The Company
Boxer Property (Boxer) is celebrating over 30 years as an innovative commercial real estate investment and management company. Boxer Property Management Corporation is a privately held firm based in Houston that manages, leases and administers retail, medical, hospitality and office properties comprising over 15 million square feet across more than 140 locations nationwide.
The Challenge
Up-to-date listings
Managing listings across multiple networks and making sure current and correct information was published for available spaces was a difficult task for Boxer, as it is for any real estate operator. The company also needed to stay on top of removing listings for properties that had been leased, and re-publishing them when they became available again.
The Solution
CommercialEdge Marketing and the Yardi Commercial Network
With CommercialEdge Marketing, Boxer automatically distributes listings to Yardi’s rapidly expanding commercial network of three marketing channels, which includes CommercialCafe, CommercialSearch and PropertyShark. These marketplaces rank on the first page of Google, bring in more than 2 million visits per month and generate over 350,000 high quality CRE leads annually.
The Yardi Commercial Listing Network ranks in the top 10 spots on Google with more than 1,500 keywords, and hundreds of those keywords claim the top three positions. Boxer enjoys heightened exposure and maximized lead opportunities by taking advantage of the premium ads option, which ensures they are on the top of search pages across the entire listing network. Additionally, leveraging a powerful and open API enables clients to publish listings to any website they choose.
The Story
Automated, accurate listings with an expanded reach
Boxer is very happy to be getting more leases. Since using CommercialEdge Marketing, the YCLN and its premium listings option, Boxer has seen an increase in leads and conversions including a jump in closed leases from 9% to 16%. Other benefits of working with Yardi’s innovating listing solutions include accurate, automated data transfer, ease of presenting properties on multiple platforms and improved visibility through search rankings.
The company also lists properties on its own website, which they feel is a great completement to the exposure and reach they get through the Yardi Commercial Network. According to Andy Hilditch, senior director of marketing at Boxer, listing across Yardi’s impactful channels was a no brainer. “Thanks to the size and profile of Yardi, people in the industry see the Yardi Commercial Network as a trusted resource to find office space and being part of the network enables us to expand our reach,” said Hilditch.
Ensuring data is accurate and easy to transfer
Boxer also loves working with Yardi and its commercial listing network because of a shared innovative approach and says that Yardi understands how to present information to a wide public base that might not be aware of the complexities of CRE. Simplifying listing information and making spaces easy to find, inquire about and lease are the most important things. Yardi also streamlines the day-to-day transfer of information for Boxer and helps the company explore new opportunities. “We have a solid foundation for how we transfer information. We’re comfortable with it now and we can look at what other things we can do, and that’s the most exciting thing about our relationship with Yardi,” said Hilditch.
According to Hilditch, whether you own or operate an office building, you have a huge amount of data. From the type and number of suites to the square footage, whether or not there are windows or furniture, etc., you have a lot of important information and details to share with prospects searching for a space that will suit their needs. One of the biggest new trends is replacing square footage advertising with how many desks a space will fit, or how many chairs and how many people. To keep up with these changes including new naming conventions, Boxer has the tools they need to successfully syndicate that information – and Yardi has helped. “There have been no hang ups of information, thanks to Yardi’s assistance. It’s been a true partnership,” said Hilditch.
Rising to the top (and beating search fatigue)
When it comes to listings, being at the top of search results is the clear goal. You need to rise above the competition and you also want to help people searching for properties avoid search fatigue and find your listings faster. To achieve that, Boxer uses the premium listing service. Premium listings are positioned at the top of search pages across the Yardi Commercial Listing Network. This also provides exposure in the top ten spots on Google, to be seen by more than two million monthly visitors.
According to Hilditch, premium listings add credibility along with priority placement at the top of results, making them easy to find. Hilditch also commented that premium placement at the top of the page indicates a relationship with Yardi that adds further prestige to Boxer’s Listings.
