Archive for the ‘Online Property Management’ Category

www.softwareadvice.com – Great Website With Tons of Helpful Information on Property Management Software

Wednesday, October 21st, 2009

Hey everyone,

We have found a post by Chris Thorman on his Software Advice website about Property Management Software. This article briefly explains the many problems property managers face such as keeping track of resident leads, managing marketing your apartment, building an apartment marketing website, and much much more. Also he brings up a great point on how a recent report by Apartment Internet Marketing shows that 46% of prospective resident leads come in past the normal 9am-5pm operating hours. The article touches on the importance of an online rental application and how collection information from your website can help you know more about your prospective residents such as where they found out about your apartment community… click Property Management Software for more on this post.

How to Win Online Prospects.

Sunday, September 27th, 2009

I recently wrote an article highlighting some key points for lead generation online on ezines.  The address is:

http://ezinearticles.com/?Online-Apartment-Leasing-Leads—How-to-Find-Them-and-How-to-Win-Them&id=2884453

You will find this article different because of the focus on what the process is in the prospect’s head while working with the Internet during the apartment search.  I’d recommend checking out the UrbaneLab for some good ideas regarding how to further decipher this process.  Their address is:

http://www.apartmentveteran.com/

5 Great Apartment Marketing and Management Ideas

Wednesday, September 23rd, 2009

Hey everyone, after reading several reports provided by the National Apartment Association and the National Multi-Housing Council,  I have extracted some of the most valuable apartment marketing ideas and tips. They are listed in order of importance, and if done correctly will help you get more leads, double or triple applications, and significantly improve leasing success. I hope you enjoy!

  1. ALL marketing materials must have your main contact information (This means your online rental application and website address too! – see #2, #3): Let me explain this a bit further. Many people have the misconception that advertising and marketing are the same thing – they are not. It is true that successful marketing will pay huge dividends when advertising, but it is not the same thing. Marketing is the act of creating brand recognition and “buzz” about your company. So, when I say that all of your Marketing Materials must have your main contact information, it means that everything that you produce (news bulletins, surveys, signage, and of course your ads).
  2. You must have a strong Apartment Marketing Website: Your community website should be geared to both your current residents, while catering to new prospective residents. Here is a good example of an Apartment Marketing Website. Your website should have helpful information for your current residents, such as online rent-pay, resident work order request, community news, and a directory of local schools, services, shopping, recreation, etc. Most importantly your website should have well organized and direct sales information for your prospective residents. Floor plans, apartment amenities, discounts, maps/directions, and MOST essential every single page of your apartment marketing website must have a link to a web based rental application (see #3). Here is an example of an Online Rental Application.
  3. Apply NowA link to your Online Rental Application on every page of your Apartment Marketing Website and every single website advertisement: This point goes along with #1. An Online Rental Application will allow your prospective tenants to “contact” you and thus it is part of your contact information! All ads and other online marketing materials should include a link to your website AND a link to your online rental application. VERY IMPORTANT NOTE: If you have your own Online Rental Application, and it is not encrypted, you are liable! You are collecting sensitive renter information, and it is your job to keep that information SAFE!
  4. Respond to prospective resident leads and Online Rental Applications within 60 minutes of being received: Think about your potential resident leads and rental applications as milk left out on the counter. You only have so much time before the milk is sour and can not be salvaged. In our personal experience, Online Rental Applications responded to within the hour they are received, close over 50% of the time if they qualify
  5. Re-adjust office hours: It is a wonder why apartment leasing offices are open during “regular business hours” – 8am-5pm, it just doesn’t make sense. Why is this? After 3 years of research (over 700 Online Rental Applications, and countless leads) and compiling data, we have found that over 50% of leads and Online Rental Applications are received after 5pm! So this means that all of those leads and rental applications are not being responded to within the 60 minute time frame. Also, many people chose to look for apartments after work, after 5pm, and if your not in your office, you are losing leases. The office hours we suggest are 9am-7pm.

I hope you enjoyed it,

Sergio Navarrete

Apartment Marketing by Occupancy100.com

New Occupancy100 Video

Tuesday, September 22nd, 2009

Hey everyone,

We have been working hard to  create as many helpful videos for you to enjoy as possible. Here is a video that explains our apartment marketing solutions, and offers a great overview on Tenant Lead Generation, and the Online Rental Application.

Enjoy!

Online Applications Win 4 to 1 Over Phone Call Leads

Tuesday, September 15th, 2009

We have recently compiled statistics from our own apartment customers that show that a properties receives almost 4 times as many completed online apartment applications as phone calls if the consumer has an option.  This seems a pretty significant fact when an application is much more likely to result in a lease.  This fact follows others we’ve seen from our own experience.  The online  consumer is heavily focused on convenience.  If you deliver convenience the probability of a sale rises sharply.

Online Rental Application and Rental Application Managment Software

Monday, September 14th, 2009

In the past few weeks, we have made several great improvements to our Online Rental Application and our Application Management Software. Please take a moment to watch our 4 minute video:

Download the video below.

Online Rental Application and Management Software

More info on Hispanic Marketing Focus

Monday, August 24th, 2009

We’ve hit many times the fact that Hispanics are the fastest growing resident demographic.  However, did you know that Hispanic Internet usage is growing 50% faster than the general market?  Do you have a strategy for this market area?

If not, keep in mind that most Hispanic searches are in English.  The fact is Hispanic marketing in fact any demographic marketing focus is a cultural item.  For example are you aware that a Hispanic household is 3.5X more likely to respond to a direct mail item than a non-Hispanic Household. This is particularly important when you understand that they only receive 10% of the mail other households receive.

About 55% of Hispanics respond well to ads in Spanish.  Also, Radio and television is generally the best mode of advertising based on selling results.

When you considers Hispanics are $860 billion dollar market segment, ignoring this segment is at your own risk.    This will be an even greater fact as the segment is  expected to grow to over $1 trillion by early in the coming decade.

Good sources for this post were:

MK Blog

The Latino Journal

Online Hispanic Trends

Winning the Renting Game

Monday, August 10th, 2009

Renting apartments is tough business.  For many in the industry, consternation and discomfort is a common reaction to the advent of online sourcing opposed the decline of print advertising is very disturbing.  Traditionally and in fact even  now, the industry is relatively low tech.

The good news is there is no need for most properties to change.  The key is to understand how to tap into online support.  The key is to have a small arsenal of the right tools and to recognize that having those tools does not imply becoming a techno wizard.  The basic elements are a community oriented sharp detailed website, strong ILS support, and a support team that will ensure you have the online exposure you need.  There are numerous tools including Vaultware, Real Page, and our own management services.  Each can serve some or most of your needs.

Combine this with a strong understanding of your competition and the right combination of traditional  factors including property condition, customer service, maintenance quality, tenant management, and signage and you are on your way to a winning combination.

The Name of the Game – Traffic and Closed Leases

Thursday, July 30th, 2009

More traffic… more qualified traffic… better closing techniques are the name of the game for owners and managers.

However, achieving this is a complex task.  A significant key  is recognizing that the American demographic is a changing thing.  Did you know that 72% of new tenants for the next 10 years are expected to be minorities and that half of these will be Hispanic/Latino?  Also, did you realize that this year American schools will graduate the largest class in history?  Or, what about the fact that seniors as a part of population will grow disportionately over the next 10 years.

What about economics?  How does the loss of wealth from the recession impact you?  Or, how will increased savings impact renting?

As owners and manager, studying our markets is critical.  This implies studying our local market and market trends.  This means understanding global trends.  Finally, this implies coming up with techniques to capitalize on these factors once understood and quantified.

Blake Ratcliff – CEO of Pallaton Properties