Everyone knows by now that the way to reach Millennials is to go where they are, which is Facebook, MySpace, blogs, and other social media. In theory, the cost is low and the ROI potential is high, but figuring out exactly how to do it can be daunting.
Eric Brown, landlord at
Urbane Apartments in Royal Oak, Michigan outside Detroit, spent the last six months cracking the code. Using the insight "no one cares about your apartments", he worked with Mike Whaling of
30 Lines to build community, reduce paid listings, enhance reputation and increase sales. No small order. The campaign (description starts page 22 of the slide share presentation embedded above) left no social media stone unturned: Facebook, Myspace, blogs, Flickr, VIP passes, logo merchandise, text messaging and more. The creative is hip and fun and gives extra meaning to the word 'community'.
The results are impresive -- 65% increase in web traffic, 4300% increase in blog traffic and a 100% increase in lease conversions. With no paid media for 6 months, Urbane is in third position on a google search for 'Royal Oak Apartments'. Most impressive, Whaley reports low manpower cost - 2 employees at 1-2 hours a day plus a few paid resident bloggers.
This case demonstrates the incredible power of social media to flatten the playing field for marketers. What I like about it is that it shows how anyone can use these tools to increase business performance if they have imagination and understand that social media is ultimately about customer service and community. Eric Brown was featured as one of four social media innovators in BusinessWeek in February. Thanks, Mike, for sharing the details.
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ReplyDeleteEric and Mike have done wonderful things with social media here in Royal Oak -- and it goes beyond "lease conversions." I actually live in a place -- in 2009, in an apartment building -- where I know my neighbors and can easily connect with them online. The Urbane crew also plans local events like bar nights which I'm guessing leads to better resident retention or at least positive feelings about the landlord. (My landlord just bought me a drink -- where am I?
Nice post!
It's fascinating to see how quickly Urbane managed to draw attention to their brand here, even among those who aren't their core constituency. I first noticed the fresh new look of their buildings and became fascinated when I discovered how widely and effectively they used the new media to develop their brand.
ReplyDeleteIt's no secret that print media is struggling. The real secret for some seems to be how to use the new media effectively.
I've worked for local newspapers, but these days I find it especially exciting to work with the Urbane crew. There's a lot to learn, and they're especially generous with sharing their knowledge with the rest of us.
Hi Carol,
ReplyDeleteThank for for such a nice post, we really appreciate it. We are working hard to Break From the Pack of Apartment Commodity!
Social Media has been an excellent venue for us, and has been our conduit of choice for communicating with our residents as we build our brand. The value of Participating in the Conversation should not be under estimated.
I think the take away value here for your readers and following are a couple things, First, anyone can do this, I am an old guy, almost 50,LOL and having a lot of fun at that!, and I was a builder my entire career, not a marketing person. I say that because I here all the time that this is only for young folks, it is for everyone, and anyone can learn it. I self taught myself.
The second thing, which you point out, it does not take a huge undertaking of staff and resources It does require consistency and commitment.
Enjoy your weekend, -Eric
I think you are absolutely correct about Social Sites being the best way to connect to customers.
ReplyDeleteWe are starting to get more requests from companies to create social media for them and not just video production. It has been a major focus for our company in the last year and think you are exactly correct that this is the way to connect to consumers.
Chris Yates
www.HuddleProductions.com
We Deliver Social Media Concepts with Video Production