April 5: #aptday

Make the Trend Work for You

By Erica Rascón on Apr 1, 2016 in News

Do you have plans for NAA’s second annual National Apartment Housing Day (NAHD)? If not, you’re about to miss out on a fantastic opportunity to engage with residents, promote retention, and possibly generate new leads.

NAA created the hashtag #aptday to unite owners, managers, agents, and residents for one day of social media sharing and caring. As exciting as this is for those of us who are in the industry, it doesn’t naturally generate buzz with residents. This is where your creativity comes in.

#aptday can be used to promote resident retention. Research shows that there is a strong correlation between the median age of renters and low retention rates. Younger renters tend to be more transient.

Using events like National Apartment Housing Day, in conjunction with social media, is a good way to catch the attention of young renters. You can engage with them, re-establish the value of your product, and let them know that their loyalty is appreciated all in one swoop. Young renters know that they have options. Make yours the most appealing option by building a one-on-one relationship with them.

Here are a few ways that you can engage residents during National Apartment Housing Day.

Create Friendly Competition

Consider creating a competition between your community and a neighboring complex. You may also consider a competition between residents from one building to another. Competitions are a great way to promote resident engagement and trigger our natural desire to win.

Of course, you must advertise something worth winning. Competitions between neighborhoods could entail a pool party with a renowned local DJ, or happy hour at a popular restaurant with one free round of drinks. If you’re creating a competition between residents, consider gender neutral prizes such as rent discounts, gifts cards to home supply stores, or gift cards to local restaurants.

Enjoy Contention for a Cause

For what will you and your foe compete? Consider having residents compete to raise the most funds or items to a local nonprofit. Reiterate the importance of home—your product—by selecting a nonprofit in the housing or disaster recovery sector.

Be sure that a contribution is made on behalf of your community. Lead by example and get the ball rolling!

Double Book on Purpose

To get the most out of #aptday, consider combining it with another springtime event. Guests already plan to be present—socializing and taking pictures with their smartphones—so it will be easier to increase attendance and get residents involved.

Indulge in Photo Ops

In the age of social media, images are a necessity for the success of any business. Your community is no different. Ensure that there is one person present at the event who is dedicated to taking images and creating captions. The event coordinator will likely be too busy to capture charming (ahem, marketable) moments. The designated photographer can be on the lookout for photo ops, like friends laughing together at your onsite lounge or kids planting a tree in the newly renovated playground.

The caption of these articles should be genuine yet, of course, mildly self-promoting. In the examples above, you can subtly showcase your community’s amenities to prospects.

Promote the Hashtag

When posting images to social media, remember to use the hashtag #aptday. Encourage your residents to use it as well. Display the hashtag somewhere with high visibility—like the front of the event display or on the event coordinator’s hat—to keep it fresh on attendees’ minds.

Once posted to social media, residents can find images of themselves and tag the photos. Now, your image shows up in their feed and you can marketing to their social circles.

Now pat your inner marketing genius on the back.