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With the Odds Against Us
Here is How We All Win
You have how many units? 10? 50? 600? Then won’t you be excited by a recent survey done for Apartments.com: Of the 1500 respondents, 95% of them indicated they plan on moving in 2010. Read the news release here. You’ve probably already done the math on how many residents that means for you. 9? 48? 570? No matter who you are this could have an enormous impact on your business. Of course, this is great news if you have a side income from leasing moving trucks. For the rest of us though, it is almost as chilling as a blast from the Arctic Express.
Once we thaw out from being frozen with anxiety, what are we to do? First, we remember what we have known for years, that some of our clients are going to move. It just happens. Enough said. What we must consider is how we keep that number to a bare minimum.
At this point we really get to work. The next step is to have a plan. This plan should not be limited to drastic situations like the one predicted for this year, it should be foundational to our leasing business. Our retention program should actually be integrated into our new resident registration. According to Mary Spain of Apartment Finder, “50% of your current residents will have decided with the first 7 days of moving in whether they plan on renewing their lease.” Providing a positive experience for our clients is important from the very first contact we have with them, and doesn’t stop. Spain adds “40% of renewal decisions are made within the first 8 months of the lease.” What is the number one reason why people move? “Inadequate service.” From their first phone call or walk-in to our offices, to the most recent maintenance visit, our customers are looking to feel welcomed to their homes, to feel a sense of place, to be wanted. Spain reports there is a bonus for us too: “Residents are willing to pay more to receive better service.”
Keeping the residents we have is about the basics. We remind ourselves, and we have a system for reminding ourselves, that we are selling our property during every interaction. As Cythinann King teaches in her presentation, we need to know our Product, Package, Price, Promotion or Publicity, Placement in the market and Personal Selling. We’ll always be using this knowledge whenever we market our properties. Most important though, we have to put some of our passion into the final point, Personal Selling. The research from which Spain draws indicates the second reason why people lease, after location, is the “personal selling style of the consultant.” We humans justify our purchase logically, and we make most of them emotionally. It is our job as Property Professionals (and Vendors as well) to help our prospects and customers feel they have made the right choice. And by feel I mean have sensations of comfort and confidence. Experience gladness; be aware, on some level, that they are in a professional relationship that works for them. That they are part of a community. Whether we just met the person thirty seconds ago, or whether we have been enjoying the privilege of their business for years, we are filling our units when we make an effort to understand our clients’ needs first, and then try to fill them.
If you’d like specific ideas on how you might improve retention in your business, try some or all of these: network with other association members and ask for their best practices, post questions or advice in the Comments section of this article, contact me (AndrewR[at]SpectraART.com) for a suggested reading list, or enlist the aid of a consultant. Remember too to come and see Mr. Landlord at Hawthorn Suites on April 20. You’ll leave there with his time-tested recommendations.
Article reinforces that theme of “you never get a second chance ato make a first impression.”
J. Faron
Drew,
Nice article. I especially liked the phrase:
We humans justify our purchase logically, and we make most of them emotionally.
Randy