Category: All Articles - Page 21

Print Marketing’s Not Dead!

Written by Stacey Feeney on May 12, 2022. Posted in All Articles, Marketing.

Is print marketing still relevant, or is it completely dead? Depending on your target resident and the marketing goals you’ve put in place, it could be your best-kept secret. If your ideal resident is able to hold something in their hands, understand what you offer, AND be attracted to your multifamily dwelling with a print marketing piece you’ve created, congratulations–you’ve created better brand (and more consistent) brand recognition. You’ve successfully catered to your target resident, especially if they’re visual learners or have become tired of screens.

Be Seen

GET PHYSICAL
Remember when email was new-ish? And it was exciting to hear “You’ve Got Mail”? And now we’re all out here trying to zero our inbox and swim through the spam to find that one important email we missed. Digital fatigue is setting in and hitting hard. In our highly-technological and digital world, it’s time to focus on the physical, tangible things prospects and customers can hold on to. Take up literal space and start showing off your print marketing while you have their attention.

SET YOUR SIGHTS STRAIGHT
In a sea of digital ads, streaming television shows, 15-second reels, and even shorter attention spans, you want to be visible. Visibility doesn’t count for much when your company has a single instagram post that’s mindlessly scrolled by. Start thinking “old-school” and diversify your marketing efforts for print too. When you create print marketing pieces, whether it’s a direct-mail postcard, a brochure, or a full-on welcome packet, you’ve just guaranteed your prospective (or even current) resident’s full attention. They can’t read your print marketing piece and scroll their phone at the exact same time. They can’t look through your welcome packet and online shop at the exact same time. This is an all-eyes-on-you situation. Make the most of it!

BEFORE THEY FORGET
Finally, you’re in your prospective resident’s hands and sights, whether from the mailbox or straight from the customer service desk. It can sit on their counter, be placed in their planner, they can send a picture of it to a friend, they can use it as a bookmark. All-in-all, it’s a physical reminder of what they still need to do. And it will nag (in the nicest way) at them until they make a decision one way or the other. You want your customer to say “Oh, yeah, I need to schedule a tour with them! I should do that right now before I forget. Again.”

Grab the Bull By the Horns

IT’S OUR BRAND
It’s time to get their attention. Make the print marketing piece beautiful. Ensure that it has everything that your branding requires for colors, fonts and logos so that it’s clearly your apartment community brand. Every piece of print marketing that you send out should be a perfect extension of your branding, every time. And if you’re able, spring for good paper (Soft Touch coating, anyone?) We’re living in a material world—make the most of it.

OFFER TIME
Once you have their attention with all that lovely branding, it’s time to create an offer they can’t refuse. It’s especially impactful if you require them to “bring this card with you” to get a free gift, rent concession, or any other offer you have in mind. This means they’ll have to hang onto the print marketing piece (be it postcard or brochure) until they follow through on your call to action.

Make It Clear

WORDS MATTER
And now that you might have their attention, it’s time to take a look at what you need to make sure your print marketing says (and doesn’t say). This is a place to SAY NO to:

- Typos
- boring content
- unclear copy
- complicated offerings (or worse: too many words)

KEEP IT SIMPLE
Keep it simple. Get good copy. If you can, have a professional create the copy for you (we do that!), so you know it’s a slam dunk. Be highly selective with anything you place on your print marketing to make sure it gets attention and keeps attention. And don’t forget to always always always include contact information and a call to action. No matter what. Put a “Call us!” or “Book a tour!” or “Lease Today!” Your ideal resident has the info they wanted, and now you get to tell them what to do next. Don’t waste that opportunity.

Pictures are Everything

BIGGEST AND BEST
If your words and offers haven’t captured them, time to pull out all the stops. (You really should be focusing on all of the above, regardless: branding, words, offers, and photos.) Use your professional photography to show off your best amenities. Pick your biggest attractions, and focus on those. You have limited space, and you want the biggest bang for your buck—whether that means showing off a sparkling pool or placing your open concept kitchens on full display. Above all, make sure that your choice of photos and words align with your ideal renter. And for any print marketing materials you’ll have in stock for a while (like brochures) avoid seasonal themes or limited-time offers. That’s exactly how to keep print alive.

Print marketing isn’t dead—at least not on our watch. Sending your ideal resident home with a document or packet helps answer questions. It reminds them of deadlines and fees. Most importantly: it helps encourage them to seal the deal. More questions answered, more leases signed. Ready to make your print marketing work for you? Get in touch

Areum business card design is ©Fairfield Residential | Work executed by Stacey Feeney, owner of zipcode creative, while under creative direction and employment at Fairfield Residential.

Blogs are Beneficial for Property Management Companies Too!

Written by Stacey Feeney on May 12, 2022. Posted in All Articles, Marketing.

While blogging might seem like something for big brands and influencers, it’s actually an effective way for any business to connect with its audience. Blogs offer property management companies a place to share long-form content that showcases your expertise, allows you to show off your communities, amenities, and neighborhoods, and connect with prospective and current residents.

4 Reasons to Start a Multifamily Blog

Starting a blog isn’t just for show. Over time, it will help you generate more leads, lease-up faster, and establish yourself as a multifamily authority in your region(s).

Increase Website Traffic
Search engine optimization, or SEO, is a major factor that will help you increase web traffic. And one of the easiest ways to increase your site’s SEO value? A blog. Blogs are so effective, in fact, that businesses with blogs attract 55% more traffic than those that don’t.

Optimizing your website for SEO allows search engines to more easily find your communities. Creating valuable content that answers prospective residents’ questions about your property management company and about the multifamily industry, renting, or your neighborhoods will not only establish you as an expert but also make your site more likely to pop up in search results to drive brand visibility.

Generate More Leads
As your website has more and more leads, it will also increase your brand awareness and your opportunity to generate leads. Brands that prioritize blogging receive 13 times the ROI than companies that did not, making it an effective and worthwhile investment for multifamily developers and property managers.

As more inbound traffic comes to your site, your conversion rates will naturally rise, too. When writing your blog posts, be sure to include strong calls-to-action, offer readers exclusive and informational content, and even offer perks or discounts like rent incentives or referral programs. Adding all of these elements to your blog will help you increase your lead database for a larger group of prospective residents you can market to in the future.

Showcase Your Expertise in the Industry
A blog is an amazing opportunity to show off your knowledge. From discussing emerging apartment community trends to showcasing resident programming or upgrades, it is a one-stop shop for you to demonstrate your insights across multifamily topics. From industry trends to neighborhood round-ups, you can feature any type of content that establishes you as an expert in the multifamily space.

Don’t feel limited by text. A blog can be a multimedia platform that hosts photos, videos, and text—or all three in a single post. Use your creativity to come up with original angles and new ways of sharing information to keep your audience engaged and excited.

Keep Residents Informed
While blogs are effective for attracting new residents, they’re also an amazing way to stay connected with your current residents at the property website level. Use an apartment community-specific blog to promote upcoming resident events, community updates, or important news. You can even use it to spotlight popular businesses in your area, create neighborhood guides, or showcase staff or residents. Once you’ve published these posts, you can even send them out to your residents in a monthly newsletter or share them on your social media channels to generate additional page views, ensuring that the content ends up right in your residents’ inboxes.

How to Start a Multifamily Blog

Starting a blog is as easy as three simple steps.

Choose Your Blog Platform
To start your blog, you must first decide where you will host your content. If your community already has a website, it’s often easiest to use the same platform for your blog content. Sites like WordPress or Webflow are user-friendly and affordable options if your current site isn’t capable of hosting a blog.
Choose Blog Topics
Once you have your blog set up, come up with five to seven different content buckets. These could include things like resident life, community events, or industry trends. Brainstorm a few different blog ideas within each of these buckets to give you a solid foundation to start with. From there, you can keep a running list of blog topics to ensure you always have something in the queue when it’s time to write your next post. You can even consider adding a once-a-month brainstorm session to make sure it remains a priority throughout the year.
Write Your First Post
Once the backend of your blog is all set up, it’s time to start writing! First, determine the main objective of your blog, whether that’s driving site traffic, increasing leads, or simply engaging existing residents. You should also choose how often you’ll post. Consistency is much more important than frequency, so pick a cadence and try to stick to it as much as possible. Finally, you’ll want to decide what action you want readers to take at the end of every post, whether that’s subscribing to your newsletter or signing up for a leasing tour.

Once you’ve answered all of these questions, you can start writing. Focus on creating unique content that adds value for your readers. Be sure to also use your brand voice and incorporate photos and info about your communities when relevant to help promote what you have to offer.

If you need help getting your blog up and running, consult the experts. At zipcode creative, we’re experienced in all facets of multifamily marketing—including blogging—and can help you with everything from the backend set-up to your content strategy and even copywriting each post. Reach out to our team today to get started!

Rebranding Apartments? Ask These 5 Questions First.

Written by Stacey Feeney on April 29, 2022. Posted in All Articles, Branding.

Rebranding apartments can be a huge undertaking in terms of time and money. If the rebrand is done successfully, you can enjoy lasting effects, such as better visual and verbal branding alignment, along with improved brand recognition from your current and prospective residents.

However, before you launch a rebrand, it’s important to get to the heart of the reasons behind the “need” for a rebrand. Ask Yourself: Why is a rebrand necessary? What will the rebrand do for our apartment community? How will this rebrand be accomplished (who will do it, and in what way, with what funds?)

To get those answers, there are a number of more specific questions you should put to you and other decision makers that are requesting the rebrand.

Question #1: Do we need a fresh start?

NEW COMPANY TAKEOVER
Is your property management company taking over an existing community? Consider this your opportunity to start fresh and announce “new management” from every angle of your branding. Out with the old and in with the new; leave every bit of the old brand in the dust and make a new name for the community.

REMODELING: OUTSIDE AND IN
If you’ve spent significant time and money remodeling your apartments, it’s a perfect time to re-brand and show off all your assets. Rethink your mission. Revamp your marketing materials. Find a way to match the rebrand to the remodel—a complete refresh, with those updated units front-and-center.

A SHIFTING TARGET
Has your target resident or current resident profile changed? If yes, then it’s definitely time to reassess how you meet the needs by offering a solution; and if within changing the way you solve your resident’s problems, you determine you’re in need of a rebrand, keep plugging away at the process. Another way to approach the shifting target: Have your company’s goals shifted? Are you trying to solve a different problem or reach a different resident group? Are you trying to improve the quality of leads (and residents) you get rather than the quantity? If you’re nodding right now, it may be time to lean into a different approach to get a different outcome.

EXAMPLE:
Your brand was formerly targeted for middle-class families, but you’re finding the neighborhood has changed, and the population in the area is now upper-class individuals. Your apartment community branding may need to evolve and shift to match any new goals you create for your community.

Question #2: Have our competitors updated?

Is our logo looking old-fashioned? Are our methods out of touch with today’s (or our target) audience of residents? Do we have a good way to stay front-and-center or top-of-mind with those we need to matter to? There are a lot of ways to approach this question. But the end result must tell you whether you are okay staying the way you are, or if you must evolve in order to stay relevant.

This can be a slippery slope, however. Trying to keep up with “the Joneses” (the competition in this case) may put you in an awkward position of scrambling to rebrand just because it seems like the right thing to do. Take your time to get the rebrand right. Keep asking the important questions that will give you the answers to an effective rebrand rather than a compulsory one. Only you and your company can determine how and when a rebrand should occur, while you keep an eye on the competition.

EXAMPLE:
You can throw a rock in any direction and hit competing apartments that have a modern look and feel with distinct storytelling capabilities thanks to (what seems to be) a successful rebrand. Your logo has been around since the beginning, and most of your content doesn’t feel consistent with the rest of your verbal or visual branding. It’s probably time to rethink your approach.

Question #3: Does our brand tell the story we want it to tell?

Perhaps your brand has been around for a while. Does it still tell the same story it has always told? Are your residents tired of that story and ready for change? In order to determine what story your brand is telling, take a look at your original brand guidelines. (Tell us you have one, please.)

Your brand story should answer a handful of questions. Yes, more questions. Hang in there with us. The questions it should answer (accurately and the way that you want):

- Who you are
- What you do
- Who you do it for
- Why you do it
- How you do it

Once you answer these questions, determine whether they measure up to the way you are being perceived. Do they align? Or is there more work to be done in getting closer to telling “the truth” of your multifamily community’s brand? Yes? Keep reading.

EXAMPLE:
Your brand is one of historic value, with locals creating a community that is welcoming for all. While this is heartwarming, good, and was perhaps successful in the past, you detect that your current and prospective residents don’t connect with this family-run/family-owned business angle any more. It’s probably time to tell a new story–one they haven’t heard before.

Question #4: What’s next after this rebrand?

A rebrand can either be a means to an end or it can be the “end” itself—the rebrand can either function as a stepping stone to get where you want to be, or it can be the ultimate goal in terms of your branding. With this in mind, you can either spend a significant amount of time completely zeroing in on how you want your brand to be for the long haul, or you can make more room for evolution, with an idea for where you may want to go after the initial rebrand.

EXAMPLE:
It’s possible that the goals for your community are so different from your current approach (for example, changing to a luxury apartment complex from something approachable and affordable) that you will need to take a few steps to complete the rebrand from start to finish. Find the right middle ground so that you can make your rebrand believable at each point, rather than slapping a different logo on a brand that has no trust or audience.

Question #5: How will we accomplish this rebrand?

This might be the most important question you ask. The persons responsible for taking on your community’s rebrand should have a combination of leadership skills, determination, and vision for your multifamily apartment. Beyond selecting who will handle the rebrand, you should also be asking how they will get it done. A good rebrand will include visual elements (such as logo designs) and just as important, verbal elements: messaging and positioning through professional copywriting.

EXAMPLE:
You have a team that wants a rebrand but no one has time to accomplish it, much less lead the charge. It’s probably a good idea to partner with someone (like zipcode creative) to get focused and ultimately: get rebranded.

Rebrands require time and money (like a lot of things) but the success of a rebrand can well make up for the residents you can retain or attract. Just start by asking the right questions first.

If you need a partner in your rebrand strategy, talk to us.

Writing a Call-to-Action: Everything You Need to Know

Written by Stacey Feeney on April 27, 2022. Posted in All Articles, Writing. 2 Comments on Writing a Call-to-Action: Everything You Need to Know

If you have a marketing strategy, a distribution plan, and your community branding all ready to go, you’re well on your way to having your marketing department up and running. But while you’re looking at the bigger picture, be sure not to overlook the smaller details that make a big difference, like call-to-action.

What is a Call-to-Action?

A call-to-action, or CTA, is an element of any piece of marketing material that tells the reader what to do next or moves them toward a particular action. A call-to-action can come in many different formats, depending on the collateral, including:

A button
A hyperlink
Plain text

No matter which form your CTA takes, it’s important to include it in every single piece of marketing you create. From direct mail postcards to your website to social media, you always want your audience to have a clear understanding of what they should do next. A few examples include:

Learn More
Check Availability
Schedule a Tour
Lease Today
Click Here

What you use as your CTA depends on the context, the materials, and the objective, but there are a few best practices that remain the same. Learn how to craft a compelling call-to-action to help increase your conversions and get your audience to move through the sales funnel.

How to Write a Call-to-Action

Though a call-to-action is typically short, that doesn’t mean they’re easy to write. Writing a CTA requires blending the right words, a sense of urgency, and clarity to get users to click.

Keep it action-oriented
The perfect call-to-action makes it clear exactly what the user should do—which usually requires some strong verbs and action-oriented language. Though you don’t want to sound bossy, a well-written CTA is very strongly ordering them to do a certain action. For example:

Download Now
Sign Up Today
Book an Appointment
Contact Us

Each of these CTAs begins with a strong verb so they’re super clear and concise.

Create a sense of urgency
When you’re writing your CTAs, you’ll also want to try to add a sense of urgency. There’s nothing that people hate more than missing out on a good deal or opportunity, so your CTA should make them feel like they have to act fast to get in on the action. Urgent CTAs are especially relevant when you’re running leasing incentives or referral promotions because they have a firm end date. Try a call-to-action like:

Book Now
Visit Us Today
Get a Month Free

Using time-oriented words like “now” and “today” helps infuse these CTAs with a subtle sense of urgency that can help prompt a higher conversion rate.

Keep it short
When writing CTAs, readability reigns supreme. You want to be sure that your call-to-action is short, clear, and concise so people know at a glance exactly what you want them to do. While two- or three-word CTAs are ideal—especially when using buttons or hyperlinks—you don’t want them to be any longer than about 10 words. Otherwise, it’s harder for readers to get a fast and clear understanding of what their next action should be, which will lead to lower performance.

On the flip side, don’t prioritize a shorter CTA over clarity. CTAs like “Go,” “Next,” or “Click here,” are ambiguous and vague, so you’ll want to avoid making them too short. It’s all about striking the right balance.

Prioritize a single CTA
While it can be tempting to throw a bunch of CTAs on one piece of marketing collateral, picking one call-to-action is vital to your marketing success. Giving your audience too many choices can cause confusion—and confusion leads to a lack of action. Pick your top-priority next step, whether that’s visiting your website, booking a tour, or downloading a brochure, and only use that CTA on your piece of collateral. That way, you’re driving everyone to the same place for more conversions and higher-performing content.

Consider Your Button Design
For digital marketing assets, like paid ads or marketing emails, you’ll also need to think about the design of your CTA buttons. Be sure the text is large and legible, so it stands out on the page. Consider the button shape—often a rectangle or rounded rectangle—the button color, and the placement. All of these factors can impact the performance, so consider A/B testing a few different options to see what works best with your target audience.

Now that you know a few CTA best practices, try implementing them across your marketing materials and watch the increased conversions roll in.

We know that crafting the perfect call-to-action can be tricky. If you’re struggling to get it just right, it may be time to enlist some help. At zipcode creatives, we have experience in marketing strategy, copywriting, and design for the multifamily industry. From helping you get your email marketing off the ground to redesigning your website to writing a high-converting call-to-action, we’re here to help.

Avaire Email Image is ©Fairfield Residential | Work executed by Stacey Feeney, owner of zipcode creative, while under creative direction and employment at Fairfield Residential.

social media connects social media connects

Social Media Can Connect Residents and Prospects to Staff

Written by Stacey Feeney on April 11, 2022. Posted in All Articles, Marketing.

Social media can create familiarity and comfort with your brand—your community, in this case. But only if you know how to use it the right way. While some may think social media divides and distracts us (which it certainly can) your business can employ the right tactics to make residents feel more comfortable to engage with your brand, both online and in-person, especially as it relates to your community’s staff.

When you use social media to create credibility, familiarity and access, it makes your brand one that sets your residents at ease.

Social Media Creates Familiarity

FIRST-NAME BASIS

Putting a face to a name is a typical human desire. If your residents have just moved in, and they don’t know anyone, being the one staff person they recognize and can call by first name is a big win. Keeping your staff names handy on social media, through Meet the Staff or behind-the-scenes type posts will help your residents recognize the person behind the front desk or the person sending them emails about upcoming events.

WHERE EVERYBODY KNOWS YOUR NAME

For your staff, having residents familiar with them can help break the ice and allow comfortable exchanges when it comes to getting moved in, asking for help, or even scheduling service for their unit. When they know the repairperson by name (and even a little bit about them from your social media staff feature posts) they may be a little more at ease when this repair person is in their space, whether fixing the sink or installing a new thermostat.

CREATING CONNECTIONS

Creating Meet the Staff posts, as we’ve mentioned, can help draw the connections between residents and community staff members. These connections help your residents feel like they’re truly at home, because they now know both their neighbors and the people around them. Additionally, you can work on creating connections through any behind-the-scenes posts you make, highlighting the staff who may not be as visible. For example, saying “This is John! You might not know his face, but you’ve probably been in contact with him at one point or another. He’s our in-house Resident Services Coordinator and makes sure that if you request a repair, he dispatches help as soon as possible. When John isn’t taking care of your requests here at Cascade Apartments, he spends his free time reading mystery novels and searching out the best cappuccino in town.” When you post personal details about your staff (with their permission, of course) this gives your residents the opportunity to learn more about the human side of your community. And when you create those [positive] connections, it gives your residents one more reason to keep their lease with you.

Social Media Creates Credibility

THE PROFESSIONAL

You likely know this, but it’s worth mentioning again: staying active on social media can do wonders for your community’s brand. You create an extension of your brand through high-quality photos, informative (and fun) posts, giveaways, and through drawing connections from residents to your staff. It helps your community’s brand look professional and reliable. (If you’re still not sure what kind of social graphics to use, we can help with that, too.) And typically, when a business looks professional, there’s a level of trust that occurs between the company and the client (or in your case–the community and the resident). When that trust is built, your resident, again, will be more at ease with your community—which feels more like home every day, thanks to you and your social media strategy.

WHAT TO DO IF YOUR CREDIBILITY IS UNDERMINED

Social media isn’t all peaches and cream. At times, a random internet troll or even a disgruntled former resident takes to social media to air out their dirty laundry and hangs your community’s brand out to dry with it. Is there any good news? Yes! Luckily, it’s rare, and those who know your brand well enough can see past this. Take heart, and know that there is a method to handle this sort of negativity. Read more in our blog regarding negative comments on social media and how to handle them.

CONSISTENCY = BETTER REACH

As with anything good, it takes some time (and energy.) With social media, regular posting helps you reach your residents, because the more opportunities they have to engage with your brand, the more your content will reach them. The tricky thing about algorithms is that it’s always changing. Posting regularly with helpful content is the most basic and best method to create consistency and improve your reach.

Social Media Creates Access

CREATE A RELATIONSHIP WITH YOUR RESIDENTS

Social media is about connections. And today, thanks to likes, follows, DMs, and so much more, connections are just one click away and easier than ever. Using this to your community brand’s advantage isn’t just about posting—it’s also about responding. When your residents reach out and comment on or like a post, or dm you a question, responding to them helps them feel even more connected to you because they get near-instant access to you, rather than calling and leaving a message, or emailing and waiting for a response. It’s important to keep your audience in mind, and knowing how comfortable they may be with social media (and which outlets they’re most likely to be on). Focus on one or two social apps and leave the rest be, to keep it easy on yourself.

HELP PROSPECTS DECIDE

When you’re looking at a place to live, there is a lot to take into account, from the community culture to details on guest parking and clubhouse hours. Back in the “olden” days, access to management of a company was limited. And it still can be, but you can break down some of those barriers. Create a Live Q&A with your CEO or resident manager about your community, and invite all the prospective residents you can. Adding a “human touch” (to what can feel like an impersonal process at times) can help your prospective ask any and all the questions they have so they can better understand your community from the top down starting with management, is on board to create a home for them.

To see more ideas about how to connect with your residents through regular content, check out our blog post on social media series.

How to Write an Amazing Email Subject Line to Grab Prospects

Written by Stacey Feeney on April 5, 2022. Posted in All Articles, Writing.

Get prospects to open your marketing emails by grabbing their attention in their inbox. Email marketing is an important part of any community’s strategy. But once you’ve identified your different audience segments, outlined the content for each email, and started to build them out in your email platform, there’s probably one thing that you’re missing: an eye-catching email subject line.

The email subject line is one of the most important parts of your apartment email marketing efforts. While it may seem like just a small detail, it holds a lot of power. The subject line determines whether or not anyone opens the email in the first place, so it’s vital to draw your audience in from the first second they see the notification that there’s an unread message in their inbox.

Learn how to write an effective email subject line that will help increase your open rates and capture your audience’s attention.

Easy Steps to Writing an Email Subject Line

Though email subject lines can be daunting, they’re simple, straightforward, and even fun to write once you learn the easy-to-follow process.

1. EMAIL PURPOSE

Before you start drafting subject lines, you need to first determine what the overall objective is of the email. That way, you can craft a compelling subject line that not only piques a prospect’s interest but also accurately reflects what’s in the body of an email.

Be sure to avoid generic subject lines that don’t hint at what’s inside. Doing so can turn recipients off or lower your open rate. If they don’t know what the email is about at a glance, they’re much less likely to open it and much more likely to unsubscribe.

2. CALL TO ACTION

Outlining your call to action up front is pivotal to increasing your conversion rates. For example, if you want prospective residents to schedule a tour, consider adding that language in the subject line. Alternatively, if you’re running a leasing promotion and you want them to sign a lease to secure the deal, add that to the email. These are two very different objectives, so it’s vital to differentiate the language you use in both the subject line and the body of the email, so they always know what you want them to do next.

3. A/B TEST OPTIONS

More often than not, the first subject line you write won’t be the winner. Draft multiple options and review them objectively to choose the best option. It’s also best to A/B test at least two different subject lines to see which performs better with your target audience.

4. REVIEW RESULTS

A day or two after the email has been sent, take a look at the metrics. Evaluate the open rate, click-through rates, and other data to determine whether or not the email was a success. If you A/B tested subject lines, you’ll also quickly see which performed better, which can give you insights into what type of language resonates with your audience.

Ways to Improve Your Subject Line & Increase Your Open Rate

Adding certain language to your email subject lines can tempt your audience into action. There are three things in particular that are proven to increase conversations and get your message noticed in any inbox.

URGENCY

Creating a sense of urgency is vital in getting people to open your email. As of 2019, over 293 billion emails were sent each day. Standing out is half the battle to get them to click. Consider leveraging these words and phrases to make your message seem time-sensitive:

Don’t wait
Last chance
Hurry
Ending soon
Can’t miss
Almost gone
Limited time
One day only

Using this type of language can help to increase the likelihood that your email will be read.

INCENTIVES

Promoting ongoing promotions, offers, and leasing incentives is not only good for business but good for open rates, too. Including discounts like rent concessions or referral bonuses showcase the benefit for the email recipient. If they immediately know what’s in it for them, there’s a higher chance they’re likely to want to learn more. Consider adding phrases like:

50% off
One month free
Referral bonus
No fee

Saving and making money are major motivators for everyone—and especially for apartment hunters!—so it’s an easy and practical way to entice prospects to take the next step.

PERSONALIZATION

Adding your prospect’s name to your subject line is an easy way to up your open rates. 26% of readers are more likely to open emails when they see personalization, so it’s a fast and easy way to boost your performance. But you can also think beyond just using their name. If you know their age, their location, or even their apartment preference (like a one or two-bedroom or a ground-floor or top-floor unit), you can incorporate some of this data into your subject lines for a tailored message. Just be sure you have a clean data set so that your subject line is clear.

Email Subject Line Best Practices

Keep these best practices in mind when writing your email subject line to see the best performance possible.

The Shorter the Better

When it comes to email subject lines, short and sweet is the name of the game. 46% of emails are read on mobile, so use fewer than 50 characters so it all displays on a mobile screen. Research shows that 41-character-long subject lines are the highest-performing, so try to keep it around there to maximize your results.

Segment Your Audiences

Sending relevant content to your audience is a must to have top-performing open rates. Instead of blasting out the same message to every group, consider segmenting your audience so you can tailor your subject line even further. For example, if you have a group of prospects that you know are empty-nesters, speak to their specific wants and needs. Alternately, if you know they’re single young professionals, use different languages to appeal to this different demographic. Even if your overall email has the same message and call to action, adjusting the subject line can go a long way in driving interest.

Don’t Forget Preview Text

The subject line doesn’t live in a vacuum. Don’t forget to also write preview text to partner with the subject line and provide a little bit more information. Like subject lines, preview text gets cut off on mobile, so just be sure to keep it clear and concise.

If you need help with your email copywriting or overarching multifamily marketing strategy, we’re here to help. At zipcode creative, we’re seasoned experts in developing 360-degree strategies that help communities lease up faster, keep residents happier, and make a positive impact on your bottom line. Get in touch today to learn more!

555 Ross Image is ©Fairfield Residential | Work executed by Stacey Feeney, owner of zipcode creative, while under creative direction and employment at Fairfield Residential.