You Got 'Em, Now Keep 'Em

You’ve Got ‘Em, Now Keep ‘Em! It’s a Jungle Out There Retention and Renewals Today’s presentation slides are available on Heather’s blog at www.behindtheleasingdesk.com for free download to share with your onsite teams!

Fight or Flight: What’s Your Choice?
Retention To Do List:
Reexamine Retention Funding
Enable Resident Groups to Grow
Explore Changing your Press Game
Make the Message More Meaningful
Recruit more Resources!

Restructuring Your Retention Budget
$3000
$3000 / 12 = $200/month Leaving $600 extra Which do YOU think will yield a better ROI on your retention dollars? 12 months of programming! OR 1 or 2 BIG BLOWOUTS!!!

Smaller Programs & Services Equal Bigger Retention
Diversity Programs
Lending Library/Loner Closet
Check out the March/April issue of Rent & Retain for more ideas
Hosting a Community Craft Fair/Trader’s Market
Optimal months – November and June
Home Enhancement Programs
Partner with local merchants for programming/services
Anything that saves or makes your residents money is a key to retention !

Resident Group Ideas
Arts and Crafts
Scrapbooking, Card Creation, or Stationary Making
Taking part in a monthly art walk as a venue
Knitting & Cross Stitch
Film and Video Group
Resident movie screenings
Workshops on video editing techniques
Painting, Drawing, Etc.
Home & Family
Mom’s Groups
Tea Time
Weekly Cooking Classes
After School Tutoring or Kids Clubs
New Move In MeetUps
Dog training groups
Both PetCo & PetSmart have great outreach potential

Resident Group Ideas 2
Professionals
Networking Wine & Cheese parties
Workshops for resume writing & social media use in job seeking
Gadgets and Gizmos Night
Student Properties
Go “Old Skool” with hosting a bimonthly LAN party
College Cooking Courses
Subject study groups
Saturday Spa Days
Fun For All
Monthly Movie Nights
Midweek Movie Marathons
Monthly Karaoke Nights
Bingo!
Weekly Game Nights
Fantasy Sports Leagues
Workout groups
Biweekly Book Club
Don’t forget that KCLS is a GREAT resource!!! Twitter them: @kcls

More than just holidays… Annual Events at Their Best!
Celebrate Pi Day on 3/14 with a pie bake off
6/10 is Judy Garland’s Birthday
Flag football games
SOUPERBowl Chili Cook off for Kickoff!
Spring Kite & Flight
Community Creep House for the Spooky Season!
Summer Community Picnic, Trader’s Market & Game Day
For more event ideas, check out Rent & Retain’s Days and Days Section or the great discussions on Multifamily Insiders!

Contests for Connections
Serenity Space Patios/Balconies
Know your Neighbors competition
JC Hart’s Video Contest
Flip Video Mino $179.99 @ www.theflip.com

Dress Up Your Press to Impress
Personalize, Personalize, Personalize!
Skip the kiddy games
Pictures up your readership!
Partner with Local Merchants for Special Resident Deals
Go Green!
Cut Costs by Producing In House
Forget Filler Articles
Use Your Whole Team’s Knowledge
Never Nagging!

Social Media Applications to Explore
Facebook & MySpace
MeetUp.com
Twitter
Resident Portals
Community Blogs
What are the upsides?
Feedback reception
Community Building
More connecting with your residents makes for higher retention
Word of mouth marketing
Chance at reaching some residents you’d otherwise miss
What are the risks?

Domino’s & Other D’ohs!
Social media takes Upkeep
Must be executed the right way
Social media is dangerous
Word of mouth should never be paid for
Evangelists, not sell-outs

A Word On Handwritten Notes…
Often Underestimated & Imitated
No, it isn’t “the same thing!”
Nothing beats your personal handwriting when it comes to a true connection

The Word “Renewal” is SO Last Year… Make it a “Lease Birthday!”
Your Lease will be 1 year old in May!
Cake boxes, 10 slices for 3.99 from Oriental Trading Company
Fill with candy, cookies or $10 gift cards for coffee
Send a “Birthday Invitation” to invite the resident to come talk about their renewal
Their Present? Your Great Lease Rate, not to mention an awesome Signing Bonus!

Parking Upgrades
Electronics
IKEA Giftcards
Don’t forget the pets!
Pet litter bag holders
Treats
Leash with your property name on it
ID tag
Customizable at Petsmart for ~$6: “Fox loves living at BTLD Apartments!”
Your Signing Bonus… Renewal Gifts with a KICK!
12 days of Maid Service – 1 each month!
Netflix or Gamefly subscriptions for the year
Season’s passes to local attractions
Apartment Upgrades
Accent Walls
Ceiling Fans
Shelving
Green Living Upgrade Pack
New Lighting Fixtures
To our Neighbor!

Idea Share!
What’s one idea you want to take home today and implement?
What is your most effective idea for resident retention that I didn’t mention?

Rockin’ Retention Resources
Great Industry Blogs
Lisa Trosien www.apartmentmarketingblog.com
Mike Brewer www.mbrewergroup.com
Mark Juleen www.theapartmentnerd.com
Heather Blume www.behindtheleasingdesk.com
Mike Whaling blog.30lines.com
Websites to Bookmark!
Multifamily Insiders www.multifamilyinsiders.com
Rent and Retain Magazine www.rentandretain.com
Howitzdunn Property Management www.howitzdunnmanagment.com
Awesome Industry Twitter Minds You Should Follow
Ltrosien – Lisa Trosien
Mfinsiders – Multifamily Insiders
Artchickhb – Heather Blume
Mbrewer – Mike Brewer
Mbj – Mark Juleen
Brentwilliams2 – Brent Williams
Eric_urbane – Eric Brown
Mfguide – Will Clark
30lines – Mike Whaling
Happyalldays – Darcey Forbes
Jessehartman – Jesse Hartman
SFRJen – Jen Piccotti
NAAhq – National Apt. Association
APTlyspoken – NAA Blog
Sladen123 – Sondra Laden
GraceHill – Grace Hill
MultifamilyPro – Tami Siewruk
KateGood – Kate Good
CharityHisle – Charity Hisle
Duckygator- Tom Roberts

Lists & Links
Games To Buy
Cranium Cranium WOW Catch Phrase Outburst Taboo Scattergories Apples to Apples
Movie Marathon Lists
Lord of the Rings
Star Wars
Star Trek
Harry Potter Batman
Superman
Land Before Time
World of Disney
Rodgers and Hammerstein Musicals
Vendors I Mentioned &/or Like
Beyond Wine & Cheese
Great marketing and retention resource
www.beyondwineandcheese.com
Benson Media
Innovative ideas and products
www.apartmentmarketingstore.com
Grace Hill
Awesome online training and discussions!
www.gracehill.com
Apartment All Stars
The best consultants in the biz!
www.apartmentallstars.com
Apt Connect
Resident Portal Development
www.aptconnect.com

Lists & Links 2
Mike Whaling’s post on 30 Lines about 30 things to write about in your blog/newsletter
Heather’s post on Behind The Leasing Desk about Resident Contact Notes
JC Hart’s Video Contest Website
Heather’s Green Living Upgrade Pack
CFL bulb replacements
Motion Sensor Lights
Low-Flow Shower Heads
New weather stripping
Logo Shopping bags
A copy of “The Green Book”

Questions or Comments? Here’s Where to Find Me!
Behind The Leasing Desk
Twitter - @artchickhb
Facebook
LinkedIn.com
Through Career Strategies Inc.
2018 156 th Ave SE, Bellevue, WA 98007
425.698.3747 Mobile Phone
[email_address]

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You Got 'Em, Now Keep 'Em

by Heather Blume on Apr 24, 2009

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You Got ’Em, Now Keep ’Em — Presentation Transcript