Creating Demand When What You Offer Is Not Enough

No pool?

Wish you had a workout room?

Kitchens with old appliances?

In my career there is one thing I love more than leasing apartments and that is to
get on stage and talk about great leasing techniques. But to be a believable
speaker, I have to do what I speak about with my audiences. This is why I
love to pick up the model keys and leasing kit whenever I am visiting one of
my consulting clients. Leasing is always a challenge for me because I am
rarely working on a property that has it all and is leading the market. Why
would that owner need me?!? My consulting projects are typically turning
around a leasing and marketing situation to improve economic occupancy.

My job would be easy if each apartment had granite countertops and a rocking
amenity plan to add to the value of the apartment community. Most times, I
am working on properties where there is a gap between what the customer
wants and what we offer. This is when an emotional connection can win the
leasing game. Here are 10 things you can do to create that connection:

1. Before you ever show an apartment, make certain you ask questions to find
out what is important to this customer. Using this key information on the
leasing tour will help your customer see that this apartment meets their
needs.

2. I don't have to tell you to use the customer's name, you learned that
years ago in leasing class. But, here is a thought to take that idea one step
further: Create a connection by putting their name on the water bottle you
present to the customer. (Another reason to set an appointment and know when
the customer is visiting!) Their name on the water bottle not only says "we
are expecting you" but also says we want you to be our next new resident. A
clever leasing team at Woodbury Park in Minnesota shared this idea with me. They found
bottled water at Walmart which are perfect for writing the customer's name
with your trusty Sharpie Marker (see example).

3. Remove any hassle that exists in the leasing process. Make it easy to
lease an apartment with you. This is an indication of your ability to manage
their home and provide great service. Services like real time availability
and on-line leasing with Vaultware could be the winning factor when your
community can't compete with the property with 6 swimming pools and valet
trash removal!

4. Speaking of valet trash removal, have you considered this? My friend,
Scott Stamilio who represents Valet Waste, informed me that this is an
excellent service to add because the resident sees tremendous value in
having their trash bags removed from their door step 5 days a week. They
even take care of recycling too. Adding this service can justify your
competitive rents even when you don't stack up with interior and exterior
amenities. You may not be able to build an outdoor kitchen like the new
property down the street, but you can certainly add this service and every
resident will enjoy not having to walk to a stinky dumpster.

5. Show the customer everything. One thing we heard over and over again
when Apple Founder, Steve Jobs, passed away was that he had a gift for
imagining what we did not know we needed. Many times you may offer
something that the customer did not consider for their list of apartment
needs and wants. However by demonstrating all features and amenities, you
may just strike a chord and the customer's interest peaks.

6. Slow down. Don't be in a hurry to rush through your model. This is
your number one sales tool. Invite the customer to take a seat on the couch
and continue your conversation with them. Making themselves at home could
be what they need to see this as their new home. Here is a tip from the
awesome leasing teams at Pacific Living Properties in Sacramento, CA, if you
open the refrigerator in their model apartment you will see festive
streamers, drinks and delicious snacks.

7. Invite the customer to pull out their trusty smart phone and shoot a
video of the apartment so they remember it.

8. Take what you have and make it a little better. Customers notice when
things are broken so fix them. Fix everything. The goal of your apartment
community is to have zero defects. The customer may be able to live without
a tennis court but they are not interested in living where the gates don't
work. Just ask anyone who works for Avalon Bay Communities and they will
tell you their motto is "neat, clean and working".

9. You are better than any amenity your property owner could build. We like to
buy from people we like. Be likable by going out of your way to show this
customer they are important to us. Be friendly and personable.

10. Testimonials are the new marketing. You could have the best leasing
presentation created by years of experience but your customer reads
testimonials and can be seriously influenced. Make certain everyone on the
team understands that we are working hard to make sure our customers always
have something great to say about your community. Then when asked the testimonial
is always a good one.

You can compete with apartment communities that have more amenities and or
newer apartments. Put these 10 steps into action and you will mind the gap
and create customers.

8 Tips to Increase Rent for New and Renewed Leases

Originally Presented by Kate Good
8/25/2011

Our friends at Vaultware have been tracking rents and report that rents are increasing in each region of the country when compared to rates last year. It seems everyone is doing it! Are you raising rents? Don't let your apartment community get left behind and leave money on the table. Here are 8 tips to help you increase rents. (Click on this link for the Vaultware Rent Increase Study http://kategoodblog.blogspot.com/2011/09/vaultware-says-raise-rentseveryone-is.html)

1. Set yourself up for success. You can't pull a rent increase out of thin air because people are going to want to know why rent is increasing when it seems the country is still in an economic crisis. In this email you will see charts tracking rent increases across our country. The apartment industry is recovering faster than other sectors of the real estate industry. Be prepared for this conversation as there is certain to be pushback from the renter who, based on sluggish economy reports, is not expecting a rent increase. In fact, they may be looking for a concession!

2. Prepare your team for this question "Why are rents going up?". Have a response that everyone understands and is comfortable delivering. Educate your team as to why rents are increasing and prepare them for this conversation with residents. Remember, every member of your team should understand this strategy and what to say to a resident. Your service team spends more time with residents compared to us. Do they know why rents are increasing and how to discuss this with customers?

3. If you are nervous about raising rents, get over it. This is a business and although we love our customers and want to help them, we still have a fiduciary responsibility to make this apartment community profitable. Deliver your rent rates with confidence. I know there are customers you consider friends and you are aware of their personal plight. Pushing a rent increase may be difficult but you have to take your emotions out of this part of your job and meet the properties economic potenial.

4. Flat rate pricing makes it very difficult to increase rents. Get the highest rent you can by understanding what makes each individual apartment unique and valuable. Some are worth more than others to the renters and should be priced accordingly. In addition, when you have everyone paying the same price, everyone is going to expect the same deal upon renewal because let's face it, residents talk to their neighbors. This is a difficult pattern to break until you create price differential.

5. If you are hearing "no" find out why. Understand what the market is telling you. Make adjustments.

6. Monthly market studies are worthless. You have to study your market each week if not each day! This market intelligence will help you find your optimal rent rates. Check out Vaultware's market survey product and get instant alerts when your competition is adjusting rents. Now that will make you smarter!

7. Apartment All Star, Michael Benton, reminds us that competitors don't steal happy residents. Great point! Above everything, a good customer service program should be part of your rent increase strategy.

8. Invest in Yield Management software. Having a tool like this will help you maximize rents on a daily basis taking a lot of the work and emotion out of the process. YieldStar or Rainmaker will be on the job even when you need a day off! Look into this. This is a solid investment that pays for itself.

Strong Companies in a Weak Economy

Inc. 5000 companies grew despite of the recession and they tend to continue to be an optimistic bunch. Recently, Inc. surveyed this group of CEO's to determine their confidence about business and the economy. The results show that even with a less than optimistic view of the economy, there is still opportunity to grow a business. Nearly 90% of the CEO's surveyed say they will increase the size of their workforce in the next six months. 78% reported that sales were up in the previous six months compared with last year in the same period.

This rock star bunch of leaders are concerned about economic uncertainty and find it difficult to forecast the upcoming year. Another concern is the morale of their team members who know that poor attitudes leads to a lack of motivation and productivity. And so, taking control of what they can, Inc. 5000 CEO's are planning plenty of rewards and recognition of team members in 2012.

As I travel throughout the various companies and events in our industry, I am seeing improvement in market rents while most are waving goodbye to concessions. We are in the same situation as the Inc. 5000 companies surveyed because we are gaining strength in a weak economy. I too share the same concern that the last few years has taken a toll on our teams. If you were in the home office, you probably witnessed each department cutting back. We all had to exert increased personal energy to do more with less all while fearing that we may be next on the chopping block. Our on site teams were forced to step outside of the norm and negotiate with customers while many managers were not equipped with this skill. Leasing consultants had to step up their sales ability to get their unfair share of leases. And lets not forget our maintenance team who often had to prepare vacant apartments twice, once when the move out occurred and then again to refresh a stale home that had been vacant for 64 days.

We have all carried our share of weight and now it's time to celebrate our strength. In the coming weeks, I have been asked to emcee several awards events for some of the biggest apartment associations in our country. Each has reported a record number of entries to honor the hard working team members in our business. This makes me very proud and excited to be a part of the celebration. Without a doubt, morale will be at an all time high and that always translates to improvement to the bottom-line.

What are your company's plans to boost morale and reward for strong performances which have kept your company competitive during the recession? Although everyone cashes checks representing monetary reward, many people admit that mere recognition is all they need. I guess that supports a lesson we all know, "what gets rewarded, gets repeated".