spaces feeling calm, inviting and soothing. If all else fails, call in an expert like an interior decorator or feng shui expert. It is amazing how some inexpensive adjustments like rearranging furniture, creating focal points, creating mood with paint, hiding/organizing clutter in drawers/behind screens, etc can make you feel. This doesn’t need to be an expensive exercise by any means.

If you still don’t believe me, repeat these statements again:

1.) Things happen to me.

2.) I make things happen.

How do you feel? What will you choose? Make something happen TODAY!

Don’t Get it? RENT SODA. GET IT!

-Daisy Nguyen in Minneapolis, Minnesota

CEO

RENTSODA-small

Business & Marketing Consulting to the Apartment Industry

Web: RentSoda.com   Email: Daisy {at} RentSoda(.)com

Become a fan of RENTSODA on facebook.  Connect with RENTSODA on LinkedIn!

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What should we be "facebooking?" in the Multi-Family industry?

Dec 1st, 2009
by daisynguyen.
1 comment

OK, so now that we’ve established that facebook does have a positive ROI, that we SHOULD be “doing it,” the question naturally becomes, how/what should we be “doing” on facebook?

This is PART III of a 3-part series. You can read the intro here:

Intro: 3 facebook questions everyone asks when starting out… 

OR Part I: The ROI of Facebook – the Value of Creating Community

OR Part II: Facebook-itis: Addressing the Fear of Facebook head-on!

This is a loaded question, as many times, in our industy, we are focused on leasing apartments. We naturally want to tout our advatanges and post our specials – the way our traditional marketing avenues with print advertising and ILS’s have allowed us to do. Please keep in mind that for our industry (as we have now discussed on the ROI of facebook – the Value of Creating Community), facebook CAN be a marketing tool, however, it is first and foremost a connecting and communications tool to creating and fostering community. Facebook is NOT traditional, so to be able to use it as a marketing tool, we will need to think about it non-traditionally. Throw away those ideas of just blasting what your community is about, “advertising” specials, or listing prices. To better help you determine what you should be “doing” on facebook, let’s address a couple of basic questions:

  1. Who do you think your community’s “friend” or “fan” is?
  2. Why do you think they are would accept a “friend” or “fan” request from you?
  3. What do you think your “friends” or “fans” are there to see/hear?

These are the questions you SHOULD be asking and answering to determine what SHOULD go on your facebook page. IF your facebook page consists of 100 eager prospects just waiting for a rent special so that they can finally sign a lease with you, than by all means, advertise your rent specials.

I don’t think this will be the case for 99% of sites out there!

I’d like to open this up for discussion. Please leave a comment that answers the 3 questions noted above. If you don’t feel comfortable leaving a public comment, email me! (Daisy {at} rentsoda(.)com) My next article will compile all your private and public comments to share with all. (If you email me privately, I will leave include your comment, but won’t quote you. If you leave a public comment, I may quote you & link to your company. – OR tell me how you want it handled!)

Don’t Get it? RENT SODA. GET IT!

-Daisy Nguyen in Minneapolis, Minnesota

CEO

RENTSODA-small

Business & Marketing Consulting to the Apartment Industry

Web: RentSoda.com   Email: Daisy {at} RentSoda(.)com

Become a fan of RENTSODA on facebook.  Connect with RENTSODA on LinkedIn!

Follow RENTSODA on Twitter!

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Facebook-itis: Addressing the fear of facebook head on!

Nov 18th, 2009
by daisynguyen.
1 comment

Part II: Facebook-itis: Addressing the fear of facebook head on! AKA Should my site(s)/apartment community(s) ”do” facebook? - This is usually asked by someone who realizes that they NEED to be on Facebook – because everyone ELSE is thinking about it or already “DOING IT.” Heard the buzz, now wondering…

This is PART II of a 3-part series. You can read the intro here:

3 facebook questions everyone asks when starting out… 

OR Part I: The ROI of Facebook – the Value of Creating Community

This is a great question. And the answer is as simple as YES.

KNOW THIS: In the Multi-family residential industry, we know who our typical renter demographic is - the biggest group of renters is ages 18-30. (Demographic information from NMHC - to see more demographic information, click here.) Our second biggest group, ages 30 – 44, and then 3rd largest demographic age group is 45-64, and then 4th is 65+.

KNOW THIS: Facebook demographics, as reported by istrategylabs.com as of 07/04/09, reported that the largest demographic of facebook users, ages 18 – 34 years old, totalled over 36MILLION users. The 2nd biggest demographic age group reported was 35-54 years old - totalled over 20MILLION users. The 55+years old user group totaled over 6MILLION users. The 55+ group was growing at a rate of 513% from the first half of 2009. (For complete istrategylabs.com statistics on facebook-click here. To see facebook’s statistics click here.) If your renter or prospect isn’t already on facebook, they WILL be. Will you be there to welcome them?

Technology continues to change, and with change comes new technology. Stay current with the new technologies – that’s how today’s business is done. (And for the most part, they can make life easier!)

If you think facebook maybe a fad – so what? A fad that has the attention of over 62MILLION U.S. users. WOW. GET IT while the gettin’s good. And if something else comes along, you can get GET THAT too.

And what about fear? Let’s address those fears quickly: Fear that you maybe exposing yourselves to liability? Fear that you may project the wrong image? Or fear that you may say the wrong things? Or fear that this might be too much work?

Well, to quote one of John Mayer’s recent tweets, ” …life may continue to be hard for you.” (For John Mayer’s full tweet/quote in its original context, click here and look at November 7th, 2009′s tweet.)

-Hey, I’m just being real. Agree? Disagree? LOVE IT? HATE IT? Still undecided? Want to chat? Leave me a comment!

Don’t Get it? RENT SODA. GET IT!

-Daisy Nguyen in Minneapolis, Minnesota

CEO

RENTSODA-small

Business & Marketing Consulting to the Apartment Industry

Web: RentSoda.com   Email: Daisy {at} RentSoda(.)com

Become a fan of RENTSODA on facebook.  Connect with RENTSODA on LinkedIn!

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The ROI of facebook – the value of creating community

Nov 16th, 2009
by daisynguyen.
7 comments

OK, so the million dollar question is:

What is the ROI (Return on Investment) of facebook for my site? Usually followed up by – how many leases can I get from facebook? Serious questions, and just like an owner/investor/upper management to get to the point – eh?

Well, short answer is your ROI is either 0% (yes you read it right, ZERO) or 100% depending on how you look at it. Intrigued? Read on…

This is PART I of a 3-part series. You can read the intro here:

3 facebook questions everyone asks when starting out… 

Facebook is all about creating community.  It’s all about people connecting with other people because they have at least one thing in common. There is a group for just about anything and everything, from politics, to sports, to music. Some as broad as “I Love Music” fan page which has over 2.4million fans, to the more specific, like “Sting” fan page that has over 300,000 fans, to your local band, who may have 100 fans.

Your apartment/site IS a community – whether you are 30 units or 300 units or 968 units, your apartment IS a community. Your #1 person on site – their title is “COMMUNITY MANAGER.” hmmmm….

Before facebook, and it wasn’t so long ago, most sites had a bulletin board of some sort. The community manager &  staff would decorate this board, organize it, and make sure it fit within the guidelines of your community in appearance and postings. You allowed residents to post random things on there, like “looking for roommate,” or “need a pet sitter from Jan 1 – Jan 8th, willing to trade services,” to “Lost Camera – gray, please contact Jon,” to “Superbowl Party - come join us in Apt#101!” Does anyone know what the ROI of this bulletin board was?

Before facebook, the savvy community manager created that sense of community with their interactions, their presence, their personality. What is the ROI on creating a sense of community?

Today, FACEBOOK. And its not just a little bulletin board. It’s BIG, in a BIG BIG way. Instead of that physical board, or the need to be physically AT a site or physically interacting with a community manager to get that sense of community, facebook helps you streamline that process. With a few clicks, your site has a central communication tool for your residents. Who better to control that tool than YOU? As before, you control what it looks like, what is said, and what is allowed. YOU get to set that example of community, nourish it, encourage it. You create that sense of community, you ARE that personality. Unlike that bulletin board, this online community can reach more than just your current residents. It’s out there in cyberspace – and guess what? Your prospects are going to check out what kind of community you allow, encourage and nourish. Sure, your prospects will visit your website. AND, they’ll also visit apartmentratings.com. But more importantly, they WILL look for your facebook page. What will they see?

So now, all the sudden the online community that you’ve been nourishing, encouraging, allowing, is not just a communications tool for your current residents. It is a marketing tool that you can use to reinforce your community image. People want to see who you (ABC Apartments) are and how you interact. They’ve already seen your website, they’ve already read the reviews on apartmentratings.com (and still interested!) and now they are serious. They want to know you, your apartment community. They are ready, eager, and willing to learn. This is your prospect who is ready to make a decision. And this is the best time to capture them. Are you ready?

So then the questions become: Why facebook? If I’m not really getting hard leasing numbers from using facebook, why do it at all? Why can’t I just direct people to my website? Its better designed, it looks great, it has a lot of information, THAT’s the image we want to project!

Because your residents/prospects are ALREADY on facebook. YOU want to connect with THEM, in a way that they prefer, are already used to, and feel safest. If you’re not already doing it, who’s to say, they won’t go ahead and create their own group? What if someone created a group called “The residents of ABC Apartments,” and you weren’t a part of that? Worse than not a part being a part of that – you would have no control over the group if someone else sets it up.

GET THIS: Today, you may not be able to measure exactly how may leases you will get from facebook. How do you measure all the leases you are missing out on? How many times did you miss an opportunity when your prospect was, ready, eager & willing?

GET THIS: You should already be using facebook as a communications tool for your current residents. If it also serves a marketing purpose … well then the ROI just doubled. (This is truly killing 2 birds with 1 stone…)

The ROI of facebook is all about the value of creating community. Emphasize the “community” in “apartment community.” Emphasize the “community” in “community manager.” Create that community. That community suddenly doubles as a marketing tool.

So, what’s the ROI on facebook for your community?

Don’t Get it? RENT SODA. GET IT!

-Daisy Nguyen

CEO

RENTSODA-small

Web: RentSoda.com

Email: Daisy {at} RentSoda(.)com

Blog: RentSoda.Wordpress.com

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3 Facebook questions everyone asks when starting out…

Nov 16th, 2009
by daisynguyen.
5 comments

People ask me all the time about facebook. Some people are just confused, some are scared, some are excited, some are clueless, still others hesitant, and then there are those who FAKE it! (You know who I’m talking about!) Why all the confusion? Why all the ruckus? I just don’t get it, and if you have been reading my posts and know my tagline, well, I GET IT. But all this confusion is…confusing!

So, let’s talk it out, or should I say, blog it out. I’ve narrowed down the top three questions I get asked most often:

1.) What is my ROI when using facebook as a marketing tool? – This is usually asked by various levels of upper management – your CEO’s/COO’s/VP’s/Director’s. Occasionally a very business-minded manager also ponders this out loud.

2.) Should my site(s) “do” facebook? – This is usually asked by someone who realizes that they NEED to be on Facebook – because everyone ELSE is thinking about it or already “DOING IT.”

3.) What should we (as sites) be “doing” on facebook? – This is usually asked by someone who has just opened up a facebook account and realizes they don’t know what to say or “do.” Their friend list consists of 22 people - 10 of whom are vendors, 8 are competitors, 1 is their mother, and the last 3, they *hope* are residents or prospects of their apartment community. OUCH.

Don’t get me wrong, there are a TON of other questions, but these are the ones I get asked most often. AND, very relevant questions for beginning users, intermediate users, and advanced users. As an industry, we need to understand these 3 questions – and GET IT – right.

HEAVY questions – this week, I will be writing a series of 3 posts to address each of these questions in a little more depth, but keeping each post at a reasonably short length. Hopefully I can make light of the  questions and have some fun while I’m at it! The good news: by asking these questions, you are on the right track to GET IT!

Don’t Get it? RENT SODA. GET IT!

-Daisy Nguyen in Minneapolis, Minnesota

CEO

RENTSODA-small

Business & Marketing Consulting to the Apartment Industry

Web: RentSoda.com   Email: Daisy {at} RentSoda(.)com

Become a fan of RENTSODA on facebook.  Connect with RENTSODA on LinkedIn!

Follow RENTSODA on Twitter!

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