The Apartment Marketer

How Advertising Can Grow Your Social Media

2011-06-07T09:22:00.001-04:00

How Advertising Can Grow Your Social Media

With social media growing every single day, it’s important to know that if you haven’t jumped on the bandwagon yet, now is the time to do so. Social media is revolutionizing the way virtually every industry, including the apartment industry, communicates with their target markets. If you're not using social media to reach qualified apartment renters, you're missing one of the most effective strategies available.

Are you aware that Facebook has put new guidelines into place that make it much harder to reach your target market with special offers? Today you must reach your online audience “organically,” meaning  that the qualified apartment renters must find you…OR you must go to them!

Just like any form of apartment marketing, social media (Facebook, Twitter) requires that you filter unqualified traffic, and focus your marketing efforts on targeting qualified prospects. What easier way to do this, than to add your Facebook & Twitter information to your direct mail postcards, brochures  &  marketing materials? If you don’t have your social media information printed on EVERY marketing piece, you’re missing COUNTLESS opportunities to market to new clients!

Direct  mail  advertising  is absolutely the best way for an apartment community to market itself. When you are able to hand-select only qualified apartment renters to receive your postcard, you save time & money. Now, just think about the possibilities if you were to add the power of your social media message to a direct mail postcard…the increase in walk-in & Internet traffic would be staggering.

What about your business cards, brochures & other printed materials? Do they carry  your social media message? If not, you’re missing out on adding prospects to your social network that you KNOW are already interested in living at your property. Why let an amazing opportunity like that pass you by?

For your social network to reach its full potential, you must advertise your social network today.  You’ll see the benefits of having a budding social network immediately, & your occupancy will continue to rise as you market to qualified prospects.

Visit Our Site At "http://www.apartmentpostcards.com" Or Call 800-973-3317 To Boost Your Occupancy Today!

It’s A Leasing Battle. Will You Or Your Competition Win?

2010-01-20T11:57:00.002-05:00

There's no doubt that the multi-housing industry is still feeling the effects of this depressed economy. The leasing landscape has changed, even over the last year, and to make your property succeed, your marketing tactics must also change.

THE REALITY (PART 1): Leases and occupancy are down everywhere, and fewer prospects are signing new leases. You can no longer afford to "lose one" and move to the next. The one you lost may be the ONLY one this week, or in some cases, this month.

THE REALITY (PART 2): You MUST realize that your competition is having a meeting across town RIGHT NOW. They are lowering prices and planning new strategies to capture any and all prospects. They're doing this behind closed doors, waiting for an opportunity to get ahead wherever possible.

It's an all-out battle. Fought prospect-by-prospect, lease-by-lease.

These are a few of the marketing ideas and strategies that you must implement to come out on top.

- Embrace Direct Mail

Problem: Perhaps you have tried direct mail in the past and did not get the results you expected.

Solution 1: Not all direct mail pieces/companies are made equal. If you let the Direct Mail Experts at Apartment Postcards handle your direct mail campaign, you can expect great results. We produce the highest quality direct mail postcards that reflect our 20 years of design experience. We know the apartment industry, and we know how to get you leases. Request a free sample kit to see the difference that quality and experience can make.

Solution 2: Who did you target with your direct mail postcard? If you didn't mail to the renters at the communities with whom you compete every single day, your postcard might have been delivered to prospects that aren't even qualified to live in your community. When a direct mail postcard reaches your exact target market, your traffic will always be qualified, and will always produce leases.

Solution 3: Perhaps the traffic from your direct mail piece was not tracked properly. A properly executed direct mail campaign will result in phone calls, walk-in traffic and web traffic. If every prospect is not asked, "How did you hear about our property?" then you could have missed the true results.

- Put All Your Cards On The Table

Problem: You are hesitant to advertise your low prices.

Solution: The good thing about prices is that they can always go up. We urge our customers daily to advertise their lowest prices, because the price you advertise directly impacts the results you receive.

Put yourself in the driver's seat. Say you're a prospective renter who receives two postcards. One has a great advertised price and a month's free rent. The other postcard asks you to "Call for specials." Which property would you call first? The second property might be offering free rent for THREE months, but you wouldn't know because the first phone call you made resulted in a lease.

- Stop Advertising With Your Competition

Problem: Your entire marketing budget is tied up in the apartment books and their websites. It's easy for your property to be lost in the mix when your competition is only a page flip or click away.

Solution 1: Distance yourself from other properties with an aggressive outside marketing campaign. Distribute your community brochures at local businesses and colleges. Attend local chamber and business networking events. It doesn't have to be every week, but when you establish yourself in the local business community, they will frequently send their new employees and friends your way.

Solution 2: Start an aggressive direct mail campaign. Direct mail is one of the few marketing avenues that let you advertise your apartment community independently of others. This prompts prospects to think of your property first when it is time to move, and it drives them straight to your own website! Use this advantage to also mail to comp properties that are a little "higher" and "lower" than your community. You'll reach people who are going through a variety of lifestyle changes that cause them to change their budget, or require a larger or smaller apartment. Reaching them at just the right time will increase your bottom line every time.

- Let Your Quality Show

Problem: You need new brochures, but think they are too expensive.

Solution: Your current brochures are speaking more to prospects than you think. When a prospect leaves your leasing office, the only item that will remind them of your community is your brochure. If it's out of date or in poor condition, you can be sure that the prospect will remember your community that way. Fortunately, you don't have to break the bank on new brochures. Apartment Postcards has custom- designed, high quality, tri-fold brochures starting at only $789!

- Offer Prospects Different Forms Of Value: One prospect might be more interested in receiving a $500 TV than free rent for a month.

- Offer A Proven Difference Between You & Your Competition: Print resident testimonials to show new prospects. If you offer a great family atmosphere, have a family give a testimonial about your great resident activities in exchange for a $25 gift card. If you are close to a business park, have a resident that works there give a testimonial about your perfect location.

- Offer The Best Customer Service: Even in this economy, there are still prospects that will choose service over price. If you offer consistently good and memorable service, you'll see your turnover ratio go down, and you'll enjoy positive, complimentary comments on the apartment ratings websites.

- Send Out Thank You Cards: Never underestimate the power of a hand-written thank-you note to prospects that toured your property.

- Reputation: One manager or leasing professional can change the way your community is viewed. Strive everyday to have the best reputation in your apartment industry and community.

- Always Speak Kindly Of Your Comps: Always emphasize the ways in which you are better, but never speak of your comps in a demeaning way.

- Knowledge Of The Area: Be the most knowledgeable. Sell your location, and notice that price will be less of an issue.

- Know Your Weaknesses: So you can focus on your strengths and value.

- Web Presence: Be the best. (And deliver your web address to every comp property through direct mail!)

- Response Rate To Voicemail Or Emails: Be the fastest.

Apartment Postcards understands the apartment industry. We've attended dinner meetings, trade shows and been active members of various associations for over 20 years. We understand that developing and maintaining a tight network of professional relationships is required to assure success. With vacancies at all-time highs; however, we also know that you must employ new strategies to get ahead. Start today by visiting www.apartmentpostcards.com to view all of our products and services.

New Low Prices @ ApartmentPostcards.com

2009-11-19T10:01:00.002-05:00

New Lower Prices and Services

For over 25 years, Apartment Postcards has been the premier, one-stop shop for marketers looking to gain a competitive edge in the apartment industry. We've combined our direct mail experience with our design skills to create the most beautiful marketing materials the apartment industry has seen. With the great response and following from our loyal customers, we are now able to pass along even more options, value and savings to your community.

Starting today, we're cutting prices across the board to give you the opportunity to market your community more effectively. We're doing this while still offering the same great, personalized customer service we've provided to customers all across the nation for over 20 years. We're also offering new services to help with your marketing plan!

Just Paper Please - In the past, Apartment Postcards has only offered the option of having our expert graphic artists design your postcards or marketing materials. Not anymore! If you have the design skills or creative team to create your design, we'll offer you the best printing price available for your product. Shop our prices, and we guarantee to match or beat anyone else's print prices! But there's no need to worry if your Photoshop skills aren't up to the test. We'll continue to offer our award-winning designs for only a fraction of the cost the other guys charge.

Outgoing Mail Only - Have you ever been sent a box of postcards from your management company and been asked to find the addresses of your comps, label the postcards and haul them to the post office? Have you ever wished you could forward the postcards to someone who could do all the work for you, at a price that's cheaper than the post office? Well, now you can! Starting today, we'll find the addresses of your comps, make sure your postcard is only mailed to occupied units, label and then mail your postcards for less than what you would pay at the post office!

Need A Redraw On This - Do you have outdated floor plans? Do you have a site map? Are you still hand-drawing directions to your property? Are your leasing efforts suffering because of your lack of information to give to prospects? Don't let them suffer any longer! We can redraw floor plans and create site maps in a matter of days at a price you won't believe!

With an ever-changing apartment market, Apartment Postcards is taking the necessary steps to continue to be your one-stop shop for all of your apartment marketing needs. What are you waiting for? 100% Occupancy is closer than you think!

Visit apartmentpostcards.com to see all of our new products, services and prices today!

Smart Apartment Advertising In A Down Economy

2009-10-29T14:09:00.003-04:00

“What happens when you stop advertising? NOTHING!”

The slogan above is perhaps one the most famous advertising messages ever created. It’s also one of the most relevant marketing strategies for the apartment industry to understand right now!

All across the nation we see advertising cuts because occupancy is low. While this strategy will create cash flow in the “here and now,” in the longer term it will cost you more than what your property has already paid in this down economy. I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but if you think you’re seeing difficult days now, expect it to get worse if you stop advertising.

We certainly don’t want to paint a picture of “doom and gloom,” but we want to stress the urgency of smart advertising in a down economy. With a proven marketing strategy, Apartment Postcards can help turn around your current situation so that your community can thrive in this difficult environment!

Before we go any further, let me give you the Apartment Postcards definition of smart apartment marketing:

“Smart apartment marketing consists of two ideas: 1) Target only a proven, qualified audience of renters with your direct marketing message. 2) Only market your community individually, not side-by-side with your competition.”

Every month, thousands of apartment renters in your area have their leases come up for renewal. It happens just like clockwork. Even in this down economy, people are still moving from one apartment to another. Some need a larger apartment to accommodate a growing family while others are downsizing. Some move to get closer to work, and others move to accommodate a new pet. Are you utilizing a smart marketing message to reach these prospects? Or are you advertising in the books and online, along with your neighboring comps, hoping that a few prospects will find your community?

Direct mail marketing from Apartment Postcards is the smartest, most cost-efficient way to market your community to these renters! Not only are you delivering your marketing message specifically to pre-qualified prospects with leases coming up for renewal, you are also sending your marketing message independently of your competition.

Direct mail takes your community where no other advertising source can. When you deliver a full-color, custom-designed postcard into the hands of qualified prospects, you are personally inviting them to move into your community. You’re putting your phone number and web address right into their hands, far away from any of your competitors. When you deliver your message to qualified prospects, you can count on a quick and effective response.

If you’re ready to see dramatic increases in qualified traffic and signed leases, call the marketing experts at Apartment Postcards to discuss your direct mail campaign. With our combined experience of 75 years in the apartment industry, we offer the highest quality products, advertising agency design (or better!), and the outstanding customer service that you so rightly deserve. We do all of this with our prices upfront and no hidden charges.

Remember, “What happens when you stop advertising, or stop advertising smartly? NOTHING!”

Give us a call today. You’ll be so glad you did. 1-800-973-3317

JR - The Apartment Marketer

10 Fall-Themed Apartment Advertising Slogans

2009-09-29T12:01:00.005-04:00

As the heat of the summer leasing season begins to fade, there are still many properties with "way-too-many" vacancies to fill. With higher than expected vacancy rates all across the country, fall is the perfect time to entice prospects to lease at your property. With winter on our heels, it will be much easier to fill those vacancies with a crisp breeze in the air rather than with a few feet of snow on the ground!

For this reason, the apartment marketing experts at Apartment Postcards have compiled 10 fall-themed apartment marketing slogans that will help you lease apartments. We know that a strong marketing effort is needed to get your property to 100% occupancy, and we want to help kick start your fall marketing program.

We've already given you ideas on how to create the perfect slogan for your community. Now all you have to do is add any of these slogans to your marketing materials for a fall campaign that will generate tons of traffic and plenty of leases!

- Rake In The Fall Savings With ______

- Leaves Aren't The Only Thing Falling At ______. Rent Starting At ______

- Experience The Beauty Of Autumn At ______

- The Fall Spectacular Is Here & Now!

- Falling Leaves. . .Falling Prices! They're Both Happening At ______

- So Much Fall Beauty Outside, So Much Comfort Inside!

- Carve Out A Great Life At ______

- The Leaves May Turn To Gold, But The Green Will Stay In Your Wallet At ______

- It May Be Nippy Outside, But Our Move-in Specials Are Red Hot!

- Don't Wait For Freezing Temperatures To Move Into Your New Home! Fall Specials Are Happening Now At ______

Don't know where to start when it comes to your marketing materials? Apartment Postcards has been the industry leader in printed marketing materials for over 20 years. From effective direct mail campaigns that will bring qualified prospects to your door, to beautiful brochures that will sell your property when you're not around, you will love the results we can get for your community!

Partner with Apartment Postcards on your next marketing project and get the service, quality and experience that only "The Marketing Experts Of The Apartment Industry" can provide. Call 1-800-973-3317 or click here to receive a free, custom quote.

See What's New!

2009-08-17T12:48:00.010-04:00

We’ve been very busy with this year’s leasing season, and are excited to offer some new apartment marketing ideas! Here is an update on a few things that have been happening with us lately!

Super Sale Of The Week!

In case you didn’t know, Apartment Postcards posts a new sale every week discounting our popular marketing materials! Click here to view the Super Sale Of The Week, and here to receive our e-newsletter, The Occupancy Booster.

The Direct Mail Guide!

The Direct Mail Guide is an interactive guide launched by Apartment Postcards to show how easy it is to implement direct mail marketing into your apartment advertising plan. Click here to access the Guide, and get started with your direct mail postcard campaign today.

We’re On Twitter!

Apartment Postcards is now on Twitter. Click here to follow us, and get the inside scoop on new products and sales!

Real Estate Direct Mail

Apartment Postcards is now using our experience in the direct mail industry to help realtors, lenders and developers. From custom marketing materials to tailored direct mail campaigns, we’re helping real estate experts grow from coast to coast. Click here to receive a custom quote.

"Go Green" With Your Apartment Direct Mail, Brochures & Marketing Materials!

2009-07-21T16:20:00.009-04:00

Apartment Postcards is excited to report that we’ve taken our social responsibility efforts one step further! We’re now able to support your “Green Community” interests by offering all of our printed marketing materials on 100% recycled paper.

Whether you need a direct mail postcard, a beautiful full-color brochure, or a simple business card, you now have one more positive feature to highlight when you choose to print on 100% recycled paper!

Doing your part to protect the environment demonstrates that you are committed to being a responsible community and dedicated to continual improvement. Your reputation will automatically appeal to a growing segment of environmentally sensitive prospects who will be proud to call your community home.

Apartment Postcards will adhere to the same, strict standards on all of our recycled paper products that have made us one of the top apartment marketing firms in the nation. This means that when you choose to print on recycled paper, you can expect the same rich colors, textures and coatings that have made our marketing materials the best for over 20 years.

Choosing to “Go Green” means we’re all doing our part to help create an eco-friendly footprint, conserve forest resources, reduce water and energy consumption, and minimize solid waste and air pollution.

We hope that you will partner with Apartment Postcards on your next marketing project by choosing 100% Recycled Paper. To get started today, call 1-800-973-3317 or visit www.apartmentpromotions.com/custom_quote.php to receive a free, custom quote.

Click here for more information.

Online Apartment Advertising: The Glitz, The Glamour & The Truth

2009-06-09T11:12:00.007-04:00

It just sounds cool, “We’re advertising online.” The sentence carries an edgy tone to it that tells others that you know what you’re doing. That’s about all of the glitz and the glamour of online apartment advertising…now, let’s talk about the truth.

The truth about online advertising is that it’s a tough world out there. It’s almost impossible to rely solely on online advertising to bring in enough qualified apartment renters, month after month, to keep your occupancy high. With the amount of online ad space that’s sold every day, how are you supposed to make your community stand out from all the others?

YOU WON’T STAND OUT BY ADVERTISING ON POPULAR APARTMENT WEBSITES!

Apartment & Real Estate Promotions believes there is a better way to achieve a strong web presence without advertising with all of your competitors. When you advertise on popular apartment websites, all of your comp properties are just an easy click away.

Let me show you what I mean.

When a prospective renter goes online to see what apartments are available in their local area, how long will it take before he/she eventually finds your community? How many of your comps will they have had to wade through before seeing the ad you pay for every month? Hundreds? Even thousands? And, what is it about your ad that will entice them to visit your property over the others?

Does it seem far fetched that very few prospects will view your community, much less come in and sign a lease? Look at what a simple search on one of these popular apartment websites reveals:

Phoenix, AZ: Apartments Found – 716

Washington, DC: Apartments Found – 720

Houston, TX: Apartments Found - 701

Even if you’re paying big bucks for a premium position on one of these popular apartment websites, your competitors’ pages are only an easy click away…and you can be sure your prospects are going to check them out.

IT’S ALL ABOUT QUALITY, NOT QUANTITY!

Your community needs a simple, effective alternative to those non-performing websites where the odds are seriously stacked against you.

Fortunately, at Apartment & Real Estate Promotions we know how to get qualified prospects to go directly to your community’s website without having to click through all of your comp properties first. The solution to running a successful Internet advertising campaign is to have your own website and to publish your web address on every marketing and advertising tool available.

When your marketing activity prompts a prospect to go directly to your community’s website, they won’t be bombarded by advertising from every other apartment community in your area. Their complete focus will be on the amenities and services of your property, and your property alone. Just by taking the competition out of the picture, you’ll significantly increase your qualified traffic and sign more leases!!!

HOW DO I DRIVE TRAFFIC TO MY SITE?

That’s easy. The very best way to market your community and drive traffic to your site is with direct mail. Direct mail is a proven, apartment marketing solution that reaches only local renters who are already qualified to live in your community. When they visit the website printed on your postcard, they’ll be “driven” to investigate your property. What better way to automatically set yourself apart from your comps and capture the undivided attention of those qualified prospects! (Click here to learn more about our direct mail programs.)

Here are more ways to draw qualified traffic to your community through your website:

• Invite current residents to earn cash by referring prospects to your community. Make it easy by providing attractive flyers that highlight your web address. (Click here to see examples of our custom-designed flyers.)

• Distribute rack cards to local businesses, professional offices, chambers of commerce, etc., and give your website a prominent place on the card. (Click here to see examples of our custom-designed rack cards.)

• Add your website to your business cards, and pass them out at every networking opportunity. (Click here to see examples of our custom-designed business cards.)

• Advertise on Yahoo Local. It’s free, and will link directly to your website. You will have your prospect’s undivided attention because your competition will be out of sight and out of mind!

• All websites custom-designed by Apartment & Real Estate Promotions are Search Engine Optimized. This means that we know how to strategically build the HTML code to include keywords and phrases that put your website high on the list of Yahoo and Google search results! (Click here to see our custom website offerings.)

In summary, drawing prospects to a well-designed website means they don’t have to wade through all your comps to find you. Capturing their undivided attention and showcasing your community in an attractive and easy-to-navigate Internet environment pays big dividends in the form of more qualified traffic and more leases!

If you need help putting together an apartment website, Apartment & Real Estate Promotions can do it all at a budget-friendly price! Call 800-973-3317 today to shift the Internet odds in your favor! It’s fast, it’s easy, and it works!

5 Direct Mail Mistakes You Can’t Afford To Make

2009-05-05T10:49:00.004-04:00

Have you ever spent a good portion of your marketing budget on a direct mail postcard and then felt like something just wasn’t right? After waiting and waiting for the phone to ring or new prospects to show up, you finally realize you’re not getting any new leads, much less leases. You can’t help but wonder what went wrong. Why didn’t your direct mail work?

There’s a reason why Apartment & Real Estate Promotions is known throughout the apartment industry as “The Direct Mail Experts.” In our 20+ years of experience, we’ve seen just about every direct mail mistake an apartment marketer can make. We’ve studied what works with direct mail and what doesn’t. We know how costly even a small mistake can be, and because we’re committed to providing the best service in the apartment industry, we want to share the “5 Direct Mail Mistakes You Can’t Afford To Make.” These mistakes can sabotage even your best efforts to generate leases and can keep you from earning the highest possible ROI.

Direct Mail Mistake #5 – Mailing A Small Postcard

One of the first decisions you’ll make on your direct mail journey is the size of your direct mail postcard. You may think that postcard size doesn’t matter, but don’t be fooled. While some marketers opt for a 4” x 6” postcard to save a few bucks, those informed marketers who know how to generate leases through direct mail won’t even consider this option.

At Apartment & Real Estate Promotions, we offer only large, 5.5” x 8.5” or 6” x 11” direct mail postcards because we know that if a postcard doesn’t grab your prospect’s attention instantly, then it never will. Since small postcards don’t have the same impact or marketing power to prompt an immediate response, let’s just leave them for the competition. When your large postcard begins delivering leases the day it hits the mailboxes, you’ll know you made a wise decision.

Direct Mail Mistake #4 – Printing The Back Of Your Postcard In Black & White

When considering the design of your direct mail postcard, you must think about first impressions. 50% of your postcards will be seen first from the front, and 50% will be seen first from the back. If you try to save a little money with color on only one side, then half of your prospects will be drawn to what appears to be a beautiful, full-color postcard, while the other half will ignore it completely. Why? Because it looks like every other piece of black & white mail in the box. Think about it. You paid to reach 100% of your target market. Why settle for grabbing the attention of only 50%?

With our 20+ years of experience, we know that two-sided, full-color postcards absolutely command more attention and yield better results than black & white versions. Because we are so sure that it’s the right choice, Apartment & Real Estate Promotions will only print your postcard in full-color.

Direct Mail Mistake #3 – Not Using 100% Of The Postcard’s Real Estate

Much too frequently, we see direct mail postcards that leave the entire back, right side of the postcard blank! We can’t decide if the apartment marketers producing these are opting for an artsy, minimalist design, or if they are just unfamiliar with the postal requirements. Either way, they are forfeiting large areas of the postcard’s real estate for absolutely no reason! We simply can’t understand why someone would pay for the space and then not use it to its best advantage. What a missed opportunity.

Again, our 20+ years of designing ads for apartment communities has taught us to use every available inch of your postcard. Apartment & Real Estate Promotions thinks your property deserves the right to achieve the best possible results without being shortchanged. We care about how your postcard looks, and we care about getting you results!

Direct Mail Mistake #2 – Not Mailing To Your True Target Market

Note: Ordinarily, Mistake #2 would really be Mistake #1, but there’s another mistake that is so important in today’s environment that we had to put it first.

Failing to mail to your true target market is a hazard that we can’t over-emphasize. It will not matter if you have an exceptional postcard design, if your selling points are more than convincing, or if your special offer is incredible. If you send your postcard to the wrong audience, your entire direct mail campaign is doomed. If that sounds like an exaggeration, please consider why.

If you were to direct mail entire zip codes, single-family homes or local businesses, there is no way to tell if the prospects receiving your postcard are qualified! It’s very likely that 60-70% of the postcard recipients are homeowners, have a permanent living situation, or are anything other than an apartment renter! Why would you want to waste your advertising dollars on people who are not looking to rent apartments?

The only way to be 100% positive that your direct mail postcard is reaching qualified apartment renters is to direct mail the apartment communities that you compete with every day! The residents that live in these communities are your true target market! They already live in your area, they pay rent in the range that you charge, and they are looking for the same amenities that you offer. There is not a more perfect prospect to reach with a direct mail postcard than one living at a comp property within a 10-mile radius of your community. The more comps you have, the larger the pool of qualified prospects you can reach.

When you commission a direct mail campaign from Apartment & Real Estate Promotions, we first ask who your competitors are and then build your custom mailing list with the addresses of the residents who rent at those communities. This is the only way to guarantee that your postcard will reach your true target market without hitting any unqualified prospects. You’ll be giving more community tours, receiving more referrals, and signing more leases than ever before because you won’t be wasting time with unqualified traffic.

Direct Mail Mistake #1 – Not Offering A Good Special

These are extraordinary times, and extraordinary measures are required to maintain and increase your occupancy rate. A well-designed direct mail postcard is the best marketing decision you can make, but it includes a golden opportunity that too many marketers miss completely.

The #1 direct mail mistake we hate to see is when a community won’t offer an irresistible special to entice renters to move. Right now, more than ever, prospects are deciding whether it’s to their advantage to renew their leases at their present communities, or to explore other opportunities. Why not make it an easy decision for them?

Moving costs are high, and the economy is down. Zero or minimal savings will not entice renters to lease at your community! To get your prospects in this frame of mind, you must grab their attention with a beautiful, full-color postcard that includes an irresistible offer that will make them want to sign a lease at your property today! There’s no better way to make use of your advertising dollars. Not sure what that irresistible offer might look like? Don’t worry! Apartment & Real Estate Promotions can provide ideas and examples that are proven lease-generators.

If you’ve tried direct mail marketing on your own, or used another direct mail vendor, you’ve most likely been exposed to one or more of the direct mail mistakes listed above. We wish we could have helped sooner, but we can offer you a solid, proven direct mail method that will help you avoid any and all mistakes in the future. We’ve gained the trust of major management companies across the nation, and plenty of smaller ones as well. We know what we’re doing, and you can rest assured when “The Direct Mail Experts” are in charge.

So, what are you waiting for? Get leases fast with a direct mail program from Apartment & Real Estate Promotions – “The Direct Mail Experts!” Call us today at 1-800-973-3317!

Click here for direct mail solutions from Apartment & Real Estate Promotions

A Scientific Look At Targeted Direct Mail For Apartments

2009-04-28T10:27:00.003-04:00

Isn’t it funny how every once in a while, a piece of mail will grab your attention? Somehow, it seems the sender knew exactly what you needed and when you needed it. Was that by mere chance, or was something else going on?

For example, let’s assume that you watch your car mileage to determine when it’s time for an oil change. You calculate that you can drive another week before taking the car in for service. A few days later you receive a postcard promoting a great special on oil changes. What lucky timing, right? Wrong! It wasn’t luck. It was part of a carefully planned strategy to get your attention and prompt you to action when you’re most likely to respond positively!

Wait! How would they know you were due for an oil change? It’s not as mysterious as it seems. In fact, it’s a simple, straightforward and scientific method to hitting a carefully defined target at just the right time.

You probably don’t remember, but the first time you took your car in for service they collected a little information about you and your vehicle. Then a computer started tracking your service pattern and began calculating when your next oil change would likely be needed. When the “magic date” popped up, you were sent a special offer. Simple, yet scientific, and totally effective!

Maybe you’re reading this and saying, “Wow, if my community had an ad agency, we could create a targeted direct mail campaign that would reach qualified prospects just when their leases are up for renewal! My property would stay at 100% occupancy all year long, and leasing apartments would be a breeze!”

You’ll be relieved to hear that creating a direct mail piece that targets only qualified renters in your area is much simpler than you think! Other businesses have to consider consumer buying cycles, but not the apartment industry. Every 12 months a renter is going to sign a new lease, and it’s either going to be with you or one of your comps.

Fortunately, you don’t need a big ad agency or a $20,000 marketing budget to pull in those leases. Apartment & Real Estate Promotions can handle everything you need. We have monthly direct mail campaigns starting as low as $800 per month and one-time direct mail starting at $1,125. Let me tell you how we do it!

When Apartment & Real Estate Promotions begins working on a targeted direct mail piece for your community, we don’t just pick a zip code and start mailing away. Instead, we ask you to identify those nearby communities that rent specifically to the type of renters you want to target. The list that we’ll create for your community will include only pre-qualified prospects that will be making leasing decisions within the next 11 months. That means your direct mail program puts your property at the center of their attention at just the right time!

In addition to your one-of-a-kind mailing list, we’ll create a beautiful direct mail postcard showcasing your community and all its attractive amenities. Want to see a different design? No problem; we’ll get started on another one right away. Want to make a color change? Again, no problem. Need photo touch up? We can handle that. Need stock photos? We have a ton! And, the best part about working with Apartment & Real Estate Promotions is that all of the above services are FREE! We believe in satisfied clients and NO HIDDEN CHARGES!

So, what are you waiting for? Over 33% of renters in your area have leases expiring in less than 4 months. Stop wasting your advertising dollars on unqualified prospects, and start leasing units today! Apartment & Real Estate Promotions knows how to get you leases fast…and, we never let our clients down!

Give us a call at 1-800-973-3317 today!

Vacancy Rates On The Rise?

2009-04-07T10:21:00.003-04:00

A recent apartment publication had an astonishing statistic regarding one of the nation's largest and strongest apartment markets. Incredibly, in the fourth quarter of 2008, the vacancy rate in Phoenix, AZ hit a record high of 14.7%!

In this challenging environment, how can a manager, regional, marketing director or owner reduce the vacancy rate, and increase the bottom line? The only answer is smart marketing and hard work. We know some communities will continue taking the loss until the economy turns around, hoping that empty units will fill themselves. Unfortunately, as those of us who have been in the industry for a long time know, that rarely happens.

No matter if you’re in Phoenix or Maine, when your vacancy rates are over 5-6%, you cannot afford to waste any advertising dollars! When you pour money into apartment magazines, Internet sites and newspapers, those companies are using your advertising dollars to present your community to UNQUALIFIED prospects. They promise that your message will get out, but can’t control who will actually see it. Their marketing philosophy is that if “you throw enough spaghetti against the wall, something has to stick.”

Don’t you deserve more? You’ve worked hard to establish yourself and your community, and settling for expensive and ineffective advertising is a recipe for disappointment. When you commission Apartment & Real Estate Promotions to create a custom-designed direct mail campaign for your community, you’ll receive a first-class marketing solution with a proven track record spanning more than 20 years.

You see, we don’t simply throw a few pictures on a postcard and mail it to “apartment shoppers.” That’s not the way that Apartment & Real Estate Promotions has gained an industry-leading reputation as “The Direct Mail Experts.” We work hand-in-hand with you to create a beautiful postcard that will engage prospects the moment they see it in their mailboxes. When they arrive at your property for a tour, with your postcard in hand, you’ll know your advertising dollars worked!

Besides the incredible design, what else makes your campaign so effective? Here’s the secret: you handpick every prospect that will receive your postcard! Your marketing piece and advertising budget will NEVER be wasted on one prospect who is not qualified to move into your community! More qualified traffic will lead to more leases, which in turn will increase your bottom line. Watch your high vacancy rates evaporate when your occupancy soars!

Apartment & Real Estate Promotions is the industry leader in creating unique, one-of-a-kind, engaging marketing pieces that deliver traffic and leases to your community, month in and month out. We do this without any hidden charges, providing all the pricing up front, and with the best customer service possible.

Since the only ways to lower vacancy rates in a recession are hard work and smart marketing, let The Direct Mail Experts of the apartment industry get your community on the path to 100% occupancy! Call us today, at 1-800-973-3317.

Click here for direct mail solutions from Apartment & Real Estate Promotions.

Alert! Phone Problem Resolved

2009-04-07T10:18:00.002-04:00

Special Alert From Apartment & Real Estate Promotions

We just received notice from one of our clients that our 800 number was ringing at a different business. The second we heard, we called the number and sure enough, it was. The business said that they have been receiving phone calls all week long. Unfortunately, this incident occurred during the middle of our Super Sales Week 2009. The problem turned out to be a minor glitch in AT&T’s system and was fixed in a matter of seconds.

We would like to extend the offer of Super Sales Week for another entire week, starting today. If you called to take advantage of one of our sales, or for product inquiry, please accept our gracious apology and give us a call immediately at 1-800-973-3317. Thank you so much.

To see all the specials, please visit: http://www.apartmentpromotions.com/specials.php

Super Sales Week Is Here!!!

2009-03-24T09:34:00.007-04:00

Super Sales Week Is Going On Now!

If you haven’t heard about what’s going on this week at ApartmentPromotions.com, then you’re missing the biggest marketing event this year! For one week only, Apartment & Real Estate Promotions is running their spring Super Sales Week!

This is a one-week series of special offers that begins at 10:30 am and lasts for 24 hours. The sale notices will arrive in your inbox (if you’re not signed up, click here to do so) and will also be posted on our website. At the end of each 24-hour period, we begin a different sale for the next 24 hours. Be sure to call us at 1-800-973-3317 within the 24-hour window to order your highly-discounted marketing materials at prices not seen since Super Sales Week 2008!

Super Sales Week begins Tuesday, March 24th and concludes Wednesday, April 1st at 10:30am.

25 Leases In 1 Week!

2009-03-10T10:51:00.007-04:00

Many people question the effectiveness of direct mail. Many also question the effectiveness of targeting only qualified prospects at surrounding comp apartments with a direct mail marketing piece. Some call it “old fashioned,” to others it’s “wasteful spending" or “risky marketing”...but those apartment communities taking our word that direct mail marketing is the #1 advertising source for apartment communities call it MONEY IN THE BANK!

We get astounding results for our clients every single day. Recently, we designed a 4-property postcard for a client that generated an amazing response! The direct mail postcard delivered results of 25 LEASES IN ONE WEEK! If anyone can match those results with any other type of marketing, we’ll take our hats off to you.

What makes these results even better is the fact that the 25 leases were generated in the first week alone! These properties still have weeks and weeks of “lease harvest” to bring in from their direct mail postcard.

If you’ve ever doubted the effectiveness of a direct mail postcard, this is the week to make yourself a believer. We are on the heels of the hottest leasing season in years, and we are practically giving away these direct mail campaigns to help your community reach 100% occupancy!

Introducing Dorm Direct - The Easiest Way To Reach Students In College Dorms.

2009-01-27T12:07:00.006-05:00

Student communities rejoice! Apartment & Real Estate Promotions introduces Dorm Direct, a powerful direct mail solution exclusively for student apartment communities.

For far too many years, managers of student apartment communities have wasted time searching and struggling to get dorm addresses for students at local colleges and universities. Unfortunately, until now, there has been no easy way for these apartment managers to reach “The Perfect Prospect.”

Who is “The Perfect Prospect?” Well, that depends on the type of apartment community you manage and where you are located, but for student apartment communities, there isn’t a more Perfect Prospect than one that’s stuck in a college dorm!

That’s why we’re so excited to introduce our newest direct mail marketing solution: Dorm Direct from Apartment & Real Estate Promotions. We now have the unique ability to deliver your community’s marketing message to every college dorm resident on most campuses in America. Your time is too valuable to spend trying to find addresses, self-label and direct mail your own postcards. Let The Direct Mail Experts handle the job from conception to completion.

Due to parking shortages and new first-year requirements, many colleges and universities now require their freshman students to live in college dorms without a car. Understandably, those students are ready to move as soon as they possibly can, and what better time to market your student apartment community to them with a beautiful, full-color direct mail postcard! Let our experienced graphic designers create a contemporary, modern and edgy postcard design that will easily turn dorm residents into your residents.

There’s also no need to worry about being lost in a crowded mailbox. Schools are so protective of their mailing lists that we actually have to get your postcard approved by a solicitation board before we can even acquire your mailing list. This means that credit card companies, nightclubs or other “special offers” won’t be competing for the attention of your prospects.

Click here to get the full scoop on Dorm Direct, and get a free custom quote today!

The Definitive Guide To Apartment Brochures

2009-01-21T10:52:00.030-05:00

Everything you need to know about apartment brochures. Brought to you by the marketing experts at Apartment & Real Estate Promotions.

Apartment professionals across the nation share one common goal, and that’s to reach and maintain 100% occupancy. How they go about making that happen, however, can range from one end of the marketing spectrum to the other. A little experience makes it clear that one of the best ways to present your community to a prospective resident is with a carefully designed and produced brochure. How is it that so many communities miss this simple, powerful and cost-effective tool?

Apartment brochures, just like the communities themselves, come with a wide range of characteristics. Whether your brochure is a beautiful, 8-page spread printed on high-quality paper, or a flyer that has been run off the same black and white copier for 10 years, they both do the same thing: tell the story of your community. The question is, will that story engage and entice prospective residents, or will it send them down the street to the competition?

Apartment brochures are important for many reasons. Of course, they show your amenities, floor plans, location, and may even include a site map of your community. But the single most important reason your apartment community should have a beautiful, well-designed brochure is because of the selling power that it provides.

You already know that prospects will usually not visit your community and sign a lease on the same day. Instead, prospects are more likely to tour your property and then move on to visit your comps. Later, they will review the marketing materials they’ve collected, study the floor plans and site maps, and make an informed leasing decision based on what they see in the brochures and what they remember about the properties.

A well-designed brochure stands out from all the others because it reminds the prospect of your unique features, amenities and floor plans, and gives a sense of the inviting lifestyle your community offers. If your brochure is so enticing that a prospective resident turns to it again and again, it essentially serves as a trained leasing consultant who can skillfully convert a prospect into a resident.

There are endless options when it comes to the style and design of apartment brochures, and that means some careful decisions are necessary. For example, choosing from among the many different folds, sizes and paper combinations can be challenging. Showcasing your amenities and floor plans in the best possible light calls for creative design. With our many years of experience and our professional team of designers, we’ve learned how to make the entire process simple, effective and fast.

Because we want the best for your property, we’re providing answers to the most common questions in “The Definitive Guide To Apartment Brochures.” When you make smart, informed brochure decisions, you’ll see more prospects coming back to your leasing office with pen in hand. Here we go!

Paper Stock & Paper Coatings

Before we get into the sizes and folds of apartment brochures, we need to learn about the different stocks of paper and coatings that are available for your brochure. Other than the size of your brochure, paper stock is the #1 factor in determining the price of your brochure.

Paper Coatings

Aqueous Coating (AQ): Aqueous coating is a high-gloss coating that is added to paper to give it shine and durability. Unless a paper is meant to have a matte (or flat) finish, it will usually have an AQ coating.

UV Coating: UV coating is the latest, advanced paper coating option available. Usually reserved for postcards or other sturdy marketing materials, a UV coating will combine both a light shine and finish with tough durability.

Matte Finish: A matte finish provides a flat, more natural looking finish than other shiny coatings. Colors usually appear softer, and a matte finish will give a more “modern” look and feel to your brochure.

Paper Stock

100lb Glossy Book: This is the most commonly used paper stock for brochures. This stock always comes with an AQ coating and is known for its affordability and durability.

100lb Glossy Cover: If you’re looking for a luxury brochure without the hefty price tag, then a cover stock is for you. Cover stocks come with either an AQ coating or a matte finish. A cover stock is much thicker and sturdier than book stock paper.

Recycled 100lb White Matte Cover: If green is your thing, then this is the paper for you. Just like the 100lb glossy cover described above, this eco-friendly paper is thick and sturdy, but can only be printed with a matte finish. Being green can be more costly, and recycled paper is a more expensive option.

14pt. Cardstock with UV: This is the paper stock that we use for printing all of our direct mail postcards. While not usually used for brochures, this cardstock is appropriate for folder-style brochures where a thick exterior is needed.

Brochure Styles

Now that you know about the different types of paper and coating options, we want to tell you about different styles of apartment brochures. You’ll find that Apartment & Real Estate Promotions offers one of the most comprehensive selections of apartment brochures anywhere. We’ve designed brochures for apartment communities around the nation, and know what it takes to make your property capture and hold the interest of your prospects.

The Tri-Fold Brochure

The tri-fold brochure is the original apartment brochure. Regardless of size, all tri-fold brochures have 6 panels with one that is usually reserved for a mailing label. Smaller sized tri-folds (8.5” x 11”) are capable of displaying up to 6 floor plans while listing all of your property amenities. Select a larger tri-fold (11” x 25.5”) when you want to either increase the size of the floor plans, or just display more versions. Because tri-fold brochures are so versatile, they make a great fit for just about every property. An 8.5” x 11” tri-fold brochure fits into conventional size racks and envelopes, making them great for outside marketing and direct mail.

Pros: Affordable, versatile, professional and perfect for outside marketing.

Sizes Offered: 8.5” x 11”, 8.5” x 14”, 11” x 17”, 12” x 18”, 11” x 25.5”

Paper Stock Options: 100lb Glossy Book, 100lb Glossy Cover, Recycled 100lb White Matte Cover.

The Half-Fold Brochure

The half-fold brochure isn’t new to the apartment industry, but it has certainly been rising in popularity. Usually printed on a thick, cover paper stock, the half-fold brochure can provide any community with a luxurious look and feel without a hefty price tag. The generous 11” x 17” size is what makes this brochure so popular. It can display your floor plans, amenities, site map, location map and plenty of property photos with room to spare!

Pros: Perfect for when you have a large number of floor plans, affordable but looks and feels luxurious, and different enough to stand out in a crowd.

Sizes Offered: 8.5” x 11”, 8.5” x 14”, 11” x 17”, 12” x 18”, 11” x 25.5”

Paper Stock Options: 100lb Glossy Book, 100lb Glossy Cover, Recycled 100lb White Matte Cover.

The Folder Brochure

A folder brochure is the way to go if you want to really set your community apart from the competition. This huge 9” x 12” or 9” x 14.5” folder-style brochure accomplishes a variety of tasks with style and class. Not only will your folder brochure show off your property photos and community information, it also comes with a pocket that holds floor plans, site maps and copies of the leases you sign!

Pros: Shows the prospect that your community has style and class unmatched by the competition, and provides plenty of room to include all of the information and materials that you give to prospects (credit apps, leases, site maps, etc.).

Sizes Offered: 9” x 12”, 9” x 14.5”

Paper Stock Options: 14pt. Cardstock with UV or Matte Finish, 100lb Glossy Cover with AQ Coating.

The Booklet Brochure

There’s only one thing that a prospect will feel when you hand them your community’s custom booklet brochure: impressed! Custom-made to meet your property’s needs, a custom booklet brochure is guaranteed to show off the best your community has to offer. No matter how many floor plans, features and amenities or maps you include, we can help you create a booklet brochure that captures the very essence of who you are and what you offer. In other words, you can have a unique booklet that separates you from the crowd.

Pros: Custom-tailored to your community with a one-of-a-kind design that guarantees you won’t share your brochure style with any of your comps.

Sizes Offered: Custom to your community.

Paper Stock Options: Custom to your community.

Other Apartment Brochure Styles and Folds

Space doesn’t permit us to cover all of the styles and folds of apartment brochures that are available, but be aware that there are still many other choices available. Below you will find illustrations of other types of common apartment brochures that we offer at Apartment & Real Estate Promotions. All of these folds are available with the options listed at the end.

The Accordion Fold

The Gatefold

The Double Gatefold

The Double Parallel Fold

The French Brochure

Sizes Offered: 8.5” x 11”, 8.5” x 14”, 11” x 17”, 12” x 18”, 11” x 25.5”

Paper Stock Options: 100lb Glossy Book, 100lb Glossy Cover, Recycled 100lb White Matte Cover.

We hope that you have enjoyed “The Definitive Guide To Apartment Brochures.” In our many years of experience, we have learned that an informed client makes good decisions, and we are happy to spend as much time as necessary to help our clients make wise choices. We combine your requirements with our experienced and professional design and print services to create high-quality marketing materials that turn prospects into residents and keep your occupancy rates high. We also promise to provide you with the best customer service in the industry. If you still have questions about which brochure is best for your community, give us a call at 1-800-973-3317 to talk to an apartment marketing expert. It may just be the best decision you make all day!

JR - The Apartment Marketer

Supersized or Superstar?

2008-12-30T11:25:00.000-05:00

Why are more apartment professionals dropping their ad agencies and turning to Apartment & Real Estate Promotions to meet their apartment marketing needs? The answer may sound a little corny, but it’s true: it’s because we are superstars when it comes to producing professional marketing materials that create exceptional results for less money.

We are a small group of dedicated professionals who always put the property and marketing needs of our clients first. As a result, we have been selected by thousands of apartment communities nationwide to develop marketing materials and direct mail programs that consistently increase qualified traffic and boost occupancy.

There’s no need to waste tens of thousands of dollars with an ad agency when Apartment & Real Estate Promotions can deliver all of your marketing solutions at a fraction of the cost. Our team is as talented and experienced as they come, and you can be confident that we always deliver on our promise to build your brand. We’ve been handling apartment marketing campaigns for over 25 years, and your property can enjoy signifcant savings when you order directly from The Apartment Marketing Experts.

Below are the top 10 reasons why we outshine and outperform every other marketing company, ad agency or Internet printer you can find, and why so many major management companies in America turn to us.

10. During our normal business hours, our phone will always be answered by a real person, not a machine.

9. Once your order is placed, you will not be forgotten. We promise an extremely fast turnaround time, and we keep you informed all along the way.

8. Your specific needs will not get lost in the shuffle. We treat you like you are our only customer.

7. Your advertising problems will always be met with solutions, not excuses.

6. Making your property look exceptional and building your brand will be our top priorities.

5. Higher occupancy and increased qualified traffic will not be an empty promise.

4. Every marketing piece is 100% custom-designed for each individual apartment community.

3. We have NO HIDDEN CHARGES. The price you are quoted or see online is the exact price you will pay.

2. Our staff is dedicated solely to the apartment industry, and we have over 50 years of combined experience raising occupancy rates and designing beautiful marketing materials.

And the number one reason to choose Apartment & Real Estate Promotions for all of your marketing needs is because…

1. We are small enough to give personal attention and large enough to produce exceptional results!

If you’ve held off choosing a marketing company, or feel that you need a huge ad agency to give your property a professional look, we’ve just given you 10 honest, real reasons to pick up the phone and give us a try. Email us at contact@apartmentpromotions.com, or call us at 1-800-973-3317 to talk to a real person who can offer real solutions for your community.

The Truth About Direct Mail Pt. 3

2008-12-30T11:21:00.003-05:00

3 Direct Mail Truths From "The Direct Mail Experts."

Part 3 of 3: Apartment direct mail postcards should not target businesses, homeowners, single-family renters and NEVER zip codes!

“Wait, Wait, Wait! Stop the press! If we’re not supposed to direct mail to zip codes...then who is there to mail to?”

If this is anything like your response to hearing Direct Mail Truth #3, I’m afraid you’ve been misled into thinking that by mailing to businesses, homeowners, single-family renters and zip codes, a direct mail postcard will attract renters to your community. It takes a targeted list of apartment renters to see real results. If your property has previously direct mailed the markets listed above, I fear you’ve wasted a lot of advertising dollars.

Rather than dwell upon or try to correct previous advertising missteps, let Apartment & Real Estate Promotions help you refocus your marketing strategy so that you only reach qualified prospects. The reason we publish “The Occupancy Booster” is to help you learn from our 25+ years of marketing experience in the apartment industry. We want to help you avoid wasting your advertising resources on marketing pieces that simply cannot achieve maximum results.

Apartment & Real Estate Promotions doesn’t operate like other marketing companies. When you call to get your direct mail campaign started, we don’t pretend to already know who is qualified to live in your community. We let you tell us. You give us the actual names of properties that have renters who are qualified to live in your community, and those are the only people we target with your direct mail postcard. We have direct mail marketing down to a science, and targeting your comp properties is the only way to generate the kind of traffic that turns into leases.

When you target anyone besides local apartment renters, you’re taking a big risk. These generic mailing lists come fast and cheap, and that is why they are suggested by the other so-called “industry experts.”

-Local Businesses: If you target local businesses, your postcard usually won’t make it past the secretary who collects the mail. To reach the employees who might be candidates for your community, drop off a few rack cards or marketing cards to capture this market.

- Homeowners: Unfortunately, your beautiful postcard will be considered junk mail from a company that sent them a postcard by accident. Don’t waste your time with this market.

- Single-Family Renters: When you target this category, the likelihood that you are going to hit a real prospect is not very high. These lists are not guaranteed and often include numerous homeowners. Plus, these people are not apartment renters! You don’t know if they even want to live in an apartment community!

- Renters By Zip Code: Who knows whom you’ll reach when you target renters within any given zip code? These lists are known to be highly inaccurate and will not include most of your competing properties. Unfortunately, a list like this will include some apartment communities, but homeowners and single-family renters will also find their way into the list. You will be hitting way too many prospects that do not meet your property’s criteria, and any chance of reaching a qualified renter will be minimal.

What sets Apartment & Real Estate Promotions apart is that we have a team of experts ready to dig through thousands of addresses just to find the ones that matter to you ⎯ the pre-qualified residents currently living at your competing properties! We work hard to ensure that your direct mail postcard will pay big dividends! Find out for yourself why more apartment professionals turn to us than any other company.

This sums up our 3-part series on the Truths of Direct Mail. You’ve heard facts from us that you won’t hear from anyone else. Our many satisfied customers know that we don’t waste your resources with a marketing scheme that won’t (and can’t!) work. We provide solid direct mail solutions that have been helping apartment communities all over the nation reach 100% occupancy for more than 25 years.

Click here to see direct mail campaign solutions from Apartment & Real Estate Promotions. http://www.apartmentpromotions.com/apartment-direct-mail-postcards.php

The Truth About Direct Mail Pt. 2

2008-11-05T11:54:00.010-05:00

3 Direct Mail Truths From "The Direct Mail Experts."

Part 2 of 3: Direct mail reaches prospects that traditional apartment advertising can't.

I’m a renter, and truth be told, I haven’t been to a grocery store in a few weeks. I use a credit card to pay for my gas, so I rarely walk inside a gas station. The last time I pulled over on the side of the road for anything was when some papers accidentally flew out of my car. I don’t subscribe to the newspaper, but I do subscribe to NetFlix and haven’t stepped foot in a Blockbuster Video in probably 5 years.

Why do these facts matter to you? Because these are the places you advertise! In grocery stores, gas stations, video rental stores, the newspaper and even on the side of the road. Apartment publications try to place their books in any empty corner they can find, hoping and wishing that qualified prospects will pick one up and find you.

How is your marketing message going to get in my hands?

Of course, I’m not implying that every apartment renter is exactly like me, but the truth is that people today don’t live the traditional lifestyle they used to. You can pretty much get anything you need, any time you need it, at the click of a button or with a swipe of a card. Apartment advertising venues just haven’t kept up. The marketing tactics that worked 10 years ago won’t work today. One thing has stayed the same though; the mailman still delivers 6 days a week through rain, sleet, hail or snow. A direct mail postcard is the only sure-fire way to know that your marketing message is reaching prospects. Why risk your advertising dollars with apartment publications and websites that advertise your community where only a handful of renters will see your marketing message? Wouldn’t you rather be certain that your marketing message reaches 100% of your target market?

Direct mail goes beyond conventional apartment advertising. A direct mail postcard will actually place your marketing message into the hands of every single prospect in your target market month after month. No other advertising source can make a statement like that.

If you seriously give direct mail from Apartment & Real Estate Promotions a chance, you will see more qualified traffic walk into your leasing office, and you'll rent more apartments because that traffic is qualified. We create your postcard, gather the mailing list of your qualified prospects, print, mail and provide the best customer service in the industry. We have over 35 years of apartment advertising experience and have provided apartment communities all over the nation with tens of thousands of leases. Join them today.

Click here to see direct mail solutions from Apartment & Real Estate Promotions.

The Truth About Direct Mail Pt. 1

2008-10-28T10:11:00.006-04:00

3 Direct Mail Truths From "The Direct Mail Experts."

Part 1 of 3: Direct mail is all about consistency.

If you don’t think of direct mail as a primary source of apartment advertising, then you’re missing out! Your property can receive more qualified leads month after month with a custom direct mail campaign than with any other form of advertising. When compared to apartment publications, apartment websites or local newspapers, direct mail marketing will drive more qualified leads to your property than any other advertising source.

In this 3-part series, we're going to take a look at 3 truths about direct mail that you won’t hear from anyone besides “The Direct Mail Experts.” To fully understand how direct mail works, we first need to exactly define your target market.

Your target market consists of renters who already live in your area, can afford to live in your community, can move within 30 days, and meet the criteria of your property.

No matter what anyone tells you, your target market is not simply an “apartment shopper.” An “apartment shopper” falls into a large and diverse group of people, most of whom cannot live in your community.

Truth #1: Direct mail is all about consistency.

How many times have you advertised in an “apartment book” for only one month? How many times have you told an apartment website you only wanted to be featured online for one month? What about the Yellow Pages for only one month?

Never, right? The reason you advertise in publications month after month is because your prospects can only move once a year when their leases are up for renewal. The same concept applies to direct mail.

When you direct mail your postcard into the hands of qualified prospects for 12 consecutive months, you are hitting every single resident 30, 60 and 90 days before their leases are up for renewal. No other advertising source can provide this amount of exposure or impact your target market the way a direct mail campaign can.

Sure, a one-time direct mail postcard will work great and yield plenty of results for a one-time occupancy boost. But, if you’re looking for leases month after month, (which, of course, you are!), then a direct mail campaign is the only way to see qualified traffic fill your leasing office on a consistent basis.

Click here to see direct mail campaign solutions from Apartment & Real Estate Promotions

No-Risk Apartment Marketing

2008-10-06T17:25:00.018-04:00

Smart Marketing Guarantees A Return Every Time...

In our present shaky economy, people are afraid to invest. The stock market is up one day and down the next. Gas prices are falling one day and reaching record highs the next day. On Monday one company owns your bank, and on Tuesday it’s taken over by another. I don’t blame people for not investing in this “risky” market, because it truly is risky.

But, what would you do if I told you I had a guaranteed stock tip. A tip that works every single time, and has no risk involved at all. Would you believe me? Would you be a little interested? Probably not. But what if I told you that I have over 20 years of proven experience and that all my clients are millionaires. On top of that, every client that still uses the tip continues to see growth in his or her portfolio. Now I have your attention.

Unfortunately, The Apartment Marketer doesn’t have a stock tip that is sure to fast-forward your retirement 10 years. What I do have, however, are PROVEN marketing strategies that have worked for apartment communities around the nation for over 20 years. These strategies are guaranteed to help your property reach 100% occupancy. We can also help you avoid some “risky” marketing investments. Let’s take a look at both proven and risky apartment marketing investments.

No-Risk Marketing Strategy #1 – Direct Mail With Apartment & Real Estate Promotions
Notice that I didn’t just say “direct mail.” You see, most direct mail companies will take every advertising dollar that you have and throw it to the wind. They will direct mail every single person within a 10-mile radius of your community. Homeowners, fast food restaurants, other commercial businesses…the list is endless. Of course, we know that most of these people are not interested in living in your community, or not qualified, and that is why this direct mail approach is a very risky and very expensive investment.

The reason there is no risk with direct mail marketing from Apartment & Real Estate Promotions is because we only mail your postcard to QUALIFIED PROSPECTS! You know your market better than anyone else, so we don’t assume that we know exactly who can move into your community. Instead, you tell us the names of your comp properties, where each and every resident is already qualified to live in your community, and those are the ONLY people to whom we deliver your postcard.

When you eliminate spending your marketing dollars on unqualified prospects, you’ll see a much greater return on your investment and will eliminate unnecessary marketing risks.

Click here to see a list of direct mail options from Apartment & Real Estate Promotions.

No-Risk Marketing Strategy #2 – A Custom Website
If you’re relying on popular apartment websites to promote your property, then you’re also relying on them to promote your competition just as much as your community. I keep asking myself, “Who wants to spend their marketing dollars advertising for the competition?”

With a custom-designed website for your property, there is absolutely NO RISK INVOLVED AT ALL! Your property’s photos, floor plans, amenities and specials will stand all by themselves, far, far away from your competition. If you advertise your website on all of your marketing materials, you’ll drive the qualified prospects straight to your site. The competition will be out of sight and out of mind!

Click here for the best apartment website developers.

No-Risk Marketing Strategy #3 – Hard Work With Beautiful Marketing Materials
In a perfect world, qualified prospects would walk into the door every single day and lease an apartment on the first visit. But we don’t live in a perfect world, and sometimes you’re going to have to hit the street in order for your community to reach 100% occupancy. We know outside marketing is challenging for any apartment manager, but we promise to make the effort worth your while with beautiful marketing materials.

What makes outside marketing a NO-RISK activity is the fact that businesses and chambers of commerce want to impress their future employees and members. They are wary of handing out the poorly produced or photocopied flyers and business cards that your competitors distribute. Instead, they only want to show and represent the best their city or town has to offer to future employees and business owners. A fully custom-designed, high quality brochure or marketing card is sure to impress them and get you a referral every time.

When you start representing your property with beautiful marketing materials, you’ll find that your leasing office will begin to receive qualified traffic that just wasn’t possible with inferior marketing materials.

Click here to see all the beautiful marketing materials that Apartment & Real Estate Promotions can provide your property.

Now that we’ve covered some of the no-risk marketing investments, let’s take a look at some more risky ones.

Risky Marketing Investment #1 - Front Cover Of An “Apartment Book”
Imagine a prospect looking at the front cover of your favorite apartment book. Now imagine your property being on the front cover. At first glance the prospect falls in love with your community. The prospect can’t wait to find out more information about your property and the amenities that you provide. The prospect earnestly flips through the apartment book looking for your community’s ad, but while searching, the prospect sees another pretty property and instantly falls for it. You just lost that prospect to a competitor. Now, imagine this happening to everyone who picks up the book.

Advertising just a page-flip away from your competition is essentially asking for this to happen, and all those advertising dollars that you spent on the cover aren’t worth anything. We know that some properties might see a small increase in traffic, but the majority will see no more traffic walking through the door than the last month. Even if the prospect turns directly to your page, the competition is only a page-flip away. This is a risky marketing investment, and the reward does not outweigh the risk.

Risky Marketing Investment #2 – Premium Placement On An Apartment Website
When you’re approached about premium website positioning, we admit that the proposition will look enticing. You’ll hear that over 50% of apartment searches are started online, and that premium website positioning will improve your chance of someone clicking your property’s page. Now, we don’t doubt that you might get a few extra webpage views, but is the investment really worthwhile?

The answer is NO! The competition is advertising only one click away! Prospects can go from loving your property to not even thinking about it in a matter of seconds. Plus, just think how many of the prospects looking at your page are actually qualified to live in your community. Why not take that extra money you were going to spend on premium placement, and drive traffic to your own website? You’ll find that the prospect’s attention will be focused on your property, and yours alone. Your competition won’t even be a thought in their mind.

Risky Marketing Investment #3 – Advertising In The Newspaper
I’m creating a new marketing category for newspaper advertising. It’s called “Desperate Marketing.” This is used when you have lots of money, but desperately need leases.

What is the main reason newspaper advertising is a waste of your advertising dollars? Over 90% of newspaper subscribers are homeowners! This means that if every single person that subscribed to the newspaper looked at your ad, only 10% of those readers are apartment renters. And that’s if every single subscriber sees your ad. Newspaper advertising is usually more a frantic reaction than a thoughtful action, and the results are pretty dismal. It’s an expensive gamble, isn’t it?

Risky Marketing Investment #4 – Advertising On The Radio
It’s hard for me to see much reasoning for using radio advertising to promote apartment communities. I guess if you have a business that appeals to every person, like a major grocery store or a shopping mall, then it could be a good investment. But apartment communities are not for everyone. In fact, only a small percentage of the local population is qualified to live in your community. Here’s an example that shows what I’m talking about.

Let’s be generous and say that 5% of your local population is qualified to move into your community.

With almost universal access to radio, let’s say that the stars and moon have aligned and that every single person in your area is listening to the specific radio station at the very moment that your advertisement plays. BOOM! Congratulations, you just appealed to 5% of the market. Now after hearing your advertisement, how many of that 5% have a lease coming up for renewal or are shopping for a new apartment and can move into your property? Not many.

As you can see, even on the best day, radio advertising is not worth it!

When you step back and actually look at how your advertising dollars are spent, you’ll realize that risky marketing investments rarely pay off. Why waste advertising dollars on a chance, when you can reach 100% of your target market every time with concentrated, target marketing?

JR – The Apartment Marketer

Breaking Up Is Hard To Do

2008-08-12T11:05:00.015-04:00

...but separating from your competition will cause your occupancy rates to soar!

You know the feeling. . .worry, fear, maybe even dread. We hesitate to make the break because change is scary, even when we know it’s the right thing to do. Unfortunately, in today’s multifamily housing environment, Separation Anxiety is just too dangerous to ignore.

Separating from loved ones is a hard task, and I’m sure we’ve all been there. Leaving the airport after dropping off that special person. Listening to the quiet after the last car has pulled out of the driveway. Dropping out of an Apartment Magazine Book. Wait! Pulling out of an Apartment Magazine Book? Why would anyone do that, and why would that make me feel anxious?

You might not realize it, but when you spend your advertising dollars in one or more of the apartment books, or on several apartment search engines, all you’re doing is paying to advertise your competition! Sure, you have a pretty ad. Sure, you might have good placement. You might even be on the cover! But what is separating you from your competition? You’re right in the middle of 500 competitors!

Can we agree that not many QUALIFIED prospects are going to come through your doors from apartment guides? But, isn’t qualified traffic exactly what we’re looking for? After all, QUALIFIED TRAFFIC = MORE LEASES = 100% OCCUPANCY!

I’m not saying that these books don’t work at all, but are they really the best use of your advertising dollars? Can you accurately identify and track the leases that these pages produce for you, or do you just cross your fingers and hope they throw a little traffic your way? You need to “break up” with your competition, and separate your marketing efforts to see the best results from your advertising dollar!

It might be hard, and your regional or marketing director might be reluctant to think outside the box, but if you can plant the seed that promoting your property on it’s own is the best way to market your community, then you’ll be on your way to higher occupancy in no time!

So, Apartment Marketer, what are the best ways to reach QUALIFIED prospects without advertising for the competition?

Direct Mail – Direct mail is a time-proven solution to apartment marketing. You’ll find that the success of direct mail is 90% about your mailing list and timing and 10% about what your postcard says. When you can reach prospects that currently live in your comps’ communities, you’re reaching prospects that are already pre-qualified. If you can reach this audience when they are ready to move, you’ve got an instant key to higher occupancy rates!

Your Own Website - This might sound like a costly investment, but websites are pretty cheap these days. Thousands of people in your city are searching for apartments even while you’re reading this article! Are they going to find your exclusive, custom-designed website, or are you hoping that they spot you on some other page mixed in with your competition’s advertising? A custom website will continue to provide leases, and you’re not committed to a contract.

Local Businesses – Local Businesses are FREE! Let me repeat that…FREE! Yet, they are one of the most underused sources of apartment advertising. I guess this is because you have to work a little to “get in.” When good relationships are formed with local businesses, you’ll find this to be an excellent FREE source of marketing. Just design rack cards or marketing cards, place them in the businesses, and watch their clients start moving in!

These are just a few examples, but when you put your marketing skills to work, the possibilities are endless! Sure, breaking up can feel scary for a while, and you might even miss the books for a few days. However, freedom comes when you separate yourself from advertising with your competition and see the qualified traffic increasing. Finally, your occupancy will get the boost it so clearly deserves!

Apartment Marketing Slogans That Lease!

2008-07-25T12:31:00.012-04:00

Apartment Marketing Slogans That Lease, Lease, Lease!

Trust me…..I know. Coming up with an effective slogan for your apartment community can be one of the most difficult parts of apartment marketing. The problem is not just coming up with a catchy slogan; that task is pretty simple. The real task is creating a catchy slogan that will also entice prospects to LEASE FROM YOU! After all, leasing apartments is the bottom line! All you have to do is keep your slogan simple, relate it to your property and create a desire to live in your community. Of course, you have to do this while convincing yourself that what you come up with doesn’t sound stupid.

When you start looking for the perfect set of words that describe your community it seems the world has been laid before you. You have a blank canvas. You can say, well, pretty much anything.

What image do you want your slogan to portray? Do you want it to directly relate to your community’s setting? Do you want to create a slogan that makes your property seem better than it really is? (Think about that one for a minute. You’ve bought goods and services from vendors who used exactly that strategy, so you know it works.)

These are great questions to ask yourself first. Then, start tossing ideas around in your head, bounce some ideas off of a co-worker, and maybe about 4 hours later you will have Googled “apartment marketing slogans” so many times that they all seem the same. . .mostly silly, and none of them apply to your community.

Now’s a good time to take a deep breath and step back. Remind yourself that it really isn’t that hard to come up with a marketing slogan. In fact, we’ll walk you through it. You can breathe now. Ready? WOOOOOSSSAAAWWWW.

We’ve come up with 4 simple steps to create a slogan that is personal, unique and fits your property well.

1 – KISS – Keep it Short N’ Simple
We’re renting apartments here, not trying to sell a car based on 100 different options. Something simple and short will certainly do the trick.

2 – Relate The Slogan To Your Property
This should be a no-brainer, but you would be amazed if you saw the slogans that I’ve come across. A community deep in the mountains is not “Where Big City Living Meets Country Charm,” and a 70-story building in mid-town Manhattan is not where you can “Escape it All.” If you directly relate the slogan to your property and surrounding area, you’re eliminating a lot of potentially bad ideas.

3 – Your Amenities Are A Huge Selling Point!
If your property has awesome amenities, use them to your advantage. If you’re located on a golf course, then go with a golf-related slogan. “At Home on The Green” would be a good one. If your community is surrounded by lakes and nature preserves, a slogan like “Luxury Living Between Peaceful Nature Preserves and 5 Scenic Lakes!” could work really well for you.

4 – BUZZWORDS are essential!
Buzzwords are key to every marketing campaign you launch. Of course, you want to capture the audience with a beautiful presentation, but you also need to capture their thought process with words that create a desire to LEASE! Any word can be a buzzword, but what's your community’s buzzword? That is the question.

-If your community is income-restricted, words like “Affordable” can mean a lot to a prospect.

-If you’re close to everything, then say you are!

-If your best selling feature is your location because you're near excellent shopping, you might try this, “Where Great Living and Shopping Are Only Minutes Apart.”

-If one of your selling features is large square footage, then say so with words like “extra-large”, or use your actual square footage. “Featuring Up To 1,400 Square Feet Of Luxury Living In Each Apartment Home” works nice. Whatever you do, don’t use words like “spacious.” Everybody says they are “spacious.” Give your square footage meaning!

I hope these 4 simple steps bring you a little closer to the perfect slogan for your property. Just remember, keep it short, keep it relative, feature an amenity if you can and use buzzwords. Let your slogan sell for you!

JR – The Apartment Marketer

Add Curb Appeal To Your Marketing Materials!

2008-07-21T16:10:00.005-04:00

In my mailbox this week was the newest issue of Units magazine. If you’ve never had an opportunity to browse through this publication, you should know that Units magazine is the ultimate source of information about the apartment industry, and its reputation is irrefutable. I often get great marketing ideas just by flipping through the pages and reading articles that aren’t related to marketing at all. For example, I got excited when I saw the title of the July 2008 cover article: The Annual Check-Up: Improving Curb Appeal Brings a Healthier Bottom Line. A lot of people don’t realize that the same principles that apply to property management apply to all aspects of apartment marketing!

When you improve your aesthetic curb appeal, people start to see your community in a whole new light. New paint can bring in new renters. New kitchen upgrades bring smiles to the faces of prospective renters. New landscaping catches the eye of people who have never noticed your community before. A new dog park can attract a sector of renters that you’ve never reached before. Upgrading your curb appeal increases your bottom-line EVERY TIME!

These same principles can be applied to your marketing materials. If you pass out old or outdated marketing materials, don’t be surprised if that’s how prospective renters view your property. Think about it. How many people come for a first visit and sign a lease the same day? Hardly any. Instead, they go home and study the marketing materials that they collected throughout a hard day of apartment shopping. Once they’ve sorted through it all, which property stands above all the rest? It is the community with the newest and freshest marketing materials on the street.

If you’re serious about wanting to boost your occupancy, stop viewing your brochures as brochures, your flyers as flyers and your marketing cards as marketing cards. Instead, start viewing them as sales agents that are working hard to get you leases long after your prospects have left your community. Refreshing the “curb appeal” of your marketing materials will increase your bottom line EVERY TIME! Try it today, and I guarantee you’ll see results!

JR - The Apartment Marketer

Are You Branded Yet?

2008-07-07T15:41:00.008-04:00

Branding Your Apartment Community

In the apartment industry corporate branding is everywhere. Branding isn’t just about having the same logo or design on your business cards. Branding is about creating customer loyalty that GENERATES LEASES! This is why branding is so important!

Corporate branding also isn’t just a buzzword that is taught in marketing classes across the country. Branding is a serious tool that can help you achieve all the goals that your company has set for itself. Coca Cola doesn’t spend over 1 billion dollars building their worldwide brand just so they can have a nice logo on their company stationery. They spend the big bucks building their brand so that they will create customer loyalty, which will then produce more sales!

More leads, more traffic, more leases: that’s what every management company wants. I love the big management companies with their continuity in marketing materials, signs and quality standards. They continue to raise the bar in the multifamily industry. After all, Tiffany’s doesn’t have to convince anyone that they offer exquisite jewelry – everyone already knows! That’s the power of a well-developed and maintained brand. When your company enjoys a reputation for quality, excellence and sound management, you already have the respect of the qualified and discriminating prospects you want to attract.

One key to brand building is having all your communities in one central geographic area collaborate with each other. In the front of every apartment magazine across the nation there are pages dedicated to management companies. These pages aren’t there to rent apartments. They’re there so that when prospects flip through the pages, they will recognize a brand that they can trust.

Some management companies have discovered that a custom-designed “Management Company Book” is a powerful and cost-effective tool to increase local market share. Think of it as your own private apartment magazine that promotes your properties, and only your properties. No one community can be all things to all people, but you can keep the business in the family by promoting all of your local properties in one attractive and convenient marketing tool. Essentially, you blitz a market and shut out the competition by never letting a prospect leave one property without being guided to one or more sister properties. By feeding off each other, networked apartment communities can help each other grow and produce greater revenues for the management company.

Don’t worry if your company isn’t yet branded across the board. Here are some great ideas that can help get you started on the path to brand recognition.

1—If your company isn’t quite ready to create a “Management Company Book,” a simple rack card or postcard featuring all your local communities can go a long way. When one property can’t help a prospect, the leasing professional simply hands them a rack card highlighting the other sister properties that offer what the prospect needs.

2 — You also need one marketing piece that explains the values of your company and the general amenities that are common to all of your properties. When a current resident needs to relocate, they will know that if they move into another one of your communities that their needs will be well taken care of.

3 — A phrase or slogan that relates to the quality of your company can be a great way to brand your properties. AIMCO, for example, makes good use of the slogan “From the very first day…You’re at home.” A simple, easy-to-remember phrase goes a long way to retaining clients.

4 — The colors that are used in and around the leasing office can really affect the way a prospect views your brand. If they go to three of your properties and everyone is wearing the same gold shirt, they are going to begin to relate to the brand that you have created.

You will be surprised how quickly branding your company establishes a loyal customer base. As the old saying goes, people love to shop but hate to be sold. So let them shop around, become attached to your brand and lease, lease, lease!!!!!

JR –The Apartment Marketer

If your company has any cool ways of branding, comment below.