What systems are you using, what is working well, and what would you like to see improved … we wanted to hear from you about your “wishlist” for your current accounting system. Here are some of the highlights from what you had to say. (Thanks to representatives from RealPage and Yardi for contributing to the conversation.)

What do you think is the best accounting software and why?

If you had a “wishlist” for changes to the service you use, what would be on it?

What are the limitations of what’s available? Is there anything that we shouldn’t be asking our accounting software to do?

Now it’s your turn. Which accounting system are you using? What features would you like to see, or what could your software do better?

We’re taking next week off for Memorial Day, but we’ll be back at our regular time (4 pm Eastern) on June 3rd. We hope you can join us then!

With that in mind, we asked Mark Juleen and DJ Waldow to help us understand how to get more out of our email marketing efforts. Mark (known to some as the Apartment Nerd) is the Director of Marketing for JC Hart Communities in Indianapolis, and DJ is the Director of Community at email service provider Blue Sky Factory.

They’re certainly not the only ones with something to say about the topic … it was exciting to see a number of faces – new and old – jump into the conversation to share their tips and ideas.

Here are the highlights from the discussion:

Why do I need to incorporate email into my marketing strategy? Aren’t the autoresponders to prospects enough?

• Jonathan Saar: autoresponders are not personal … you are in fact emailing people.
• Charity Hisle: Integrate, Integrate, Integrate! Tactics should work together to be effective.
• Heather Blume: Auto responders are never enough. They’re canned, impersonal, and often get filtered out by SPAM filters. Keep it human.
• Courtney Anderson: Auto responders are some of the most interacted with emails because they are real time – positively impacting deliverability.
• Erica Campbell: Auto responders can b effective if they r done correctly like using personalization & dynamic content to meet their needs.
• DJ Waldow: Why Email Marketing? Easy. According to the DMA it had a $43.62 ROI in 2009 (assuming you do it correctly)
• Courtney Anderson: The more interaction recipients have w/the email the more favorable the ISPs rate your IP reputation.
• Kim Cory: Auto responders are usefull and effective for certain situations. Better than no email at all, but has 2 be custom
• Kim Cory: If U send junk, that’s exactly where it will go! Don’t get lost with the other 100′s of emails your customers get daily. B unique.
• Michael Pickens: We send out autoresponder but require the properties to give a personal response within 2 hours.

Typical emails might be an auto-responder, then a custom response. How else can we use email to reach our audience?

• Courtney Anderson: Interaction based emails, welcome emails, drip campaigns, surveys, many more.
• Jonathan Saar: Newsletters for residents and non
• Kim Cory: We use email for surveys, resident alerts, announcements, holiday greetings, newsletters, promotions, list is endless.
• Meg Fowler: Most marketers treat people like opens, not readers. Content strategy exists beyond the blog.
• Erica Campbell: Email plays a huge role in multichannel marketing – other channels drive before the inbox and after the inbox.
• DJ Waldow: Send updates about cool new apts in their area. Targeted FTW.
• Laurel Zacher: Love email to drive new visitors to our site/fb/videos (from my sig). i just wish I could better quantify it!
• Mark Juleen: We do surveys, monthly news, notifications, introductions to social, etc. and more to come.
• Meg Fowler: How about emails with neighborhood profiles — links to amenities, stories of happy residents… along with rentals.
• Ryan VanDenabeele: Email is a great communication tool with residents. Not as invasive as text. I still wouldn’t like to get text from my community.
• Erica Campbell: Email is great 4 viral marktg, promoting sweepstakes/contests, internal cross promotion, affiliate program referrals.
• DJ Waldow: Consider pics and video when sending email to apartment folks. Keep it real, human, interactive.
• Meg Fowler: Don’t forget to link to social properties. you could even have “apartment love stories” of folks who found a great place.
• Meg Fowler: I also love the idea of checklists on how to assess an apt, how to set a housing budget, how to work out a lease…

What are some of the best ways to capture emails? (Online or offline)

• Duncan Alney: Email and SMS/text should both be opt-in with value added content.
• Meredith Mobley: SMS email capture is a good one.
• Gillian Luce: Homepage sign-up is a good one!
• Erica Campbell: Offline list growth printed materials, direct mktg, in-store display, CS/IT, reg, call center/outbound, tradeshow.
• Charity Hisle: How about capturing emails thru Facebook apps for those that want to learn more about your community?
• Joe Foster: Mailing list sign-ups at community events. Great for refreshing your resident list and scooping renters.
• Ryan VanDenabeele: Offline … we’ve been doing door hangers with tear-off tabs to submit emails to win prizes like ipads & TVs.
• Erica Campbell: I saw a newsletter sign up for weight watchers on the box of their microwave meal- pretty neat.
• Courtney Anderson: If I am in need of an apartment accepting my large dog, an email with properties that do is a great idea.
• Meg Fowler: As far as capturing opt-ins, I’m a big fan of eBook offers — give content sample to assure value.
• Sue Anne Reed: Apartment decorating on a budget would be a great ebook / lead generation campaign for multi-family.
• Sue Anne Reed: As someone who just recently moved, I think you should put a 9 or 10-month trigger on prospects.
• Courtney Anderson: Be compliant with CAN SPAM such as link to unsubscribe, physical mailing address, etc.

We mentioned timeliness earlier. Successful email campaigns are both timely & valuable. How do you ensure timeliness?

• Vacancy.com: Pick your days carefully. Don’t send out an email campaign late in the day- be aware of when your audience will view it.
• Charity Hisle: Email to Poll their move-in experience, Check-in again monthly.
• DJ Waldow: Capture “what is your timeframe for new apartment” info on email capture. Use to send timely emails.
• Resite Online: We find that our marketing emails get better response when sent in the middle of the week. We are B2B though. Know your audience.
• Ryan VanDenabeele: Traditionally Tues & Wed are best email days. Then after 9:30 But before Noon. Before 9, people get delete happy with morning email.
• Mark Juleen: Automate what you can. We often leave too much responsibility to a human scheduling an activity.
• Laurel Zacher: I think we can all learn from the ILS’ outreach emails: useful content about process during search, recontact 9 mo later.

Is your email social? What are some ways you can integrate it with the rest of your marcomm efforts?

• Erica Campbell: Decorating tips, integration w groupon, coupons, partnership deals w local bars ect r effective retention based emails.
• Mike Whaling: Once you have the email, use tools like Flowtown, Blue Sky Factory or MailChimp to see where else your audience is online.
• Resite Online: Include links to your social networks in your emails. You could even give them a taste by including your latest feeds.
• Erica Campbell: Take the HTML version and copy it into your FBML on your FB profile and create a monthly message tab.
• Mark Juleen: Email strategy needs to integrate w/ your social, or your social and/or email will only get you so far. LINK, SHARE, SYNDICATE.
• Meg Fowler: Email only as social as YOU are — if you’re just broadcasting, it’ll read that way. if you’re starting a convo, it’ll ring true.

What metrics are you using to evaluate your results?

• Courtney Anderson: Standard ones, open rate, click thru rate.
• Vacancy.com: A/B testing is a great way to see what worked best.
• Courtney Anderson: Leads per email sent, lead per email open help gauge performance ie bottom line indicators.
• Erica Campbell: For an ILS- guest card submissions, CTR, unique clicks, open rate, opens, % of traffic to overall site traffic.
• Charity Hisle: Subscription counts, web visits, email referral counts are all good metrics.
• DJ Waldow: Opens are a start, click-throughs better, conversions WIN.
• DJ Waldow: Shares/fwds create more eyeballs which increase opens and potential clicks & conversions. Double win.

Videos responses from Mark Juleen:

• Q1: “Have an ongoing strategy to follow up.”
• Q2: “The sky is the limit.”
• Q6: “Besides metrics, keep in mind how you can be ‘top of mind.’”

More resources:

• Full transcript of this week’s #AptChat
• 50 Ways to Build Your Email List (Free ebook from Blue Sky Factory)
• Ways to integrate email marketing and social media (Presentations by DJ Waldow)

How are you using email as part of your marketing and communication mix? What is working well for you? What gives you the most trouble? Share what you’re doing … tell us about your experience with email marketing in the comments!

This week’s chat included 404 tweets from 56 different contributors.

Starting with the ground up, what can MF mgrs do with existing landscaping?

(Submitted by Elizabeth Madrigal)

• Heather Blume: You can start by examining your watering procedures – timing of watering, aim of sprinkler heads, leaving grass longer.
• Kim Madrigal: Landscaping is water intensive. Plant native vegetation.
• Kim Madrigal: Mature plants need less water than young plants. Ck yr watering schedule seasonally. Consider smart irrigation system.
• Elizabeth Madrigal: Local arboretums are great places to start, and local universities and plant nurseries.
• Heather Blume: I’ve heard great feedback on putting rain sensors on your property – $1500 to install and saves at least twice that the first year.
• Susan Welker: Also consider rain water catchment systems. 1″ of rain on 1000 SF equals 550 gallons of free water.

I am interested in hearing about electricity savings … what tips are available?

(Submitted by Jonathan Saar)

• Susan Welker: Replacing incandescent lighting with Fluorescent, adding insulation, occupancy sensors and low cost energy savers
• David Kotowski: Billing residents for use of their utilities also helps with conservation.
• Kim Madrigal: Motion sensors or vacancy sensors turn lights/appliances etc. off when no one is around. I use them in hallways, kids rms!

Low-hanging fruit … if I’m on a budget, what are some things I can do that will have the greatest impact for my dollar?

• Kim Madrigal: Replace incandescent bulbs w/ CFL. reset water heaters to 120 degrees, lower pool temp to 78, install lting controls.
• Kim Madrigal: Better manage vacant units, weather stripping of doors & windows, aerators, low flow fixtures will pay for themselves.
• Elizabeth Madrigal: One thing we forget is the HVAC system “tune up”, which can save 15 to 20% on an energy bill even with old equipment.

What can we do to go green in the leasing office? Has the paperless office finally arrived?

• Elizabeth Madrigal: Let staff know you care about green management – and train them in it – and your NOI will increase. It’s good green economics.
• Heather Blume: Stop printing every report every week for starters. U don’t need physical back ups if you do a full system back up weekly.
• Christian Flickinger: VG (Village Green) doing paperless applications & leasing, also moving internal processes paperless. reports being send in PDF to corporate/owners.
• Gillian Luce: Recycle, change thermostat temp, shut-down computer & turn off lights. Tips 4 Going Green at the Office http://bit.ly/dCrkJ6
• Will Clark: Electronic check registry, file invoices remotely, accept automatic rent payments, reduce waste and hot machinery.
• Mike Whaling: Why not send an intro email w/ links to resources on your website? Get rid of the paper & boost SEO…
• Charity Hisle: Many of our customers use their blogs as newsletters rather than printing & distributing or emailing.

Let’s talk resident education. What works best? How can we make residents more aware of their energy/resource usage?

• Jason Tripp: Resident education is the hardest, especially as it relates to Sustainable Development…the two aren’t always in sync.
• Resite Online: Resident portals and blogs are great places to post educational information for residents.

What are the most common misconceptions about “going green” that you hear from residents? From others in your company?

• Resite Online: People tend to see the costs before the benefits.
• Kim Madrigal: Misconception? That technology will fix things! Tech will help but it will require behavior mods as well.
• Heather Blume: “it’s too expensive” “takes lots of work” “it will b a long process” “it will cost us more 2 go green b/c it’s not easy”
• Jason Tripp: Most of it relates to the tangibility – are floors recycled, is a material green, perceptions on paper.
• David Kotowski: “Going Green” is pretty much just using less paper.
• Jason Tripp: Cost is hurdle – people want a green apartment, but aren’t willing to pay the premium. We have to appeal to wallets and hearts.
• Kim Madrigal: People aren’t often aware of the link between water and energy. Using less water means using less energy too.
• Kim Madrigal: Use 0.5 or 0.75 aerators on faucets including kitchens! In showers use 1.5 – 1.75 low flow heads. These are better than min stds.

More great tips shared along the way:

• Susan Welker, AIA: Those most ROI I would think in green apartments is insulation. Inexpensive and pays for itself in 1 year or less!
• Elizabeth Madrigal: If you haven’t seen the DSIRE website, check it out as it is a searchable state website for incentives, rebates, tax credits, etc.
• Kim Madrigal: Beware “green products”. To Quote @mfguide Reduce. Reduce. Reduce. We actually have to stop consuming so much.
• Kim Madrigal: Green leases? Be sure you have clause that allows you access to energy usage. May not need it now, but will in future.
• David Kotowski: We’ve started giving out reusable shopping bags as move-in gifts.
• Elizabeth Madrigal: We can’t control much in life, but we can control our own actions, reactions and behaviors. Living a sustainable life matters.
• Kim Madrigal: Check out the OccuSmart sensor for interior hallways, Vending Miser for vending machines.

More resources:

• Full transcript from the discussion
• GreenLandlady
• DSIRE (Database of State Incentives for Renewables & Efficiency)

What are you doing to ‘go green’ at your company? Do you have a resident education program focused on sustainable living? What other ideas or suggestions do you have to help save energy, water and other resources?

Thanks again to Kim and Elizabeth Madrigal for your time and expertise!

This week’s #AptChat included 294 tweets from 38 different contributors.

Urbane runs a successful, active company blog. What’s the secret sauce, and how do you keep it going?

• Eric Brown (EB): Participation and support to and at the community at large.
• EB: We use our Digital Reach to promote local businesses, restaurants, bars, and any other places our Residents hang out.
• EB: Think about your Community of Interest, (followers, friends) and its size and correlation to your apartment community.
• EB: SM Marketing is Word of Mouth on steroids, and when it works, your friends rent the apts for you.
• Erica Campbell: So true! “91% say consumer reviews are the #1 aid to buying decisions” (JC Williams Group)
• EB: Provide content that folks want/need, or find interest in.

With the myriad of other duties the property has, how do you prioritize their blog participation?

(Submitted by Jon Harrington)

• EB: I think the time constraints of a Social Media Program is overrated.
• EB: Bottom line, we still need/must rent apartments, but we also carve out the req time for effective SM marketing.
• EB: One thing we cut out were “Tours”, We use a Go Solo Program, (lots of folks don’t agree with this angle) I love it.
• Mike Brewer: I think the really successful companies will resign themselves to the idea that it requires more than 9 to 5.
• Lisa Trosien: Have seen properties been able to cut their ‘out of office’ outreach marketing time by investing in SM.
• Gillian Luce: Social Media shouldn’t replace but rather act as a complement in your marketing mix.

You talk a lot about the benefits of partnership marketing? Can you explain this & provide an example?

• EB: We just partnered with Coke, and their Vitamin Water brand, Partner with like demographics to your brand.
• EB: The Big Red Machine (Coke) drops off product to use every week for Move In Packages, plus stocks a branded fridge in Urbane.
• EB: We partnered with Chevy on a project, and were included in thousands of targeted tweets and word of mouth chatter.
• Lisa Trosien: It would make sense to me for them to go with a major player, larger bldgs, more residents, etc.
• EB: You would be surprised what Big Brands will do if you just ask.
• EB: Remember, Local Brands can and are very effective to partner with, too.
• Leigh Curry: Eric’s ex-employer at Village Green has done a very good job of co branding.

I’m sure you hear that you can do what you do because Urbane is small/niche. How can we scale it? Can it scale?

(Submitted by Doug Chasick)

• EB: We have LESS resources, not more, that is a myth.
• EB: If I had a large portfolio to work with, it would be intoxicating the things you could craft.
• EB: Large portfolios are still segmented by region, there are just more of them.
• EB: People, Training and Culture, but mostly Culture.
• EB: All regions should be operating under the same premise.

What are the top things you would recommend to a company that wants to use social media to reach their audience?

• EB: Start with a Community/Company blog, That is by far and away our biggest lever.
• EB: Next would be tossing out your own dumb rules that some desk jockey originated.

What do you think of outsourcing blogging and/or SM efforts?

(Submitted by Sara Graham)

• EB: I think in most cases you must outsource blogging and SM Marketing.
• EB: I also think when you outsource blogging and SM, the focus is lead generation.
• EB: All of our bloggers are profiled on the blog, and 98% of the comments are answered by the blog writer.

Check the transcript for more details on the Go Solo program and other topics discussed throughout this week’s chat. Thanks to Eric for giving us some insight into his operation, and thanks to everyone else who participated.

What tips can you share from your own experience about successfully building buzz and incorporating social media into your efforts? Who else should we interview for a future #AptChat?

More Resources:

• Full chat transcript from WTHashtag
• The Urbane Life blog
• Eric Brown’s blog at TheUrbaneWay.com

There were a LOT of great comments throughout this chat — this recap is a bit longer than usual, but trust me, it’s all worth the read. Here are the highlights from the discussion:

Why is a crisis communications plan important? What should be in it?

• Heather Whaling: There’s a saying in PR about crisis: If you’re not quick, you’re not relevant.
• Heather Whaling: Crisis plans should include: Crisis team, spokesperson, contact info (internal & external), approval/protocol process.
• Heather Whaling: Plans shld also include responses/messages for potential situations. Prepare ahead of time for to mitigate damage during crisis.
• Lesa LaRocca: Level headed on site team who manage their emotions and get authorities and corp exec immediately in the know.
• Heather Whaling: Think about a variety of tactics: letters, emails, “town hall”-style meeting, video blog update, etc.
• Heather Whaling: (When asked about an acceptable response time) Quick depends on the specific situation. Typically, 24 hours is way too long …
• Justin Dunckel: Designate one Media Spokesperson and stick with it. Communicating w/ residents via website bulletin board or txt message is huge.
• Heather Whaling: In crisis plan, you should ID internal & external audiences. Residents, media, maybe greater community or investors?
• Justin Dunckel: Create a manifest…know who is impacted and follow-up a ton. Overdeliver information and updates.
• Heather Whaling: Think through a variety of tactics. The situation will dictate what’s effective.
• Heather Whaling: PM, reg. managers & corporate should work together before crisis to develop a plan. Preparation is key.
• Gillian Luce: Brainstorm worse case scenarios, prepare hypothetical responses and implement them in2 ur crisis management plan. (i.e. Fire)

Who do you recommend for spokesperson? Same for residents vs media? (from Laurel Zacher)

Heather Whaling: Doesn’t have to be the same person. For media, needs to be someone who can do well in front of a camera.

Unfortunately, many props don’t have good email lists, and many don’t have blogs. Any recommendations? (from Lisa Trosien)

Heather Whaling: Traditional communication still works. Letters in the mailbox are still effective.

What do you do when the media contacts you? How do you respond?

• Heather Whaling: Before a crisis, property should identify an “official” media spokesperson. Seek professional media training if necessary.
• Jonathan Saar: There should be standard response statements in place.
• Heather Whaling: Employees shouldn’t interact w/ media during a crisis. They may not know all the details. Instead, direct media to spokesperson.
• Misty Browning: Everyone in the company needs to know the one person they can direct the media to. Do not have many diff people communicating.
• Lesa LaRocca: Keep it polite & professional, never speculate. Allow residents their privacy & designate one exec team member / PR rep.
• Heather Whaling: Spokesperson needs to answer questions honestly. No “spin.” Emphasize steps being taken to fix the situation.
• Gillian Luce: Need 2 prepare, ask what ? is & deadline. Call back w/statement. IMPORTANT to represent co in best way!
• Apartments.com: If U already have relationships w/ local reporters, turn 2 these trusted sources to help get your message out.
• Heather Whaling: I’d suggest not having a third-party PR person as the “official” spokesperson to the residents.
• Lesa LaRocca: Keep list of residents who are witnesses as they will become a media target at some point. Keep close to that situation.
• Heather Whaling: In crisis, things move quickly. Give reporters fact sheets or other documentation to make sure they have the facts.
• Justin Dunckel: Waiting for “legal” people only puts you that much further behind in crisis recovery.
• Heather Whaling: Before the crisis, ID what kinds of problems req legal counsel & have initial statement approved.
• Heather Whaling: “No comment” should always be avoided.

My property had a rape and its all over the news. How do I handle the press? The residents? The prospects?

• Heather Whaling: 1) Cooperate w/ legal authorities.
• Gillian Luce: Need 2 inform residents & share what measures are being taken 2 keep them safe. A ‘town-hall’ style meeting would be gr8.
• Heather Whaling: 2) Stay in constant contact w/ residents. (This is why social media [blog, FB, Twitter, Ning] is so important!)
• Heather Blume: There’s a prop in my college town that has been fighting this for over 13 years. they educate the residents @ MI
• Erica Campbell: First and foremost you need to make your residents feel safe and that the issue is being handled by law enforcement.
• Heather Whaling: 3) Re: press: Explain that you’re cooperating w/ authorities; priority is finding suspect & that u r taking steps to increase security.
• Erica Campbell: Make residents aware of any support groups that might be offered.
• Heather Whaling: 4) Perception = reality. Be proactive. Can you add lighting or add’l night-time patrol to make residents/prospects feel safer?
• Heather Blume: What the prop in my college town did was work with a”campus escort” system already in place – exten the service to the prop.
• Lesa LaRocca: What about informing your closest competitors so they have accurate info and not fabricate?
• Sean Williams: Be sure you tell the truth, no speculation. Push attys on this – they typc’ly want to clam up.
• Lesa LaRocca: What may grow from the experience is closer community, resident ambassador program, crime watch program. Find the good.

Most crisis situations happen when the corporate office is closed. What do I do when I’m ‘on the spot’ with no instruction?

• Apartments.com: Crime can happen anywhere. Educate residents on how 2 prevent crime by locking doors, don’t buzz anyone in you don’t know, etc.
• Heather Whaling: This is why a crisis plan is necessary. Scenarios & responses should be thought out in advanced whenever possible.
• Misty Browning: That is y it is so important to have a point person to deal with the press. Your first priority is your residents.
• Laurel Zacher: We’ve given our teams 4 safe responses if pinned down and my cell to call 24/7.
• Heather Whaling: Don’t ever say no comment … even if you’re put “on the spot.”
• Heather Whaling: That’s the difference btwn a good PR person and a not so good one. Good PR understands social, too.

What do you do if your owner/boss makes a boneheaded remark? Like Horizon Realty did with the ‘mold tweet’? (from Lisa Trosien)

Heather Whaling: Apologize if possible … be proactive and aggressive w/ the “right” communication going forward.

Can the media camp out on my property? Can I make them leave?

• Heather Whaling: Media can’t camp out on private property. But, they can be in the streets, on sidewalks, parks, etc.
• Heather Blume: Yes you can make them leave… but make sure you understand ramifications of your actions & do it in a PROFESSIONAL way.
• Heather Whaling: Don’t make a situation worse by creating a scene. Tell media when & where you’ll have info to share.
• Justin Dunckel: In my opinion the quicker you ask them to leave, the longer they stay and dig. Get the story,report facts, move on.
• Heather Blume: One side note on the media thing – don’t forget that anyone with a cell phone COULD be a camera man… this includes your residents.
• Heather Whaling: *Most* reporters aren’t out to “get” you. They want facts. If you’re quick & forthcoming w/ info, you’ll be better off.
• Sean Williams: TV lives on visuals – calm, collected and respectful makes lousy TV – so that’s what you give em!

How do you ‘recover’ from something like a murder, assault or fire at your property?

• Justin Dunckel: Not a plug for our blog at all, but I believe you can recover by taking this stuff head on. http://bit.ly/c0meaG
• Heather Whaling: It takes time to rebuild trust. Couple strong communication w/ meaningful actions to show you’re making necessary changes.
• Heather Blume: Honesty honesty honesty – and be realistic about the time it takes to rebuild a reputation.
• Gillian Luce: Implement new safety procedures, comm on regular basis w/residents, be sincere & understanding. Ppl will identify.
• Heather Whaling: Put yourselves in residents’/prospects’ shoes. What can you do to rebuild trust and credibility?

Other good nuggets from throughout the discussion:

• Erica Campbell: Google RSS Reader is a great free tool to monitor all of your mentions -if crisis occurs be on top of reputation monitoring.
• Justin Dunckel: (Our) manual is bright red, yes it’s at every prop, and yes they sign off at orientation. Review all the time.

For more on PR and media relations, we encourage you to check out Heather’s blog at PRtini.com.

More resources:

• 5 Steps to Develop a Crisis Communication Plan (From PRtini.com)
• 3 Case Studies in Social Media Crisis Management (Shared by Apartments.com)
• Top 10 Simple Ways to Discourage Break-ins (Shared by Heather Blume)
• Full transcript from the April 9th #AptChat

Does your company have a crisis communication plan? Do you have regular media training in place? Can you share an example of a situation when your crisis plan worked like it’s supposed to? Leave your experiences in the comments!

(This week’s #AptChat included 401 tweets from 49 different contributors.)

Are “standard” shopping reports fair? Should companies customize their expectations in their shopping reports?

• David Kotowski: Companies should customize their shopping reports based on what/how they train their associates.
• Jennifer Kennedy: I think customized shops are better than standard, but I think standard are fair.
• Patrick Nelson: There should be a minimum standard for our industry however I think each company should customize when possible.
• Heather Kattelman: Def customize! If we are going to hold them resp for leasing polc that’ what we shop for.
• University Pines: Ours shops via phone 1st scoring out of 100 pts, then actual visit scoring out of 200.
• David Kotowski: The old saying “inspect what you expect” comes to mind here. It’s unfair to inspect more than you’ve told someone you expect.
• Janet Rosseth: Custom reports should follow agent job description closely. If u expect your brand sold a certain way, it should be on there.
• Jennifer Kennedy: Customize – because we have special programs that give us comp. adv. and we want our teams to talk them up.
• Richard George: You should only customize to test specific behaviors that you want to encourage.
• Elysa Rice: We think it’s important to have an industry standard to compare against. mgt co can customize in addition to standards.
• Janet Rosseth: Most shopper services allow for companies to customize around the standards.
• Elysa Rice: Questions like response time should most certainly be compared.
• Joanna Ellis: Most companies we work with (hundreds) customize shop reports to their training programs laying out guidelines and expectations.

Should auto-responders get the same ‘rating’ as a Leasing Pro generated response?

• Patrick Nelson: No. Nothing like a response from a live person.
• Matt Adler: I’d say no. The autoresponder should be counted as a PART of the process but doesn’t replace personal interaction.
• Elysa Rice: Industry standard is 40% NO response at all on internet leads – so by all means auto is better than nothing.
• Joanna Ellis: Many companies send auto resp but also require agent to follow up with personal email and/or call.
• Janet Rosseth: Auto responder is nothing more than an out of office tool. It can be written to engage prospect until agent connects though.

Many companies today are ‘training to the shop’. Is this realistic?

• Kim Cory: NO-what are we training robots here?
• Zack Kestenbaum: I’m an idealist, I think we need to hire quality people and trust them, measuring is good but don’t “train to the shop.”
• Janet Rosseth: Shops should measure the effectiveness of training programs, not to point out faults in our agents.
• Tamela Coval: As a former leasing agent, the shop rep was 1st presented to me as a constructive tool-I carry that positive approach with me 2day.

What if all shops simply had the one question: Would you have leased today based upon the leasing pro’s behavior? Yes or No.

• Carmen Krushas: That’s why the big Q are the benchmark Q’s. need to jazz it up a bit?! totally stagnant. (I do like your question tho)
• Lisa Trosien: My former mgmt co always shopped us 2x on our ‘shop day’ as they believed shoppers had bad days. Wanted to be fair to us.
• Jennifer Kennedy: I don’t trust the shopper on that. They might have said “yes” to everyone because they aren’t truly moving.
• Zack Kestenbaum: Too subjective, what happens if shopper is having a bad day?
• Joanna Ellis: One question is good but sales does require technique too. If you don’t ask, you may not receive!
• Kim Cory: Some also like seeing formal evaluations even all-stars. Shops should B explained & used as a tool 2 help.
• University Pines: That 1 question’s important but responder really needs to be specific & descriptive in the answer 2 get anything out of it.
• Heather Kattelman: I would question this b/c I’ve seen many shops that this 1 ans just doesn’t “fit” w/ the overall opinion of the rest of the report.

Should you ever terminate a leasing pro for a bad shop? Why or why not?

• Kim Cory: NEVER!
• Jennifer Kennedy: No. Sets a bad precedent. Only exception is if they did something illegal during the shop.
• Zack Kestenbaum: Don’t fire based on a shop, fire based on results.
• University Pines: Anyone can have a bad day…not a good reason to “punish” & def not to fire…good learning tool tho.
• Carmen Krushas: Get the dead weight off and shop. Nothing wrong with firing for the right reasons. Who cares if they had a bad day? not customer.
• David Kotowski: For one bad shop? NO!! For consistently bad shops? Maybe. Regardless of the #’s, everyone eventually has to show they know.

Other notable comments and questions to get you thinking:

• Patrick Nelson: How frequently should the team be shopped?
• University Pines: frequency: i think no less than once a month…
• Elysa Rice: We have a client that uses their reports as competitive motivatrs for agents – they win vacay time, bonuses, etc based on reports.
• Janet Rosseth: If 55-65% of our first contacts are from Internet, we should be “shopping” there more frequently.
• Joanna Ellis: Shops are used primarily as training tools but also serve as a form of accountability. “Do they not do or do they not know?”
• Lisa Trosien: Is a ‘national benchmark’, such as what Ellis uses, helpful? It shows you how you stack up…I like it.
• Justin Dunckel: Ellis bechmark is great. Even cooler that they customize results for our small Co. so we can compare vs. the big guys.
• Eric Brown: If I were a leasing consultant and my company shopped me I would seek employment elsewhere, Measure me on Results, not a witch hunt.
• Joanna Ellis: Large co shared how shop drives results-100% shop = double lease bonus per lease. Do I hear “commission sales people”? Results!!!
• Lisa Trosien: If shops are used constructively as a training tool, they are *not* witch hunts.
• Joanna Ellis: Companies shopping regularly can spot trends and use information individually and globally to redirect training. Goal: Consistency.
• Tamela Coval: As Trainer on both owner/manager & vendor side, I used Shop Rep as Training Guide. Not 2 teach 2 the test, but 2 set expectations.
• Megan Yasenchack: It (shops) would help me to improve my skills, being new in leasing I want to learn as much as I can 2 get better at what I do.
• Justin Dunckel: We’re kind of all pretending these shops are 100% subjective about the LC. I sure gain more info than that on mine.

Additional Resources:

• Sample shopping report (provided by Matt Adler)
• 2009 last qtr’s Net Mystery Shopper benchmark (Provided by Elysa Rice, representing 536 shopping reports)

What’s your opinion on secret shops? Good? Bad? Helpful? Are you customizing the shops based on your training program, or are you using a “standard” report? And how does your bracket look so far?

(This week’s #AptChat included 307 tweets from 46 different contributors.)

Do we really need a business center? I’ve been touring properties lately and they are JAMMED with residents!

• Heather Blume: You need a biz center – faxing at least and WiFi.
• Eric Brown: Why wouldn’t you invite everyone into your business center?
• Mike Whaling: It’s an opportunity for people to test drive your community.
• Erica Campbell: Biz Center doesn’t even make our top 30 amenity list on @AptsForRent.
• Justin Dunckel: We find a lot of move-ins use our business center to sign up for renters insurance, utilities, etc. while there.
• Heather Blume: A printer is a must have. A lot of people don’t have their own anymore with the shift to more paperless work.
• Nessel Inc.: You can’t assume all residents have a laptop … computers in biz center still needed, providing wifi not enough.
• Doug Chasick: Cost of broadcasting WiFi over entire prop much more $ than to biz center.
• Leigh Curry: From my studies of business center and fitness center usage – only about 10-15% of residents use biz center, but they use a lot.
• Tim Grace (Apartments.com): Concur w/ @ericacampbell – less than 1% of our users search for biz center.
• Lesa LaRocca: Common area needs to have great resident energy. Lap top checkouts, avail printer, wi-fi all must haves.
• Lisa Trosien: My tours of new construction are showing larger and more lavish biz centers than ever before. Big social impact.
• Doug Chasick: Bottom line – if it saves one resident, is it worth it?
• Nessel Inc.: We ask residents to supply their own paper and bring their own mugs to the coffee bar.
• Mike Whaling: Our designs would be in line with what you’re seeing on your tours. Still big investments being made in biz ctrs.
• Nessel Inc.: We went so far as to post resume tips and local job openings in the biz center.
• Lisa Trosien: New Lincoln property has a Mac and PC area for their biz center. Largest Mac section I’ve seen yet.
• Tami Siewruk: Biz Centers R very expensive to maintain & NOT used. Better off with an Herb Garden!
• Lisa Trosien: Putting big emphasis on social aspect as well is important. Making it about meet and greet, too.
• Ellen Thompson: One of the communities in Philly suburbs had a biz card exchange in their biz center, speaking of meet and greet.
• Lisa Trosien: Archstone calls theirs “Click Cafe”. Nice name, great ambiance.
• Carmen Krushas: Partner w/fedex and set up satellite biz offices for real ancillary income.
• Mike Whaling: Why not host a tweetup or Yelp meetup?
• Eric Brown: Our @Urbane_Space, a clubhouse converted to a cowork space, has become a buzz of activity.
• Eric Brown: Co Work space has been the biggest draw we have done, absent community wide Free Wi-Fi.

Should tennis courts be repurposed? Removed? Lots of older assets have them.

• Heather Blume: Personally, I love the tennis courts. But I like to play, and I think they make a great space for outdoor events.
• Nathalia Cruz: If they are in an area where the climate lets you use it 365 days a year, YES, if not, waste of time and space.
• Doug Chasick: Depends on your profile; 4 me question is should they be lit for nite play!
• Christian Flickinger: I think youd have more residents that are happy with a “village green” (no pun intended), dog park, etc rather thn a tennis court.
• Justin Dunckel: Remove, remove, remove. Maintenance costs are incredibly high vs. usage. Agree w/ @spoons … get a Wii.
• Kristi Fickert: Heard abt tennis courts being repositioned for roller blading/skate parks. Prob depends on demographic.
• Ellen Thompson: I think this really depends on the geography. Courts are a must in FL, I think, but maybe less so where they aren’t 4-season assets.
• Lisa Trosien: @MBrewer tore his out and put in an outdoor movie theater for his residents. Smart move!

Should tanning beds be removed as an amenity? Or added? They are VERY popular!

• Kim Cory: Ours runs all day!
• Jonathan Saar: They cause cancer—out!
• Heather Blume: Tanning beds get leases out here. That would be because of the absence of sun, so it might be a regional thing.
• Erica Campbell: Personally I like them but they have 2 be sanitized properly & u just can’t rely on residents 2 do that all the time.

Other great amenity ideas and comments along the way:

• David Kotowski: I’ve become a huge fan of salt water (saline) intead of cholorine. It’s green and cheaper to maintain.
• Justin Dunckel: There’s a big cost difference in providing global Wi-Fi in 1 highrise or midrise vs. 30 garden bldgs.
• David Kotowski: I wish some space could be set aside for a fenced dog area. Pet walks are huge!
• Heather Blume: List yourself as an available meeting space on www.meetup.com.
• Tami Siewruk: There is no blanket answer 2 amenities it is all location & profile, case by case strategy.
• Mike Brewer: Highly trained – highly professional – highly responsive people are the key amenity…all else pales in comparison.
• Heather Blume: Just allowing DOGS is huge for student communities. The dorms don’t let you have them.
• Doug Chasick: Partner w/ local biz that offer the amenities you need to compete.
• Zachary Kestenbaum: How about the “community” amenity? Encourage socializing, events, etc.
• Heather Blume: A good amenity that you can create – Guest Suites – by setting aside a couple of apartments.
• Mike Whaling: Why only promote events to residents? Why not introduce your property to other locals?
• Zachary Kestenbaum: Make the most of your amenities by letting residents view availability and reserve online.
• Joe Goers: I would think a Nintendo Wii in a clubhouse or the New Playstation Move in a clubhouse would be an Amenity.
• Heather Blume: An in-house loaner closet is a great thing to have – rug doctor, games, jumper cables, etc.
• Eric Brown: Marketing takeaway: Understand your target demographic, and what they want, and build your brand around them.

Resources:

• Blog post: Is The Apartment Gym Useless in Resident Retention?
• ForRent.com’s Top 15 Searched Amenities in February

You can read the full transcript here.

What do you think? What did we forget? Are there amenities that are working particularly well for you? Are there time-honored amenities that don’t seem to generate the oohs and ahhs they once did? Share your experiences and observations in the comments!

(This week’s #AptChat included 443 tweets from 53 different contributors.)

We started the chat by taking a quick poll to see how many companies have social media policies in place. During the chat, we received 21 votes. Over half of you (11) already have a social media policy in place at your companies, 3 of you don’t have any kind of policy, and 7 of you said your company is currently putting its policy together now. ForRent, Century 21, Property Counselors Management Group, Ellipse and J.C. Hart Communities all shared that they already have policies in place, so you might want to connect with someone from one of those companies if you have questions or are looking for advice.

As for the rest of the discussion, here’s the recap:

What are the most important issues that a social media policy should address?

• Doug Chasick: Policy is for consistency and guidance – s/b flexible and based on trust – wish I could say common sense but . . .
• David Kotowski: In addition to outlining expectations for proper communication w/ customers, I think it should also address personal SM pages.
• Ryan VanDenabeele: That they are acting on behalf of the company and and will be held accountable.Transparency is good but don’t share corp. info.
• Sue Burness: We are seeing examples here of poor judgment with posts & inappropriate dress. And then owners want to shut all Social Media down.
• Brandon Hammond: We’ve included a committment to learning and improving usage as a part of our company’s SM policy.
• Gillian Luce: How bout ‘the opinions expressed on site are my own & do not nec represent those of [comp name]‘ per @theaptnerd SM Policy?
• Zachary Kestenbaum: Policy: I) what do you hope to gain, II) what are you afraid of – both are important.
• Eva Panagiotopoulos: Strict policies block personal connectivity. Like we said, it’s common sense and there must be trust.
• Social Web Strategies: Top issues for SM policy (not prioritized): legal, training, web/sm presence, listening.
• Doug Chasick: Boundaries and guidelines, training and consequences and monitoring are best we can do IMHO.
• Mark Juleen: The best written policy in the world cannot prevent people from posting what they want.
• Brandon Hammond: Coaching is absolutely important. The truth is that the VAST majority of workers in our industry are very new to SM.
• Social Web Strategy: The policy that’s missing is from the c-suite for the whole org. That takes clear view of SM impact on each part of the org.
• Social Web Strategy: SM policy has to give framework for the org to handle integration of SM tech by every dept and division. SM tech will flow into ops.
• Chris Schmeid: Our policy isn’t about loss of productivity, it’s about protecting the brand.
• DiChristy: Be smart about protecting yourself, your privacy and your co’s confidential info.

Is your organization’s social media policy focused more on DOs or DON’Ts? Tell us about it.

• Jonathan Saar: Some companies are creating such vast rules that the staff are on pins and needles.
• Jonathan Saar: Do’s … lots of experimenting and measuring still to do.
• Ryan VanDenabeele: It’s open as SM should be to actively engage. But we don’t want people acting like drunken sailors either. Accountablity.
• Eva Panagiotopoulos: Both I think the DOs help sustain a positive outlook on how social media can be beneficial. DO make friends and listen to others.
• Brandon Hammond: “Policy” probably addresses more DON’Ts, “Strategy” would address more DOs.
• Doug Chasick: Train to the “Do’s” and most “Don’ts” never show up.
• Brandon Hammond: Policy should definitely encourage smart, constructive use! Encouragement to add value to convo!

Are there social media issues specific to the apartment industry that your policy addresses (or should address)?

• Heather Blume: Resident privacy.
• Doug Chasick: Fair housing, libel, slander, copyright infringement and really bad profile pix.
• Ellen Thompson: people are very cavalier about violating copyright laws with use of images, in particular.
• David Kotowski: Management changes are a MUCH bigger deal than you think. NEVER, EVER talk about them until after they actually happen.
• Brandon Hammond: Good place to start is thinking a/b most SM posts as marketing messages, and treating them as such re: FH (Fair Housing).
• Mike Whaling: I think the exact problem is that most SocMed posts are treated as marketing messages.

Who is driving the social media conversation in your organization? Marketing? PR? HR? Customer service? Who should?

• Jonathan Saar: Everyone should have a role all though on different levels.
• Doug Chasick: Marketing and customer svce for us and I think that’s who should – primary stakeholders.
• Meredith Mobley: Marketing and PR at @aptsforrent.
• Brandon Hammond: I think everyone should drive the conversation in our organization–especially our residents!
• Gillian Luce: Marketing drives our corporate account w/PR professional @mmobley assisting. Customer service also has account @ForRentCS.

We’ll leave the poll open, so feel free to contribute to the survey:

Here’s the breakdown of all the responses we’ve received to date:

Additional Resources:

• Full transcript of the original discussion
• J.C. Hart Social Media Acceptable Use Policy
• Database of social media policies
• Policy Tool for Social Media
• More resources related to social media policies

Does your company have a social media policy? If yes, what does it focus on? Is it working? If not, do you think you need one? What other questions or comments do you have about social media policies? Let us know if the comments!

(This week’s chat had 408 tweets from 64 different contributors.)

Are call centers good? Do you like them?

• Nessel Inc.: We love being able to market that you will get a person 24/7.
• Doug Chasick: Call Cntr great for overflow and emerg – concerned about outsrcng ALL calls to off-site, esp. resident calls.
• Heather Blume: When your residents call, they don’t want to call somewhere that isn’t the office.
• Sara Graham: We’re evaluating call centers this spring – Level One seems to be the 800 lb gorilla.
• Nessel Inc.: In our experience we’ve found the agents are quite successful at getting the caller to schedule an appointment. Which we love.
• Kim Cory: Not a fan of call centers. As a true sales person myself I have to feel, touch & be part of my product to really sell it.
• Lisa Trosien: I was, originally, anti-call center. Not anymore. Too many properties don’t answer the phone. This solves that problem.
• Tami Siewruk: Call Centers are necessary. Fact: People R looking for APTs when the office is closed. Trend: INSTANT GRATIFICATION.
• Eric Brown: Our original reason for using a Call Center, was folks weren’t answering the phone. We replaced them with ones who do.
• Mark Juleen: If you want your community to be sold like it is a commodity then call centers are fine.
• RealPage: Our research shows that our contact center answers 97% of all calls that you designate us to take.
• Bob Gura: After a year with a call center we have concluded that we are much more effective than the call center.
• Mark Juleen: Why are we outsourcing the face of our brands and our product? Why not outsource reports & accounting task garbage instead?
• Elysa Rice: As a resident (and previous prospect) I wouldn’t expect to talk to a person at midnight … that’s just weird.
• Realty Data Trust: Call centers aren’t just for calls either. Email leads can be handled by industry call centers.
• David Kotowski: I think call centers probably benefit our customers, especially as so many companies are still having to cut staffing levels.
• Mark Juleen: Real life example from a call center. Prospect – “Do you have a pool?” Center Rep – “Um, let me check.”
• Mark Juleen: Real life example from a call center. Rep – “The One Bedroom is 695 sq. ft.” Prospect – “That’s kind of small.” Rep – “Yes, it is.”
• Tami Siewruk: REALITY CHECK LP’s cnt answer every call we have them doing more than they cn handle, answer take away all the NON leasing items.

What about ‘culture’? Can a call center communicate the ‘culture’ of your sites?

• Heather Blume: Culture = personality, and some can, depending on how they hire. But usually, the flat tone conveys 1 thing – Apathy.
• Ryan VanDenabeele: You can’t train call center people to represent your brand. They just don’t care like you do. I worked in one when I was a kid.
• RealPage: Well trained contact center reps can capture the brand and the culture of each property.
• Mike Whaling: Is anyone providing their blog feed and social media info to their call center team?
• Doug Chasick: Prob is we try 2make Call Cntr what they are not — culture — instead of using 4 what they are — cover phone when we can’t.
• RealPage: We offer continuing education to help refresh information about particular properties and help represent the culture.
• Michael Cunningham: We work with the communities from day one to find out their preferences, amenities, specials, etc.
• Joe Youngblood: Maybe centers need to foster closer relationships? and property managers need to facilitate that with updated data?
• Lisa Trosien: I know that one of my clients meets 2x a year with the LP’s at the call center to make sure they ‘get’ the culture.
• Janet Rosseth: The best on-site agents know how to circle back with prospects handled by a call center to personalize the experience.
• Nashville Web Design: Call centers are impersonal but they are good to get prospect information for LP to call back.

Even more comments on Call Centers:

• Lisa Trosien: Typical LP’s on CCenters say they are in a ‘centralized leasing office’.
• Lisa Trosien: I don’t think it’s the solution for every property.I think you need to weigh the pro’s and con’s seriously b4 u make your decision.
• RealPage: According to Satisfacts, only 52% of calls will be answered during office hours.
• Heather Blume: A leasing professional CANNOT get EVERY single call. It’s just not realistic.
• Tami Siewruk: Part of the answer is staggered staffing hrs! Helps tremendously U know when U get the most calls & visits.
• Janet Rosseth: I had an internal call center. Awesome front line and x-tra hands, but overhead was too costly to go 24/7 and handle emails.
• Lisa Trosien: I’ve found a lot of the issues with call centers is getting the site people to call back on the leads from the call center.
• Kim Cory: leasing does not want 2 respond b/c no connection. LIke calling a guy after a date, must have connection 2 call again.

There were a few questions about companies that have successfully implemented internal call centers, with Equity, AIMCO and Mid-America all used as positive examples.

The conversation then moved to live chat, and there were strong opinions on this subject, too:

• Heather Blume: Live chat can be an excellent first contact point for a potential resident.
• Eric Brown: We tried Live Chat, but could not effectively manage it, nor did prospects like it, they were creeped out.
• Janet Rosseth: I think I heard a stat that L1 was converting 80% of live chats to appointments. If that’s correct, it’s staggering!

Who has kicked butt with resident referral programs? What’s made it successful? (Asked by Bob Gura)

• Sara Graham: At some props, we offer a tiered res ref model: 1st referral gets $250, 2nd gets $500, 3rd gets $750 and 4th gets $1000.
• Heather Blume: I had one woman in my session this week who was talking about how they have a resident who they almost PAY to live there.
• Lisa Trosien: Try having the referral fee be higher right after move in when their enthusiasm is very high.

Other noteworthy comments from the chat:

• David Kotowski: I worked for a company that had a policy of only hiring attractive people. I’m not kidding. Staffing meetings were odd.
• Bob Gura: Great personalities lease. Make the visit memorable!
• Bake Extra Cookies: We’re seeing our user’s online statistics DOUBLE. Might be indicating a slightly early leasing season…
• Lisa Trosien: So to summarize: human directionals in curling pants can answer your phones.

As you can imagine, this edition of #AptChat was a lot of fun for everyone. (This week’s stats: 512 tweets from 63 different contributors.) I couldn’t get all the great comments in the recap, so make sure you check out the full transcript when you get a chance.

So what do you think? Are you for or against outside call centers? If you’re using one now, or have used a call center in the past, what has been your experience? What are some of your best resident referral ideas? It’s your turn to show off … tell us what you know in the comments!

Have a topic you’d like to discuss on a future #AptChat? Tell us about it!

First, it’s important to understand what a revenue management system is and why apartment operators might want to use one. Here’s how you defined revenue management software:

• Gary Katz: For those unfamiliar with RM systems, they price apartments kind of like hotels price their rooms. Prices can change daily.
• Keith Dunkin: RM systems provide the optimal blend of internal fundamentals and external data. Protects from over reacting to comps.
• Keith Dunkin: Improved Revenue Performance, Increased Visibility, Pricing Efficiency, reduced carry costs.
• Steve Matre: Classic yield mgmt, matches price to demand based on lease exp’s and historic traffic, system sets price.
• Gary Katz: The idea is too not price apts too low and leave $ on the table and not price them too high and leave them vacant.

We gave both Rainmaker and RealPage the opportunity to describe how they derive their pricing. Here’s Rainmaker’s response: “LRO optimizes rents based on supply & demand (traffic, leasing, availability, etc). Market response is measured & prices adjust.” Bruce Barfield also added that “LRO uses electronic web scraping technology to get dynamic prices.”
Janine Jovanovic answered for RealPage: “YS gets factual leasing data daily from 15k+ properties across the US + 5m MPF units + any data entered on site.”

On to the recap!

Are you using revenue management software for your business? If yes, why? If no, why not?

• Jennifer Kennedy: No….not sure that there is enough ROI.
• Donald Davidoff: Been using it for 9 years with multiple tests that prove the ROI.
• Heather Blume: I’ve worked with the software before, and talked to many clients who use it. Some love it, some don’t.
• Keith Dunkin: To echo Donald at Archstone, Rev Mgmt has been in place for years with proven revenue premiums to market in 2-5%, compelling ROI.
• Heather Blume: What mgrs have said to me is that they lose the push/pull ability and it’s difficult to stay competitive sometimes.
• Mark Juleen: Nearly 2 years now with Yieldstar.
• Janine Jovanovic: Managers and leasing staff have told us that they love it because it empowers them to sell more.
• Keith Dunkin: On the ROI comment RM systems have been measured consistently in up and down market and both solutions have proven out.
• Trachelle Spencer: We have been actively using LRO for over 6 years and would not go back to a manual process.

How long does an RM system take to ‘pay for itself’?

• Rainmaker Group: LRO typically pays for itself in a matter of months.

How many units before companies feel they need a “pricing guru” to over see the system? (Asked by Steve Matre)

• James Flick: I would suggest 50+ properties for a dedicated individual in YS. Otherwise, use the consulting services w/ RealPage.
• Janine Jovanovic: You can outsource pricing oversight to us. Makes sense to have your own internal resource at 10,000+ units.
• Trachelle Spencer: We have 44 communities currently on LRO; there are two of us managing them. Doesn’t include Lease Ups.
• James Flick: It is probably more cost effective to outsource to an experienced consultant at Realpage vs. a full time person in house.
• Chris Long: We have 150 properties and 3 dedicated resources.
• Trachelle Spencer: It is important to have pricing professionals and not have the system run independently.

How tough is it to renew someone when their rent can, in effect, go down one day after they sign their renewal?

• Donald Davidoff: Rents can go down in one day on manual systems.
• Janine Jovanovic: This is a function of market conditions not RM – happens with or without RM in place.
• Leigh Curry: What about the person who finsw out their airplane fare has decreased by $100 or hotel room by $50…fact of life.
• Mark Juleen: We have struggled the most with making renewals as fair as possible.
• Trachelle Spencer: We have processes in place to review renewals if necessary.

Along the way, there were a lot of great comments about implementation and the use of revenue management systems in general. Here are a few of the highlights:

• Mark Juleen: We played with it for the first year trying to override too much. We just let it run now.
• Mark Juleen: No more “concessions” or “specials” rents, just adjust both renewal and new.
• Mark Juleen: In 2009 our Rev. was up 2% in Indy while most competition has reported they are down 2%.
• Lisa Trosien: You have to know/learn how to ‘sell’ it to the prospect. It really does simplify the process.
• Janine Jovanovic: Prospects can do math. They like the “check writing” price. You can say “concession” is built into the price.
• Trachelle Spencer: Our communities do weekly competitive surveys. We are finding more accurate pricing online.
• Trachelle Spencer: We have classes offered by our Training Dept. Site Visits, 1 on 1′s, conference calls, webinars, etc.
• James Flick: Have we aligned incentives and compensation for managers and leasing associates to get them to embrace rev mgmt?
• Lisa Trosien: RM is great: it’s fair; it increases the bottom line; it creates urgency. It removes the ‘fudge factor’. I’m a big fan.

One advocate for revenue management, Mark Juleen, laid out in detail why he likes using the program over manual pricing. Here’s what he said:

• MPF does market surveys for us & plugs that data into the system (at least with Yieldstar). No need for bs market surveys.
• I can review pricing and approve changes in about 20 min. for our 12 properties.
• You set a sustainable occupancy and if your team performs average you will usually sustain that.
• If your occupancy dips below the sustainable, then you probably have a people problem.
• If you outperform your sustainable then prices go up and you know your team rocks.

Even though Mark is a fan of the system, he still thinks there’s room for improvement (and others seemed to agree). For more comments on this, and for the rest of the discussion, check out the full transcript.

What do you think? Are you using a revenue management system to set pricing? If so, what has been your experience so far? What can RM systems do to improve their models? Are you evaluating your options? Let us know what you think in the comments!

This week’s #AptChat included 354 tweets coming from 53 contributors. Thanks to all those who contributed this week!