Multifamily conference season is still going strong. Up next: NAA Apartmentalize 2024! This year it’s taking place in Philly, the city of brotherly love. Apartmentalize offers learning, networking, and solutions specifically for multifamily, and helps you stay current on industry trends and best practices.
We know that hitting every conference isn’t always an option, so if you’re going, we outlined some of the best ways to make the most of your time at NAA Apartmentalize 2024, with some scheduling tips, and top picks for sessions and speakers.
Given that we’re all up in the branding scene, we aimed to pick out our favorites for marketing and branding in multifamily. There are a ton of sessions, so we narrowed our picks to speakers we know or admire, and topics we think will be most helpful for your community branding and marketing efforts.
Organizing Your 2024 NAA Apartmentalize Schedule
With over 100 sessions and 10,000 attendees, you might feel a little lost. Take a deep breath and make a plan. Think of it as a Choose-Your-Own-NAA-Adventure. Registration is open each day, beginning on late Tuesday morning.
Expo Eats will get you a complimentary lunch on Thursday and Friday—be sure to find it.
Below are some important things you’ll want to take note of for your schedule (June 19-21):
WEDNESDAY
- Education Sessions: 1-1:50pm, 2:05-2:55pm, 3:10-4pm,
- General Session: 4:15-5:30pm
- Welcome Reception: 5:30-6:30pm
THURSDAY
- Education Sessions: 8:30-9:30am, (Express: 12:30-2:30pm) 2:15-3:15pm, 3:30-4:30pm
- General Session: 10-11:30am
- Complimentary Lunch with Expo Eats
- Thursday Night Party: 7-10pm
FRIDAY
- Education Sessions: 9-9:50am, (Express: 10am-1:30pm) 11am-11:50am
- Complimentary Lunch with Expo Eats
- General Session: 1:45-3pm
PRO TIP: Don’t forget to take a break, get some water, go to your room for a few minutes when you need to have a little quiet to collect your thoughts. Making a plan will help. Find the sessions you care about most, and prioritize those.
NAA Apartmentalize Top Topics
There’s a lot to see at NAA Apartmentalize. We chose a handful of topics that looked good to us—from a marketing and branding perspective, of course. If you’re feeling extra on-top of things, you can even click “add to planner” next to your favorite sessions, so you can organize it through your MyNAA Planner Account!
What’s the Big Idea? Marketing Innovators Pitch Game-Changing Strategies
Wednesday, June 19
3:10-4pm
Location: 115ABC
Education Session
With:
Esther Bonardi, VP, REACH by RentCafe
Israel Carunungan, Chief Marketing Officer at LCP Media
Josh Draughn, Vice President of Marketing & Customer Experience at Weidner
Anne Baum, Director of Marketing at Towne Properties
Expected Takeaway:
- Discover how to realistically create an authentic brand that connects with potential and current renters while avoiding stock photos
- Use data to assess marketing risks and rewards so you can reallocate spend and balance your marketing strategy
- Learn how media assets can help improve your leasing experience, increasing engagement and conversions
Why It’s Our Pick:
Breaking open marketing norms and creating a sense of place? Yes. Learning how to use media assets to better your leases, engagement and conversions? Also yes.
Open Space #5: Romancing Your Residents to Renew: (Pets, Amenities, Community Events and More)
With:
Maria Pietroforte
Katie Rigsby, President/Multifamily Consultant at Katie Rigsby Inspires, LLC
Why It’s Our Pick:
Be part of the conversation and learn from contemporaries at this Open Space. You can help guide the conversation and be part of the bigger picture in a peer-to-peer learning event—this one is particularly interesting because it’s all about focusing on amenities and making a community feel like home for your residents. Branding is part of that culture, too!
Additional Thursday sessions we’re interested in:
From Data to Decision: Are Your KPIs Actionable or Irrelevant?
The Power of Market Research: Positioning Properties for the NextGen
Friday, June 21
9-9:50 AM
Location: 108AB
With:
Marcus Armstrong, Research and Development Engineer at J Turner Research
Chelsea Kneeland, VP, Strategic Partnerships at J Turner Research
Tyler Marker, Director of Marketing & Professional Development at Zidan Management Group
Expected Takeaway:
- Be able to identify different types of market research, and what needs and wants are on Gen Z prospects’ minds that impact your market.
- Learn how to collect and analyze market research data for better decisions.
- Develop better strategies for implementing their market research findings.
Why It’s Our Pick:
Gen Z is a big topic for us. They represent a huge market share, and we should be paying attention to their desires in order to be competitive.
From Search to Signature: The Resident Experience
Friday, June 21
12:15 PM – 12:45 PM
Location: Booth 1165
Express Education
With:
Paula Munger, Vice President, Research at National Apartment Association
Carl Whitaker, Chief Economist at RealPage, Inc.
Expected Takeaway:
- Explore survey results from residents who have recently searched for an apartment to learn their methods and motivations.
- Consider how the survey results translate into potential future staffing models.
- Discover which technologies industry professionals are using to improve the prospect experience and boost occupancies.
Why It’s Our Pick:
What’s the secret behind how prospects choose you? First they have to find you, then they have to narrow down their choices to you. With a new generation of renters, we have to meet them where they are. All IRP, all the time—using data to make decisions is smart. (Including in your branding, of course.)
Additional Friday sessions we’re interested in:
Breaking Barriers: The Impact of Adaptive Reuse Projects
Paid, Earned and Owned: The New Rules of Influence Marketing
NAA Apartmentalize 2024 Speaker Picks
The general sessions are full of award-winning stars, heroes, and actors. It can be fun to fawn over them with any fellow fans—so be sure to check out the general session schedule to see when you can catch vocalist/songwriter/author/actor Leslie Odom Jr., Medal of Honor hero and veteran Kyle Carpenter, and actor/producer/philanthropist Mark Wahlberg.
Beyond household names, we’re also interested in hearing from our own multifamily stars.
NAA Apartmentalize 2024 has broken down the rest of their sessions into:
- Game Changers – Inspiring speakers from three outside industries: Comedy, AI, and Workforce Strategy
- Education Sessions – 90 sessions on all manner of multifamily topics (ops, leasing, affordable housing, marketing)
- Express Education – 30-minute interactive sessions with Q&A and storytellin
- Open Space Sessions – Small group discussions with a dedicated topic for creative conversations
So, there are a lot to choose from here. But these were the speakers that stood out to us (and the bios are straight from the NAA website):
Noel Carson, Vice President of Marketing, Creative Director at Bozzuto
Noel Carson is the VP of Marketing and Creative Director for Bozzuto. He is charged with championing the Bozzuto brand as a compelling voice in the multifamily category and leads the team responsible for the brand development, launch, and commercial performance the organization’s new development pipeline. With two decades of experience in brand and creative direction, his work has been the recipient of over 70 regional and national awards through the American Advertising Federation, Creativity International, among others. Noel graduated from the University of Notre Dame with majors in Marketing and Design and holds an MBA from Georgetown University.
SESSIONS:
Friday, 9-9:50AM: Static to Dynamic: Revolutionizing Apartment Websites in the Digital Era
Janet Rosseth, Founder and CMO at Cadence Marketing Solutions LLC
Janet Rosseth is the founder and CMO of Cadence Marketing Solutions, a Minneapolis-based boutique consulting agency specializing in pacing new initiatives and supporting multifamily marketing endeavors. Her career spans 25+ years serving multifamily developers and operators in roles directing marketing and leasing strategies. Her expertise lies in assessing needs and deploying both traditional and disruptive solutions that aid in asset performance, optimizing marketing infrastructure, extending the bandwidth of marketing teams, and removing the friction factor in the renter experience. She leads the Cadence Run Club online community for multifamily marketing influencers, connecting & supporting marketers, operators, and vendor partners who challenge the status quo in marketing. She’s a speaker and facilitator for large and small groups, local and national industry events, often sought on panels to represent the voice of the marketing teams and clients she serves.
SESSIONS:
Wednesday, 2:05-2:55pm: Take Control of Lead Generation with On-Demand Ad Strategy
Kim Boland, Director of Digital Marketing at Morgan Properties
Kim Boland is the Director of Digital Marketing at Morgan Properties, where she leads the development, implementation, and maintenance of digital marketing initiatives for the company’s expanding portfolio. With over a decade of experience, Kim has been a driving force in enhancing Morgan Properties’ online presence and supporting promotional efforts for both apartment communities and corporate ventures. Throughout her tenure at Morgan Properties since 2009, Kim has earned numerous accolades for her exceptional contributions to the company and the industry. Notably, she was honored as a national-level winner for Connect Media’s 2021 Women in Real Estate, recognizing her outstanding achievements and leadership in the field. In addition to her role at Morgan Properties, Kim is a sought-after speaker at industry events, sharing her expertise and insights with fellow professionals. She also serves on the Advisory Boards for AIMconf, G5, Rent. and BetterBot.
SESSIONS:
Wednesday, 1-1:50pm: Surf’s Up! Marketing Channels Making the Biggest Waves
Thursday, 8:30-9:30am: The ROI of Apartment Automation: Real-World Case Studies
Kristi Fickert, Vice President of Enterprise Growth at Realync
Kristi is the VP of Enterprise Growth at Realync. She spent 15 years in a senior marketing role for a Top 50 management company before working in the technology sector of the industry. She speaks at the industry’s largest conferences and has been a featured speaker for the Cincinnati Reds, Urban Land Institute and Commercial Real Estate Women. She’s been on numerous podcasts, published in UNITS magazine and spent two terms as a City Councilwoman.
SESSIONS:
Wednesday, 3:10-4pm: Open Space #3: How Does AI Fuel Your Everyday Workflow?
Thursday, 3:30-4:30pm: Leasing Across America: Insights and Impacts From 100 Shops
And there you have it! Your 2024 NAA Apartmentalize guide—from Zipcode Creative. (Don’t forget to have fun!)