Author: Stacey Feeney

Multifamily Copywriting Multifamily Copywriting Multifamily Copywriting Multifamily Copywriting Multifamily Copywriting

Multifamily Copywriting That’s Easy to Read and Grabs Attention

Written by Stacey Feeney on March 28, 2023. Posted in All Articles, Writing.

Reaching your ideal resident through the written word isn’t a huge secret; it’s just knowing how to write easy to read multifamily copywriting. There are five tips that will help you get there, fast.

Speaking of fast…

1. Write for Short Attention Spans

This means short sentences. Imagine you don’t have a lot of time. Maybe 5 minutes. But you have something you want to look up, and the solution is right there, ready for you. And it’s nice and short. Great! That’s all the resident wants.

Another good thing to remember? If you want to grab their attention, get it quickly. And then tell them the rest, quickly. (Take food blogs—they’ve become a joke for the amount of content and backstory given before they get to the actual recipe.)

Imagine you’re trying to tell a 10-year-old about your community. You don’t have to talk at them or over them. Just write easy to read marketing copy: explain it in an understandable, interesting way.

Since humans now have an average attention span shorter than a goldfish (8.25 seconds vs. 9 seconds) it’s best to get to the point—now.

2. Write Scannable Text

Not long-form prose or the next New Yorker article. Write so that it can be read quickly.

Bold, italicize, or underline different sections.
Use bullets or number your items.
Use the enter/return button often
Write brief, bold statements. (A balance of long and short sentences is okay, but lean toward shorter ones.)
Be absolutely clear: Don’t leave anything to the imagination.

People spend, on average, over 3 hours on their phones every day. It’s a small screen. That’s where you’ll be reaching them, more than likely. And you only have their attention for a moment, so you need to make it worth it—whether you’re writing copy for a brochure or sending an email campaign for your newest leasing special.

Another tool? Use graphics to break your text up into digestible chunks.

3. Use Simple, Familiar Words

This is not the moment to show off your word skills. Write so your reader can understand. If you’re using a word they have to look up, that’s ineffective. And it takes their time and attention away from the main event (your message). Always write easy-to-read marketing copy, not essays or novels.

It’s okay to stretch your reader in other ways, but when it comes to work, simpler is better. Or, if you have to use a more complicated word, be sure to add plenty of context to clue them in. Reading about your community shouldn’t be a chore. It should feel like they’re getting to know you, word by word—instead of struggling to get through the content

4. Cut the Fluff

Too much content? Sharpen your sentences to say exactly what you mean. There’s a big difference between trying to say something and just saying it. Once you write your content, get your red pen out—there will be plenty to cut, while still portraying the gist.

Not sure what to cut? Read it outloud and you’ll hear where it’s too long or too wordy. There are typically four kinds of words that go into a sentence. There are three that don’t help. Take them out.

Instead of using adjectives and adverbs, use better verbs.

Carefully designed apartments→Crafted apartments

Instead of using words that have been around the block tell the story better.

Don’t say “unique”— give your audience the evidence of your community’s uniqueness.

Instead of using connectors, get to the point.

Therefore, those words should disappear.

5. Simplify Long Sentences

What does that mean? Understand who you’re talking to, and who’s reading your content. Another bonus of simplifying long sentences is that your content gets tighter and has more punch.

Example
Attempt: “We would really love for you to come take a tour of our community.”
Better: “Come tour our community!”

The second sentence works better because it’s shorter and gets to the point faster without losing any meaning. Everyone can use an editor. A great editor will get your words down to the absolute essence.

Another fun trick:

You can cut the word “that” a lot of the time that you use it. Er—most of the times you use it. See?

When you have a piece that needs plenty of copy, you should write easy to read marketing content for your community. Otherwise, your verbal identity is wasted and your visual identity and entire brand can get ignored. If you’re on the lookout for punchy headlines and tight messaging for your multifamily copywriting, reach out. We can help.

Creative Problem Solving in Multifamily Marketing

Written by Stacey Feeney on March 28, 2023. Posted in All Articles, Graphic Design.

When it comes to creative problem solving in multifamily, creativity is key. Sometimes, it’s a struggle as a creative to come up with solutions to things that get in the way of a beautiful and effective design. But there are a few scenarios that appear regularly, and we’ve figured out the best workarounds for each.

A Logo Design With “The”

Using “The ________” in your apartment brand name seems like a good idea—making a statement about how you are THE place. It’s a traditional power stance verbally. Yet visually, it’s tough. Even though it’s really short and quite small, it’s a challenge to design it interestingly without overpowering the main event (which would be “Watson” in The Watson, for example).

Example: The Watson

A special workaround we sometimes recommend—if you’re in the planning stages, you can drop the “the” (say that five times fast) for something fresh and modern. That eliminates the ugly stepchild syndrome that can happen to little articles (a, an, the) in a big design.

Creative Problem Solving A Long Brand Name

A rose by any other name would smell as sweet—we promise. Sometimes we’re so caught up with a name that we don’t consider where it has to go and how it has to work. When a name is longer, it tends to be locked into being used only as a horizontal logo, because that’s the only way it will work. Think of all the digital platforms that are square—which is most of them, honestly. Placing your logo horizontally in a square or circular space (or heaven forbid in a vertical use) as your profile pic makes everything smaller.

So, should you keep the long name? Think through the pros and cons. Is it perfect? Is it easy to say? Consider how it would land with your ideal residents. Would shortening it keep it snappy and memorable, like these famous brand names?

Nike
Pepsi
Lyft
Google

A Lengthy Tagline in the Logo

Creative problem solving in multifamily extends beyond the logo, too—to the tagline. We like to keep them separate for a reason. Please, please don’t make us put the tagline in the logo. Taglines are vital, so absolutely keep them front and center in your designs. In your flyers, on your website, plastered on your window graphics—but not in the logo. The only exception we can think of? If we need to say “Apartments” under the name.

Beyond this, designing the tagline to go with the logo everywhere is a challenge. The balance and readability is a problem (because the tagline is longer than the logo and can become tiny and hard to read). If you can’t let the logo and tagline go their separate ways—consider having two versions: a logo with the tagline and a logo without the tagline.

Brands to Stand Out (Without Making Waves)

If edgy, cutting-edge, sharp, and rugged are how you identify your brand’s personality, but your target audience or ownership group are more traditionally minded, you may find yourself in a pickle. It’s important to create a stand-out brand identity, but you also have to design with your audience in mind. What will appeal to them? Sometimes, it’s best to focus on infusing your differentiators and voice with that personality rather than the visual elements. Being creative means you can avoid being boring, and still get in front of the resident you want to attract the most (while keeping your investors and management happy).

Keeping the Brand Style On Track

Many brands we work with already have a brand style and a guide. But, they may make a design request that comes straight out of left field and doesn’t align with the brand guidelines. As professional designers, we have a duty (an unspoken oath if you want to get weird about it) that we will stay true to known brand guidelines so the brand has consistency and cohesiveness across all platforms—this should sound familiar. It’s what we’re always preaching. Why? Because without it a brand doesn’t have brand recognition. When we get a wild request, we gently push back and remind the client of the brand guidelines. Just because you’ve got a brand guide doesn’t mean your designs have to be boring—we can work within constraints and still bring all the creativity we’ve got. We typically end up compromising, or creating an addendum to the brand standards so the new approach can be captured. Just be sure that the new addition is going to be used more often, so you can keep the train rolling towards brand recognition.

When There Are Too Many Words and You’ve Asked Us To Create Something That It Just Won’t Fit Into It No Matter How Small We Make The Font

Weird heading, right? Here’s a hint: It’s too much copy. If you’re not a designer, using too much copy or content in a marketing piece doesn’t seem like a big deal. That is, until it gets to us and we’re trying to lay it out in a limited space, like the constraints of a mailer or brochure. If we put all the words in, it will look cluttered, the text will be too small (visual proportions that are suddenly unsettling) and it will risk the audience either skimming it or skipping right past it.

Less is absolutely more—take our professional design and copywriting opinion. We’ll definitely ask before we cut content down, and if you think it all needs to stay, we’ll do our best to work with it. Our humble request: audit and edit your content for clarity and conciseness (un-fluff it) before you send it over.

Ugly Photos on Beautiful Marketing Pieces

It’s a match made in…the bad place. If your branding is the absolute best, with the most creative graphic designer in the world working on it, and then you have crappy photos, you can throw that flyer straight in the trash. No one will take it seriously. You’ve lost street cred and the perception of the whole piece goes down thanks to those fuzzy, poorly lit, oddly composed photographs. Forget the lipstick on a pig attempts, and invest in an actual professional photographer or get quality renderings of the space. (Please.)

We all have opinions on what requires the most creative problem solving in multifamily. Our promise to you is that we’ll always find unique ways to solve (at best) or workaround (at worst) the biggest design problems plaguing your apartment brand.

Compare Creative Agencies for Apartments in 6 Ways

Written by Stacey Feeney on March 20, 2023. Posted in All Articles, Branding, Marketing.

It can be tough to know exactly how to compare creative agencies. There are a lot of options out there, and you just want a reliable, easy-to-communicate-with designer. And you want it cheap. Oops, there go the red flags! Does this sound familiar?: “Good design is not cheap. Cheap design is no good.” Generally that’s true. You absolutely get what you pay for, even in branding and graphic design.

However, here’s the good news about good design: it doesn’t have to be crazy expensive. If you get three bids, you probably end up picking the middle option, because it’s not likely to be bad, and it’s less likely to break the budget. (The ol’ goldilocks effect.) Yes, budget’s important. But so is branding. Branding is what brings prospects in the door, leading to leases (and $$$ back in your pocket).

So, if you’re focused on what it will cost you, it makes more sense to compare creative agencies on more than the price.

We can think of 6 ways you can make a better decision on your next design partner. If you take nothing else from this: The who, what, and how behind the bid is vastly more important than the money. Focus on what actually impacts good design, not just the owner’s expressed “budget”.

Here’s those 6 ways to compare creative agencies:

1 Experience

What have they done before?
What’s their niche?
How long have they been in the biz? (Always best to strike a balance between expertise and innovation—consider their fresh ideas and their know-how!)
Have you seen their work?

2 Knowledge

Are they experts in their field?
Do they provide insight because they’re leaders in the space?
Is their blog or news page helpful?
In conversation, do they seem like they understand multifamily marketing priorities?

3 Style

What’s the culture of the agency like? (Happy employees make better work.)
Is their agency’s branding cohesive? Do they practice what they preach?
Do they have the eye for design, and does it show up in their body of work?

4 Quality

What are others saying about them? (testimonials, reviews, referrals)
What are their turnaround times like? (too long, can’t wait – too short, sloppy)
Is anything fuzzy or stretched or out of proportion? (If yes, RUN.)

5 Personality

Would you want to go out for dinner or drinks together?
Do you find them helpful and encouraging?
Could you imagine working with them regularly?
Are you a match, personality-wise?

6 Communication

Do they respond in a timely manner, and ask thorough questions?
Are they collaborating with you easily?
What does their back-and-forth process look like?
Can you stay on the same page when it comes to design?

What Makes Zipcode Creative Different?

In order to properly compare creative agencies, you have to know a little more about us.

We approach multifamily branding with an eye toward everything distinctive about the property: the community’s amenities and offerings, the location, the target prospect demographics, as well as the architectural and interior design style.

Every factor influences the way we design the logo, pick the fonts, choose the colors, draw in brand design elements and select lifestyle stock imagery. The brands we create fit the neighborhood vibe so you can draw the attention of prospective residents.

WHY WORK WITH US

Beyond that process, we have a few other tricks up our sleeve:

We’re a boutique creative agency.

Small but mighty, we love to give our clients our full attention and extra care. And we have more skin in the game!

We’re multifamily focused.

There’s inspiration everywhere we look, and we tie that into our work in multifamily branding to push the envelope with every project. We consider location, resident demographics, and differentiators as we design and position your apartment community/company.

We’re female-owned and operated.

Women in business = detail-oriented, creative results, every time. We’re proud to be a bunch of multitasking queens.

WE KEEP THINGS SIMPLE

We give clear turnaround times.

During a takeover, you don’t have a lot of time to waste. No problem. We work efficiently, divide and conquer to our strengths and get it done.

We offer a la carte services.

Packages are fun (we have those, too!)—but they’re not for everyone. Sometimes you just need one thing. Which we can do. Just here to help!

We offer project rates.

No tracking hours. No surprise costs or fees. Just easy investment in good branding, sharp copywriting, and beautiful graphic design. Simple invoices are a win-win!

We communicate really well.

We know it’s key, so we make it a priority. We stay in touch and respond quickly so it always feels like we’re just a remote extension of your marketing team.

How Our Creative Agency Works

At zipcode creative, our approach to branding is based on the view that every single community and company is different. We spend a lot of time in research and discovery when we position and design an apartment brand or a property management company.

Our process requires that we get the full view of who you are, who you want to attract, and what you have to offer through:

understanding the community in full:

Architecture
Interiors
Amenities
Location
competitors in the market
target resident

OR understanding the company in full:

history
team
services
mission statement
competitors
target client

By fully diving in, we’re able to get the information that will inform a brand that will be 1) set apart from the competition, and 2) will provide its residents with a sense of community.

The branding and design aspects stem from the knowledge of every nook and cranny of your property and the people you want to live there.

Get in touch. We’re ready to work alongside you.

Creating a Sense of Community with Design in Multifamily

Written by Stacey Feeney on March 12, 2023. Posted in All Articles, Graphic Design.

Gather around the fire, and we’ll tell you a tale of how creating a sense of community can be done through branding design at your apartment communities.

THE ROLE AND IMPACT OF DESIGN

A community should be just that. A place where people feel like they’re home. But where does it start? The first interaction. And it probably won’t be in-person. Perhaps they’ll see a digital ad. A window sign. A flyer. A mailer. Whatever they see, it will be designed. And it will either beckon them in to learn more, make them ambivalent, or will give them cause to never think of it again. That’s the role of design for your multifamily community.

Let’s take a mailer that your prospects receive. Maybe they like the design, it speaks to them. And if they do decide to learn more, they’ll find “more where that came from” and it will be aligned, organized, and will tell one visual story (ideally). Guess what else? Predictability typically means comfort, and where someone is comfortable, that has the ability to become home. AKA a lease that gets signed.

THE ROLE OF BRANDING

The resident experience is the ultimate in feedback. Just like design has its place, it also has a vital impact. After you’ve attracted prospects, and they’ve signed a lease, you want to keep them—because it’s way more cost-effective to keep the residents you already have (no empty units)! Resident retention is a pretty good indicator of how well you’re leveraging branding in your community. How can you leverage it? What makes the most sense? When you create a sense of community with design, first up is cohesive and consistent good apartment branding, which builds trust. Trust equates to satisfaction and open communication. And even better, you get to tell the story of your brand—so you can define the problems it solves, the solutions it provides, the way it’s different from your competitors.

Pairing Identity with Interior

LEAD INTO COMMUNITY

Just like excellent packaging hints at what’s inside with typography, spacing, shapes, and color, multifamily communities should lean into integrating the brand’s visual identity with the actual physical space. It’s the ultimate inspiration to take interior design and draw it through to your visual identity. Making this cohesive, from the real/physical, to the portrayed/branded ends up reinforcing the space and relaying the full intention: everything was designed for the resident. Typically, taking the common amenities and the clubhouse design is the best place to draw inspiration, because it’s the most heavily designed. (Units will be left a little more customizable, to the residents’ tastes.) Creating a sense of community through branding design that integrates with the space itself is something you can absolutely do!

CREATE A CULTURE

Tell the story of your brand using color. Optimistic brand? Use green. Passionate brand? Use red. Sophisticated brand. Go for black. If your multifamily community is near a sports team or university, match or blend with their color scheme for an even bigger-feeling community. (Roll tide!) Additionally, use design elements that you see in the common spaces and clubhouses. Find lifestyle stock photography that aids in telling that story to give a better sense of community. Just like you use messaging to tell about the way you’re different from your competitors, you can use visual identity to create a culture around your brand—one that prospects will want to be part of, and will be attracted to.

GO FURTHER WITH AMENITY NAMES AND BRANDED WALLS

Getting creative with naming your amenities is a fun way to draw in your prospects as well. Forget “rooftop patio”—try “The Echelon” instead! Use the names to fully extend your brand to every corner of your multifamily community, so everything feels intentional, fun, and fully meshed. Additionally, creating a branded wall or window art, making your brand larger-than-life can help excite your community’s prospects, applicants, and residents.

(Un)Common Spaces

Imagine a theme park without the overpriced snacks and massive lines (with its super fun different “worlds” all over the park). Your community can have just as fun of a vibe. In the theme park, everything within each world is named and designed to fit within a specific mold, for fun and for a type of consumer immersion. You, multifamily marketer, can do the same!

EXTRA SPECIAL AMENITIES

They’re not special just because you say they are, though that’s one part of it. They’re special because of the thoughtful branding you’ve put in place. The common spaces in your community don’t have to be old hat, boring, run-of-the-mill things. You can boost them to an extra special level by branding the heck out of everything you have. Special names. Special design. Tie it in with the broader picture, and the resident gets the sense that these are no ordinary amenities—they’re extra special, because time was taken with the branding, and each piece was well-thought-out and intentional. Residents are way more likely to value what you tell them to (subconsciously through branding). When you are intentional in creating a sense of community with design, people will be attracted to that.

USE BEHAVIOR TO MARKET

When you know your ideal resident profile (IRP) and what they’re most likely to be doing during the day, night, weekend. What their desires and fears are and what their problems and goals are, you have a clear indicator of probable behavior. Use your IRP’s behavior demographics to pinpoint exactly which amenities you should draw attention to (and spend time on branding heavily). Ensure you’re reaching them with authenticity and storytelling to simply show them the amenities that will

1) Help them reach their goals

2) Aid in solving a problem

3) Fit into their routine

When you can fit into your IRP’s life a little more seamlessly, signing a lease seems like the easy and right choice. And that’s the power of creating a sense of community with design!

Fair Housing Act Compliant Marketing Fair Housing Act Compliant Marketing

Fair Housing Act Compliant Marketing for Multifamily

Written by Stacey Feeney on March 12, 2023. Posted in All Articles, Marketing.

Make sure you have fair housing act compliant multifamily marketing. It’s vital that it follows all the rules that are put forth in the Act—especially so you don’t end up redesigning or reprinting your marketing collateral and adding in extra expenses. Some portions of the Fair Housing Act are much easier to follow than others, but it’s best to review the fair housing compliance regulations specifically around marketing and branding for apartments.

The Fair Housing Act

QUICK OVERVIEW

The Fair Housing Act was introduced originally as part of civil rights. It helps prevent discrimination against protected classes.

WHO ARE FAIR HOUSING ACT PROTECTED CLASSES?

The protected classes under the fair housing act are the following: Familial status, disability, religion, race, skin color, nationality, sex.

Some regulations vary by state, so please check your local resources (your state government website, i.e. ca.gov) to see if there are additional classes that must be considered for protection against discrimination locally. Sometimes that includes marital status, military status, student status, source of income, age, sexual orientation, and creed.

At its most basic, the Fair Housing Act helps provide equal treatment to all for housing. Making sure you have fair housing act compliant multifamily marketing is common sense.

Avoid Fair Housing Act Violations

DIVERSITY

Every diverse situation should be represented in your marketing and branding materials. In photos, in messaging, ensure that your resident images run the gamut in race, age, ability, and familial status and type. Even when it comes to the photos that are hung up in the leasing office or in any handouts, it’s important to keep those updated and diverse, as well.

EQUAL HOUSING ICON USE

Use the equal housing icon on everything, not just some of your marketing. For example, if you print a brochure with a lease special with no logo, and then later print a brochure that includes the logo, you might be flagged for attempting to charge more money for someone in a protected class. Make sure it appears in the footer or corner of everything you put out.

INCLUSIVE MESSAGING

Whenever you’re creating content for your apartment community, it’s always better to describe the amenities and the services instead of the ideal resident that would live in your community. That is, describe what you do have and what is permitted rather than saying “No ____” or “No ____.” That is, unless it’s pets. Quick note there: Service dogs are not pets, and saying “No service dogs permitted” is the opposite of inclusive and could create a lawsuit.

SPREAD THE SUPPORT

Giving is good! Supporting different causes is great. Having transparency about where your donations go can be helpful to show you support a variety of groups and causes and aren’t just looking to donate to Christian-only organizations. If you hold fundraisers, advertise for them equally. Put the same amount of effort into each. And be sure that the organizations you give to are inclusive in the way they aid the community and reach different populations.

TREAT PROSPECTS EQUALLY

Prospects as well as applicants and residents are considered in fair housing act compliance. They’re all protected. This goes for in-person, over the phone, and via email. Anyone that walks in the door should get the same (high) level of attention and service. Ensure your staff is well versed and well trained in this.

Final Reminders for Fair Housing Act Compliant Marketing

QUICK TESTS

Short on time but you still want to make sure your multifamily marketing is fair housing act compliant? Use these quick guidelines to help:

Use FHA logo in all ads
Try to vary people in your photos
Describe amenities, not the resident you want to live in your community
Make every part of your marketing welcoming to all

REMINDERS

1️⃣ Describe the property, not the resident—it’s okay to have internal very specific ideal resident profiles, but those shouldn’t show up anywhere outward-facing.

2️⃣ Keep materials consistent so that what you say is the same as what you have on your brochures. Never ever say “no children” or “a place for professionals.” Both are 100% discriminatory.

3️⃣ Use neutral words when talking about residents: “people” good “elderly” or “family-friendly” might be a little too identifying / could be considered discriminatory in extreme circumstances.

4️⃣ Be mindful of how you give directions—using landmarks that are neutral is best (not a country club, not a church, etc.)

5️⃣ Senior living and 55+ communities have special exemptions. See more about their fair housing act exemption.

FHA RESOURCES

If you’re still seeking out more FHA compliance answers for your marketing, check out the hud.gov sites. They’ve made multiple resources available, including fair housing advertising overviews, HUD advertising guidance, and they’ve also created equal housing opportunity graphics in varying sizes for use on all of your multifamily marketing collateral.

Authentic Branding in Multifamily in 6 Steps

Written by Stacey Feeney on February 23, 2023. Posted in All Articles, Branding.

Authentic branding in multifamily can truly create a difference in your resident retention and loyalty. Like most things in life, the proof is in the pudding. That means: the goals you set, the relationships you build, and the people that you bring in as part of your staff are actually what makes residents’ dreams come true. Delivering on promises made is authenticity.

Marketing (and research and discovery) gets you to a certain point in preparing for success, but it can only take you so far. How does authentic branding in multifamily come about?

1. BE REALISTIC

Create attainable goals for your brand. Make a mission you actually believe in—not just one that sounds good. And whatever apartments or lifestyle you’re “selling”, make sure you’d buy into it, too. When you convince yourself first of the value of your community, you’re better positioned to speak to those exact values to someone who needs to hear it.

Scripted or not, reality TV is a booming business. Because people want reality—or at least some form of it. A voice, a personality, a brand they can relate to (or see something of themselves in) is ideal. In fact, reality and authenticity is expected. The FleishmanHillard 2021 Authenticity Gap study showed a significant gap between what consumers expect of companies and what they provided: 95% of the industries studied aren’t meeting expectations when it comes to providing customers better value. And when residents find something out of alignment, it’s more noticeable. Be honest. Be realistic. Be transparent. Follow through.

2. FOCUS ON RELATIONSHIPS

It can be an arduous journey to get to this point in your brand building. You’ve worked hard on creating long-term goals, an aligned mission, vision, and values, and messaging and visuals that work hand-in-hand. What’s next? People over profits. Community over competition. Be genuine with the way you start and maintain relationships with your residents—or really anyone who comes in contact with your brand. (More info on good apartment branding here.)

3. GO LONG

Have you ever met someone who knew exactly what they wanted to do since they were young, and then did it—and didn’t let anything stop them? Be like that, but in brand form. Taking a long hard look at your brand goals (1, 5, 10 years out) is helpful to pinpoint what your priorities are and where you want to go. Your community shouldn’t be treated as here today, gone tomorrow. Put down some roots and invest in those around you. By building relationships over time, you have a better shot at creating a full 360-degree brand that looks consistently authentic from all angles.

4. LEAD NURTURING

People like to be wooed and pursued (within reason). The market is saturated with options and everywhere they turn, there’s an ad that feels tailored to them. The internet is full of research and search engine results, and finding authentic branding in multifamily will stand out and offer transparency and grab attention. And once you have that attention, nurture, nurture, nurture. Figure out your best “prospect” journey, and stick with it. (Relationship building, remember?)

5. HIRE “BRAND AMBASSADOR” EMPLOYEES

You have to hire the right people. Get current staff aligned with your brand message (post it, say it, bring it up in meetings). Create trainings around how to treat residents and prospects—your bread and butter. Ensure that every opportunity is taken to deliver fantastic customer service, along with honesty and transparency in interactions. Keep your reputation nice and clean. Encourage your staff to play the long game, and get to know the people they’re talking to on the phone, via email, or in person. Remembering details adds the authenticity of a human touch to your apartment brand.

6. AVOID SALES-SPEAK

You can close sales without being “salesy.” Instead, seek to provide value through:

Helpfulness – “Here’s our most popular floor plan. Folks love the open concept kitchen and living space. But we do only have a few of these left.”
Encouragement – “Moving can be so stressful! Let me know if there’s anything I can help with.”
Patience – “Whenever you’re ready to talk move-in dates, let me know—I’m available via phone or email.”
Kindness – “Is this your first apartment? How exciting!”
Gentle reminders – “Just wanted to quickly remind you that our leasing special is over at the end of the week. I’d be happy to give you another tour. Let me know how I can help!”
Tours are key for excellent first impressions.

Friendliness and genuine interest from staff shift your apartment brand into Authentic Mode. That’s the space where sales happen and leases get signed.

Authenticity in Branding

That certainly covers the customer service portion of your brand, which is essentially your messaging proven true. Branding with consistency is key to authenticity, because it makes something expected, predictable, and worthy of your residents’ trust.

Branding is the starting point of those promises, those relationships and the solutions you offer. When you begin with knowing your audience, you can tailor your brand voice and tone to reach the audience you want to build said relationship with. When you create messaging that’s helpful, you can start solving problems. When you create imagery, fonts, colors that are a visual representation of your brand, your staff can extend that “brand” to every interaction your resident has with your community. Authentic branding for multifamily starts from the very beginning, when they first see your sign or contact you, all the way through to their maintenance request as a resident.