Why Should Owners and Developers Be Involved in Apartment Branding?
Good business sense will help us let owners and developers in on a little secret: branding is a huge component of how your community is perceived. And if we know anything about reviews, testimonials, websites and logos, perception accounts for a whole lot of decision-making. The owner is the one with the hands on the pursestrings. This is their “baby” and they must have a say in the branding.
In short, it’s their company and it’s their money, so if the branding fails to impress, your community may not meet its goals in obtaining and retaining residents.
Why is branding important? Owners create a community with your blood, sweat, and tears. The branding is a prospect’s shortcut to how they’ll identify that hard work in building this branded community. But ultimately, the customer (prospective resident) will determine if it’s visit-worthy—based on the branding you put out there—and it will leave a lasting impression, good or bad.
Why’s Branding Important for Multifamily Owners and Developers?
The company behind the apartment building should be reflected in every bit of its branding. Represent your community well with branding that looks good and sounds good and makes residents feel good about where they live (or where prospects might live).
WHAT MAKES GOOD BRANDING?
Branding’s more than a logo. It creates recognition within your neighborhood, it builds trust and loyalty with your customers, and it creates a sense of community with your residents—particularly when you lean into location and understand the audience you’re trying to attract and the vibe you’re trying to fit in with. You can bump up your branding even further when you marry it with architecture and interior design.
This is particularly true when you’re building a new construction or doing renovations, but you can also take cues from the existing design and patterns to help form a brand around something that’s recognizable. If your community has gorgeous Doric-style columns, see if you can incorporate a roundness to your fonts, and make your community stand out in a way that only you can.
NEW CONSTRUCTION VS. VALUE ADD
As we mentioned new construction properties above, branding is vital in the different phases of construction. Make sure you have outlined the brand before it all begins, because it should all work together, seamlessly. As far as your budget, tread carefully. It’s always a good idea to identify your property class and brand accordingly. Your C-class property doesn’t need everything the A-class property requires.
However, if you’re doing a value-add through renovations, you may be able to consider a bigger branding effort. Anytime you’re updating a property, that’s a great opportunity to dive in and rebrand or do a refresh of your brand. It may even be expected from some of your residents and in-the-know prospects. (Kind of like an “Under New Management” sign, or “Pardon our Dust” sign—this signifies that something better is coming.)
How Involved Should They Be?
GIVE THE VISION
When the owner or developer of a new community starts on their journey of construction or renovation—they have a vision. Of quality and appeal. Of full occupancy. And most of all: a vision of profits. To get there, branding will help. Most owners and developers have been in the market for some time, and they know what needs the community meets. They understand the market and how to angle the branding to differentiate the community from other competitors. By sharing the vision with your managers, and everyone who’s on the journey with you, you can create a brand that feels authentic instead of totally derived.
INVESTMENT
Investing in apartment branding is absolutely worth it and typically falls to ownership to foot the bill. It doesn’t cost $0 but when developed thoughtfully will provide great ROI even though it may be hard to track. How so?
Great branding sets you apart from your competitors.
Great branding helps gain trust and credibility with your prospective residents.
Great branding helps keep current residents through loyalty and culture-making.
Great branding can increase perceived value (making a higher price point seem reasonable).
When your branding’s on point, you can generate more signed leases and diminish turnover. As an owner or operator, that’s more than worth it. Ensure branding is in the budget this year and every year—because you’ll see if affect your bottom line either way. It might as well be in the good way. (Spend money, make money.)
When Should Owners and Developers Deal with Branding?
EARLY
At the beginning, owners and developers cast the vision, as we’ve said. It must start early in the process of the community, particularly if it’s a new construction, or if it’s a brand repositioning of an asset that they’re trying to revamp or get more leases in.
If a new construction—this branding should be dealt with before the groundbreaking event. (We’ve even broken down our branding by construction phase to make it easy for you.) If you don’t have time to read the full blog, here’s the general gist of it:
- Construction drives timelines, so be prepared with your branding from the outset.
- There are four phases:
- Early Construction – This is when you come up with the foundational branding aspects and your apartment community’s name
- Coming Soon – Get the marketing startup items in line with the branding!
- Pre-Leasing – Business cards and other stationery should be ready to go now.
- Now Open – Banners and signage should let everyone know they can move in!
OFTEN
Along with establishing your mission and vision, it’s good to do a little community brand check up every once in a while. Help your corporate-level operators all the way down to your on-site leasing agents know what to use and when to use it. Consistency is key because consistency fosters recognition in the larger community. Be clear about what is and isn’t your brand. Having your marketing team outline bad examples could be just as useful as good ones. The more specific, the less excuse there is for putting something out that’s off-brand.