introductions

Introductions • Your name

• Where you work

• Your job responsibilities

• How long you have been in the industry

• What you hope to get from this class

Course 5: Marketing 2

Agenda• Introduction to Marketing

• Conducting Market Analysis

• Marketing Plan

• Fair Housing in Marketing and Advertising

• Promotional Marketing

Course 5: Marketing 3

Introduction to Marketing• The Property Manager’s Role

• Understanding your Market

• Factors impacting apartment markets

• Marketing Mix

• Marketing Success Factors

Course 5: Marketing Chapter 1 4

Marketing: Definition

Integrated and coordinated

activities, such as research and

promotion, which focus inside and

outside the community, to

encourage recipients to rent or

continue renting an apartment.


Why Do Marketing?

• To realize optimum value of a property

• To meet financial goals

• To achieve and maintain occupancy levels

• To understand resident wants and needs


Community Manager Responsibility

• Prepare and implement market plan• Price and analyze marketing and

advertising materials• Identify present and future markets• Measure and monitor marketing efforts• Educate and involve onsite personnel in

marketing efforts


What is Your Market?

All current and potential residents who want to live in the apartment community and who are qualified to live there.


Market Segmentation

• Designed to reach a specific, smaller group, or target market, within the identified market

• Classified according to characteristics such as:– Geography– Demographics– Lifestyle– Product benefits


Market Segmentation: Benefits

• Allows for tailoring of marketing efforts

• Provides insight into how to reach the customer through advertising and promotion

• Allows companies to maximize resources while increasing likelihood of success


Factors Impacting Apartment Markets

• Location• Demographic characteristics• Unit size and layout• Price• Physical• Economic• Governmental• Social


Marketing Mix: Definition

Controllable variables the company blends to produce the desired market response.


Marketing Mix: 5 Ps• Product

• Price

• Promotion

• Place

• People


Product• Product or services offered (apartments

and community)

• Brand identity and logo

• Evaluated and marketed by:– Reliability– Quality– Features


Price


• Monthly rent• Fees• Deposits• Utility expenses• Premium charges• Price is influenced by:

– Location– Interior upgrades

Promotion• Advertising

• Public relations

• Sales promotion

• Relationship selling


Place

• Distribution channel or method for making your product available

• Define and market your property’s:– Physical location– Relative location– Comparative location


People• Onsite personnel

• Management team

• Contract workers

• Marketing partners and vendors


Marketing Success Factors• Visionary • Goal oriented• Customer-focused• Team oriented• Communicated effectively• Consistent• Repetitive• Adaptable to change• Monitored and regularly evaluated


Skill Check #1

Chapter 1 – Introduction to Marketing


Chapter 2:

Conducting a Market Analysis


Conducting Market Analysis• Market Analysis Basics

• Regional and Neighborhood Analysis

• Analyzing the Property and Its Location

• Analyzing the Resident Population

• Analyzing Competitors

• Market Analysis Plan


Market Analysis: Definition

• A formal approach to collection, analysis, interpretation and reporting of information for making rational marketing decisions

• An ongoing process to understand customers, competitors and the industry


When to do Market Analysis• New construction

• Rent increases

• Annual budget preparation

• Resident retention rate decreases

• Unmet occupancy goals


Benefits of Market Analysis

• Effectively target market/advertising campaigns• Identify opportunities in marketplace• Evaluate and establish rent levels and fee

policies• Monitor what you are doing well and where to

improve


Benefits of Market Analysis (cont’d)

• Generate, refine and evaluate marketing efforts• Identify customer specific needs• Evaluate your success with measurable data• Communicate the market analysis findings and

their implications


3 Elements of a Market Analysis

• Regional analysis

• Neighborhood analysis

• Property analysis


Elements of a Regional Analysis

• Economic conditions

• Recreational/entertainment venues

• Government structure

• Educational institutions


Elements of a Neighborhood Analysis• Boundary definition• Population characteristics and trends• Economic conditions• Property types• Amenity and educational opportunities• Crime activity• Others…


Property and Location Analysis

• Perform to identify opportunities and key issues relating to the property and its location such as:– Whether features and benefits are being fully

exploited– How new trends impact the property– How residents view quality and reliability

• Allows for proactive marketing efforts


How to do a Property and Location Analysis1. Collect data on properties features and location

2. Gather and examine property reports and documentation

3. List negative aspects that affect sales

4. Describe plans for future expansion

5. Compare results of research with existing marketing efforts

6. Decide how to improve on marketing to take advantage of property’s features and location


Resident Analysis• Contains information on resident’s:

– Satisfaction with service levels– Needs and wants– Demographic information

• Helps identify:– People who fit current resident profile– Potential residents if repositioning


Resident Analysis (cont’d)


• Provides:– Potential rent levels– Occupational targets– Recommended amenity changes

How to do a Resident Analysis1. Conduct resident survey

2. Examine property reports and documentation about prior and current residents

3. Describe target market: the characteristics of the consumer to whom you want to focus your marketing efforts.


Competitor Analysis

• Includes information about other communities that compete with yours

• Gives you an understanding of competitor’s:– Product– Services– Marketing strategies


Competitor Analysis (cont’d)

• Helps you to:• Identify your competitive advantage• Identify areas of missed opportunity• Make innovative improvements• Identify categories of customers whose

needs are not being met• Learn more about your market


How to do a Competitor Analysis

1. Collect information about competitors

2. Gather and examine reports and documents pertaining to competitors

3. Determine improvements you can make to product, services, and marketing


Market Analysis Plan• Describes how you will conduct your market

analysis• Contains:

– Objectives of the plan– Description of how you will identify marketing

problems and opportunities– Description of how you will collect data– Description of how you are going to analyze results of

research– A detailed timeline for completion


Activity #1

Market Analysis


Skill Check #2

Chapter 2 – Conducting Marketing Analysis


Chapter 3

The Marketing Plan


Marketing Plan• Marketing Plan Basics• Marketing Plan Development• Internal Market Readiness• Writing the Marketing Plan• Applying the SWOT Analysis• Marketing Objectives and Strategies• Marketing Plan Budget• Measuring the Success of Marketing Efforts• Guidelines for use and Evaluation of Marketing


Marketing Plan: Definition

• Detailed, written account and time table of the objectives and methods to be used to achieve the property’s marketing goals.

• Create when there is:– Critical need – new ownership– Repositioning – significant physical changes– Problem solving – media issues– Sustaining plan - ongoing


Marketing Plan: Purpose

• Develop, guide, and coordinate marketing efforts

• Road map to realizing goals


Benefits of Marketing Plan• Requires PM to evaluate objectively• Encourages effective use of resources• Promotes consistent messaging to management• Monitors and controls marketing costs• Assists in marketing decision-making process• Encourages involvement and participation• Relates to success or failure of property


Components of a Plan• Your community, amenities, and services• Pricing• Target market• Competitors• Marketing objectives• Marketing strategies• Budget• Promotional mix• Measurement and evaluation


Developing a Marketing Plan: Manager Responsibilities

• Be familiar with every aspect of your product and its relative performance

• Be knowledgeable about reporting and analysis

• Provide and understand reports, their source, and their value


Community Image

• Image of the property perceived by the customer

• Reflected in everything customers can see, hear, touch and feel

• It is a team effort

• Every aspect that employees have control over


Factors Impacting Impression

• Personnel

• Quality of content of correspondence and collateral materials

• Appearance of community areas


How to Obtain/Maintain Positive Image

• Attitude• Team meetings and training• Community Products-newsletter, brochures• Web site • Office, Facilities, Amenities and equipment• Curb appeal • Signage


How to Obtain/Maintain Positive Image (cont’d)

• Grounds maintenance

• Common areas

• Entry ways

• Information center

• Model apartments


Writing the Plan


• Research and document five P’s– Place– Product– People– Price– Promotion

• Frame conclusions• Outline recommendations• SWOT analysis to clarify goals and action items

SWOT: Definition• Strengths

• Weaknesses

• Opportunities

• Threats


SWOT: Benefits

• Define changes in economic trends and market factors

• Help identify ways to increase and exceed resident expectations

• Reveal opportunities to gain a competitive advantage


Activity #2: SWOT Analysis


StrengthsWhat advantages do we have? What do we do well? What resources do we have access to? What do our residents see as our strengths?

WeaknessesWhat could be better? What do we do badly? What should we avoid? Can any of our weaknesses be turned into opportunities?

OpportunitiesWhat are the opportunities facing us? What are the interesting trends in our industry? What are the interesting trends in our geographic area? Can we identify specific opportunities that will open up if any of our weaknesses are eliminated?

ThreatsWhat obstacles do we face? What is our competition doing? Are the required specifications for our products or services changing? Is changing technology threatening our market position? Could any of our weaknesses seriously threaten our business?

Marketing Objectives

• Identifies a specific goal

• Defines successful achievement of goal

• Are clear, measurable, assigned a time frame, consistent with one another


Marketing Strategy• Outlines steps to take to achieve marketing

objectives• Contains five goals:

– Provides residents with what they want– Highly differentiated from competitors– Delivers high impact– Places product in appropriate distribution– Provides appropriate support


Marketing Plan Budget• Shows amount allocated for expenditure

on marketing activities in a specified period

• Understand owners investment goals for the property

• Allocate a percentage (i.e. 2%) of gross sales


Measuring Success• Actual results• Number of new leases signed• Number of residents retained• Cost/lease• Cost/traffic by source• Improved budget performance


Use and Evaluation• Purpose: to make adjustments to plan to allocate

marketing dollars• Consider the following:

– Establish evaluation procedures before– Monitor and evaluate at set intervals– Keep good records– Organize information– Compare results from advertising with marketing

objectives– Be realistic


Activity #3:

Marketing Plan Budget


Skill Check #3

Chapter 3 – Marketing Plan


Chapter 4

Fair Housing in Marketing and Advertising


Fair Housing in Marketing and Advertising• Marketing Impact on Fair Housing Issues

• Advertising Impact on Fair Housing Issues

• Liability for Marketing/Advertising Discrimination


Developing your plan to avoid fair housing problems• Cover all aspects of marketing

• Written

• Review regularly

• Evaluate and modify as necessary

• Ensure there are non-discriminatory goals and objectives


FHA and Advertising

• The FHA prohibits publishing, making or printing any advertisement regarding the sale or rental of a residence that specifies a preference of race, color, religion, sex, handicap, familial status or national origin.


Considerations in the Marketing Mix

• Product- describe property not people, avoid quiet, exclusive

• Price

• Promotion

• Place

• People


HUD Regulations: Affirmative Marketing• HUD regulations specifically bar owners

from selecting “media or locations for advertising the sale or rental of dwellings which deny particular segments of the housing market information about housing opportunities because of …” protected class.


Fair Housing Checklist• What will the message be?• How will the message be distributed?• Where will the message be distributed?• Which tools have more defined or narrow

distributions?• Do any of the tools send specific “images” to the

customers?


Measuring Success• Were members of protected classes reached?• Was a fair and impartial sampling of the

geographic area represented?• Do the numbers indicate any variation in results

along protected class lines?


Tips on Fair Housing Marketing• Practice inclusive marketing

• Create and record marketing policies and plans

• Federally assisted properties are required to create an Affirmative Fair Housing Marketing plan

• Consider using media catering to ethnic groups

• If direct marketing, avoid targeting by specific demographics or zip codes


Tips on Fair Housing Marketing

• Keep copies and records of ads and their placement

• Include the Fair Housing logo


Tips on Internet Marketing

• As a marketing medium

• Company Web site– Promotions current, accurate and non-

discriminatory

• Third party Web site– Promotions current, accurate and non-

discriminatory

• Written policy for responses


Rent Specials and Concessions

• Clearly state start date and time• Ensure staff offer same programs to all prospects• Ensure timing of ads with program description

matches timeframe for program• Monitor staff use of programs• Be cautious about negotiating rents• Follow state and local laws regarding referral fees• Apply same guidelines to programs associated with

lease renewals


Avoiding Symbolism in the Rental Office

• Symbolism can indicate a preference or limitation– Lifestyle

– Religion

– Even politics can push hot buttons

• Includes bulletin boards & binders

• Includes offices located in the manager’s apartment


Tips on Fair Housing in Advertising

• Consider demographics• Use Equal Housing Opportunity logo properly• If using clip art forms rather than real people,

use caution• Display Fair Housing poster in Leasing Center• Use inclusive and appropriate language• Never advertise something you do not have


Phrases to Avoid

• An exclusive or private community• Latino or Asian neighborhood• Close to churches• Quiet, peaceful, restful community• Ideal for seniors• For the active lifestyle or active seniors• Adult community or independent living• “Special needs”


References to Avoid

• Race• Skin colors• National origin• Religion • Sex• Familial status

(except senior housing)

• Handicap• References to the

resident characteristics, such as “professionals”


Use of Human Models• When using human models:

– Use a diverse and representative sampling of the larger community

– Demonstrate that all persons are welcome– Include different races, age groups, nationalities,

families with children and the disabled– In senior housing, you do not need to include families

with children– Show them in equal social settings


Liability for Discrimination• Senior housing

– Property Managers can face discrimination charges if property not bona fide senior housing

• Some fair housing agencies monitor advertising

• Investigators will review advertising

• Internet laws state that a third party cannot be liable


Staff Training Staff training should include the following

activities. Share the marketing plan with the staff. Make sure the staff understands proper and timely

recording of available units and those units in the make-ready process.

Establish firm policies for responding to telephone, in-person and electronic traffic.

Ensure the staff asks prospects about how they heard about the property.


Skill Check #4

Chapter 4 – Fair Housing in Marketing and Advertising


Chapter 5

Promotional Marketing


Promotional Marketing Topics

• Types of promotion• Advertising• Marketing tools and advertising media• Media selection• Advertising campaign development• Public relations• Sales promotions• Internal marketing• Relationship selling• Sales approach to marketing


Promotional Marketing: Definition

• Form of communication that is used to inform and persuade people about a product or service

• Used to improve public image


Promotion Objectives: IDA

• Attention: awareness

• Interest: knowledge/information

• Desire: liking/preference

• Action: conviction/purchase


Promotion Types• Advertising

• Public relations

• Sales promotion

• Relationship selling


Advertising: Definition

• Non-personal promotion of product, service or company in mass media that is openly paid for and/or sponsored by you.


Purpose of Advertising

• To increase qualified traffic

• To keep apartments rented

• To promote product

• To make buyer aware of your product and move the buyer to action


Goals of Advertising• Establish and maintain awareness and positive

image• Create a real or perceived need for product• Develop sales leads• Persuade customers that your product is best for

them• Promote events• Lead potential residents to rent from you


Advertising- Do’s and Don'ts - Techniques to advertise your property


Advertising Strategies

• Carefully considered approach that you will take to let community know about your property

• How you will connect advertising media to message, target or goal

• Focused on enhancing value of property


Activity #4Is your strategy effective?

• Is it simple?• Is it specific?• Is it durable?• Does the strategy maximize your ability to

advertise?• Are the results measurable?


Marketing Tools and Advertising Media• Apartment publications and rental

magazines

• Online or Internet marketing

• Newspapers

• Direct mail

• Visual traffic generators

• Directive brochures


Marketing Tools and Advertising Media, continued


• Radio

• Television

• E-Marketing

• Marketing through other merchants or vendors

• Transit advertising

• Outdoor billboards

Media Selection

• Advertising objective

• Target audience

• The message and frequency

• Budget


Advertising Campaign: Definition

• Program of coordinated ads and other promotional activities intended to accomplish specific objectives.


Advertising Campaign Development Process1. Establish goals

2. Enhance use of media visibility

3. Compile media database

4. Send collateral material

5. Contact recipients


Advertising Campaign: Message and Theme• Identify a theme

• Include a color scheme

• Include message on every aspect of marketing collateral

• Train staff

• Offer incentive


Public Relations: Definition

• Ongoing relationships that exist between the apartment community and the public

• Use to create a positive image


Public Relations Activities• Employee relations

• Resident relations – Resident Appreciation week

• Community relations

• Publicity


Sales Promotions: Definition

• Sales activities designed to consummate a sale or increase the size of the sale of goods or services by providing the incentive to make a positive purchase decision.


Sales Promotions Techniques

• Used to– motivate leasing professionals to improve– Induce potential residents to rent

• Encompass– Price-reduced rent packages, coupons– Utility offers– Contests or incentives


Internal Marketing• Refers to the onsite marketing practices

that occur within the apartment community.

• Includes staff and resident involvement in marketing


Relationship Selling: Definition

• “Custom tailoring information to individual people” (NALP)

• Flexible and individualized

• Requires well-trained associates who can develop relationships with prospective residents and align wants and needs with features and benefits


Relationship Selling: Purpose

• To close a sale once the prospective resident is attracted to the apartment community.


Successful Sales Personnel• Knowledgeable of all aspects of product• Know the customer wants and needs and how

they make decisions• Have good communication, observation,

listening and questioning skills• Employ strategies to overcome customer

objections• Use proven selling techniques• Know how and when to close sale


Selling versus Marketing• Selling:

– Communicates to a particular prospect how your community can fill their needs

– Impact: Personal and relational – Addresses a specific opportunity

• Marketing– Brings product in contact with current or prospective

resident– Impact: broad and applies to many– Continuous


Marketing Involves• Goals

• Research

• Analysis

• Evaluation and measured results


Sales Promotions• Involve activities that stimulate consumer

purchasing and increase effectiveness• Located at point of purchase• Supplement other parts of total marketing

efforts• Designed to increase sales over a short

period of time


Sales Activities• Preparation• Prospecting• Relationship building• Getting appointments• Interviewing• Responding to needs or prescribing your

solution• Obtaining commitment


Skill Check #5

Chapter 5 – Promotional Marketing


introductions

Documents

marketing chapter

marketing agendaintroduction

marketing introduction

marketing effortscourse

market planprice

target market

market segmentationdesigned

apartment community