We are faced with unprecedented times right now. Apart from adjusting to a “new normal” for our daily lives, many property owners and managers are now bracing for the negative impacts to their daily operations and ROI–marketing included. Amid the constantly evolving dynamics of this pandemic, rest assured, there is a light at the end of the tunnel.
Here’s what you can do now to not only adapt but better position yourself when that time finally comes.
Reevaluate your marketing budget.
If you haven’t already, now is the time to take a good, hard look at your marketing budget and determine which advertising tools or strategies are still sustainable options in the wake of these times. For instance, if you have allocated a portion of your marketing dollars to print advertising, it’s probably time to reconsider. If a substantial portion of your budget has been allocated to Google Ads, it may be more beneficial for you right now to reduce and divert these funds to search engine optimization (SEO) instead. This switch could give you just the upper hand you need to improve search rankings and ROI over your competitors once business returns to normal. But, before you make this move, you’ll need to closely monitor your Google Ads performance and conversions to determine if a complete diversion or more balanced approach is right for you.
Prioritize your current renters.
During these stressful and uncertain times, it is particularly important to take a step back and focus on your current customers. Ask yourself what you can do to strengthen your relationship with them, first, and improve engagement. Perhaps this means distributing complementary care kits for residents, improving the speed and efficiency for maintenance repairs, offering a grace period for rental payments, or just simply offering well wishes via email. Whatever steps you take, keep in mind that a little tends to go a long way when it comes to building trust, and your residents will appreciate this level of care and service, particularly when it comes time to renew.
Prepare for the end.
Despite the current landscape, these times won’t last forever. So, spend your time fine tuning and optimizing your marketing for the future so that you are prepared once the economy makes an upswing. In the long term, SEO is a great investment to improve organic search result ranking before the busy season emerges. Think about designing and launching promotions, like leasing specials, attractive referral programs, and start to fine tune your call-to-actions. When the uptick occurs, you do not want to waste precious marketing time while pondering how to have the upper hand with your competitors.
Digitize yourself.
If this quarantine has taught us anything, it’s that many of us need to find creative ways to digitize our operations. Use this opportunity to think about how your standard touchpoints could be modernized to sustain you in the future should another emergency occur or trends begin to take a major digital shift. Things like virtual apartment tours, live Q&As, and real time chats with leasing agents can all be great tactics to leverage when it comes to future-proofing your business.
Rentbot can help.
To better position your property for success during these uncertain times, one thing is for certain–you need a great website supported by an effective digital marketing strategy. If you’re missing one or both of these things, Rentbot can help. With a mobile-friendly design, built-in SEO package and features like real-time availability, rent payments, chats, maintenance requests and applications all integrated into our online sites, you’ll be well prepared and positioned for the future. And, if you’re looking to amp up your SEO strategy, our advanced SEO package can score your more qualified traffic and improve your long term ROI. We’re still open, ready and available to help you launch your new website or SEO strategy in a week! Schedule a virtual consultation here.
About the Author
Jonsette Calloway joined the Rentbot team in 2015. With a background in public relations, advertising and copywriting, she has helped a multitude of clients achieve their marketing and communications goals within various fields, but she particularly enjoys working with the apartment industry.