Takeaways from NAA

Trends and themes

By Eliza Theiss on Jun 29, 2015 in News

The National Apartment Association’s annual education conference and exposition brought hundreds of apartment industry professionals to sunny Las Vegas. The week-long event drew a record-breaking 9,000+ attendees to the conference, which was held at the Mandalay Bay Resort from Tuesday, June 23 to Saturday, June 27.

The conference kicked off on Tuesday with a celebrity expert “Game Changer” series that focused on personal growth experiences and lessons learned in business. With over sixty industry-focused workshops, the conference offered attendees eight tracks of sessions. The tracks included specialized sessions in Human Resources, Leasing, Legal Issues, Maintenance, Marketing, Operations, Special Needs Populations, and Technology. Particularly helpful, the conference smartphone app allowed conference attendees and exhibitors to view speaker bios, access session descriptions, build customized daily schedules, and find exhibitor booth locations.

#NAAEduConf always gives attendees new ideas to consider, and here are three big takeaways from 2015.

Generational sub-markets are more complicated than we thought.

The housing industry has had a keen focus on the maturation of the Millennial generation, which includes individuals born between 1981 to 1997. A renewed interest in other generations, such as Baby Boomers and Gen Z, was an emerging theme at this year’s NAA conference. The population of aging Baby Boomers in the United States is anticipated to reach 73 million by 2030. The apartment industry is seeing many now senior Boomers selling their homes and searching for tech-friendly senior living communities. Additionally, college-bound Gen Z will be a generation to follow, as they are predicted to become the most technologically advanced and largest college-bound generation to date. Each of these growing populations will have different needs and desires when it comes to housing, and the apartment industry is wise to take a deeper look into the complicated intricacies of each generation in order to best reach them as future residents.

Let’s be green.

Over the last decade there has been a continued commitment to sustainability and environmental consciousness. With a dedicated sustainability and green building learning zone, the conference highlighted the importance of being conscious of our natural resources and best practices for companies and professionals to go green. Energy-efficient amenities, community gardens, resident volunteer programs, and composting were among the many ideas that circulated around this planet-positive theme.

Technology and online marketing is king.

Whether it be SEO, responsive website design, or virtual apartment tours, this year’s education conference and exposition was brimming with ideas to optimize marketing opportunities with technology. Attendees heard from a variety of experts on digital marketing, including lead tracking, maximizing prospect conversion, email marketing, and social media accessibility. In addition, many sessions focused on the need for technology and social media adoption within the apartment industry. Attendees were given strategies to increase community engagement via social media platforms and strengthen resident communication with online forums and groups, as well as best practices for responding to reviews (both good and bad). Overall, attendees were given tangible ways to harness the power of technology to showcase and advertise their resident communities.

Save the date: Next year’s National Apartment Association Education Conference and Exposition will be held June 15-18, 2016 in San Francisco. For additional information, please visit www.educonf.naahq.org or follow the conversation on social media by using the hashtag #NAAEduConf.