We live in an increasingly mobile society, which means more and more apartment companies are dealing with non-domestic prospects— a challenge and an opportunity.
Sometimes language and cultural differences mean your leasing staff has to put a little extra time and effort into assisting international renters, but the payoff can be immense. Word travels fast among these renter populations, and communities that provide outstanding customer service often get lots of referrals.
For the ins and outs of handling international renter prospects, check out the highlights from our latest #AptChat. (Click on the links to jump straight to a specific question.)
- Have you worked on properties with international renter populations? If so, how are those folks typically learning about you?
- Word of mouth (WOM) always seems important with international renters. What are some ways to generate more positive referrals?
- Are there any “targeted” marketing efforts you’ve found that work well (international domains, popular apps, etc.)? Which ones?
- Are there any communication gaps/cultural differences to be aware of? At move-in, move-out, other points in resident lifecycle?
Have you worked on properties with international renter populations? If so, how are those folks typically learning about you?
@AptChat Yes! Website, university chat rooms just for their country, but mostly, from one another. They recommend & support us! #AptChat
— Mindy Sharp (@MsMin) February 14, 2017
@AptChat Sorta both. Each dept has a chat room and someone goes underground and branches off. VERY effective! $0 referrals! #AptChat
— Mindy Sharp (@MsMin) February 14, 2017
@MsMin @AptChat Underground as in they chat informally and not as a rep of the apartment community? #AptChat
— Kristi Fickert (@Marketing_Mommy) February 14, 2017
@Marketing_Mommy @AptChat Totally rogue! They hear about us and then contact us or have current resident do it. #AptChat
— Mindy Sharp (@MsMin) February 14, 2017
@MsMin @AptChat Wow!Maybe chat as the community too, just to welcome them 2 the neighborhood & campus? Curious what reaction wld be #AptChat
— Kristi Fickert (@Marketing_Mommy) February 14, 2017
@Marketing_Mommy @AptChat Some LCs are really good with this! Some suck at it. #AptChat
— Mindy Sharp (@MsMin) February 14, 2017
@MsMin @Marketing_Mommy @AptChat Sometimes that help could just be the tools that we have at our disposal like updater #AptChat
— Karen Kossow (@AthleteatHeart) February 14, 2017
@AptChat A1- yes…. word of mouth almost always ends up being the main driver #AptChat
— Karen Kossow (@AthleteatHeart) February 14, 2017
@AptChat A1- Also… since I’m in the DC Market… sometimes embassy referrals #AptChat
— Karen Kossow (@AthleteatHeart) February 14, 2017
@AptChat Not typically something to spend a lot of time on, but developing a relationship and then treating the residents well 🙂 #AptChat
— Karen Kossow (@AthleteatHeart) February 14, 2017
@AptChat Does usually result in a lot term relationship where diplomats will swap out apartments when they come and go #AptChat
— Karen Kossow (@AthleteatHeart) February 14, 2017
@AthleteatHeart @AptChat University Researchers also do this, and will leave furnishings for next prof! #AptChat They take care of each one!
— Mindy Sharp (@MsMin) February 14, 2017
@AthleteatHeart @AptChat University corporate units are great for visiting professors/researchers – worked for us in DC #AptChat
— Lia Nichole Smith (@SatisFactsLia) February 14, 2017
@AptChat A1: In DC our resident referrals helped a lot & we partnered with universities to reach their international students #AptChat
— Lia Nichole Smith (@SatisFactsLia) February 14, 2017
A1: Agree w/the others on WOM. Where one goes their friends will follow. Int’l depts. at colleges & local support agencies help too #AptChat
— Kristi Fickert (@Marketing_Mommy) February 14, 2017
@AptChat A1- We have found that an online presence is key for international prospective residents. SEO helps.
— GusGR (@digitizer20) February 14, 2017
@AptChat no foreign language content but indirectly WOM helps drive traffic to the site also. Our market thrives on international students
— GusGR (@digitizer20) February 14, 2017
@AptChat @digitizer20 We find interpreters help. We have one to translate & there’s an app for that. #AptChat
— Mindy Sharp (@MsMin) February 14, 2017
@MsMin YES! I helped a res. call & set up his utilities. He’d been in the US 8 hrs. Can you imagine trying to call the utility co.? #AptChat
— Kristi Fickert (@Marketing_Mommy) February 14, 2017
@Marketing_Mommy True! Plus utility companies here try to get u to set up internet/cable. They get roped into spending 2 much $$ #aptChat
— Mindy Sharp (@MsMin) February 14, 2017
@MsMin Right! I can’t imagine landing in a foreign country then having 2 navigate that by myself. This is where we can really help! #AptChat
— Kristi Fickert (@Marketing_Mommy) February 14, 2017
@Marketing_Mommy my in’tl students were paired w/ students @ their school weeks before they arrived. Instant friend on the 1st day #AptChat
— Lia Nichole Smith (@SatisFactsLia) February 14, 2017
@SatisFactsLia Oh my gosh! That’s fabulous! So why don’t we do that in #multifamily??? #AptChat
— Kristi Fickert (@Marketing_Mommy) February 14, 2017
@Marketing_Mommy Could be an idea here for our industry – resident ambassadors #AptChat
— Lia Nichole Smith (@SatisFactsLia) February 14, 2017
@AptChat I worked on a prop with intl populations early in my career. Mostly school referrals or WOM within that community #aptchat
— Heather Blume (@artchickhb) February 14, 2017
Has anyone noticed any geographical trends in communities in the U.S. that attract international renters? #aptchat
— Dyverse (@dyverse) February 14, 2017
@dyverse Pretty big but tight-knit int’l populations near major children’s hospitals. Some being treated,some working in med field. #AptChat
— Kristi Fickert (@Marketing_Mommy) February 14, 2017
@Marketing_Mommy @dyverse We get some short term summer rentals not far from major shopping areas #AptChat
— Karen Kossow (@AthleteatHeart) February 14, 2017
@AptChat We had great relationships with HR depts in large companies who would bring in int’l talent. #aptchat
— Stephanie Oehler (@StephanieOehler) February 14, 2017
Word of mouth (WOM) always seems important with international renters. What are some ways to generate more positive referrals?
@AptChat open the events you hold to t
Residents friends – works really well in comm. With Indian or Somali populations here #aptchat— Heather Blume (@artchickhb) February 14, 2017
@artchickhb @AptChat But also know and be familiar with some of the customs & social “norms” for those cultures. Make the effort #AptChat
— Kristi Fickert (@Marketing_Mommy) February 14, 2017
@AptChat A2- with what I’ve seen over the years… it doesn’t need to be more than good customer service with a referral fee #AptChat
— Karen Kossow (@AthleteatHeart) February 14, 2017
A2: If referrals are usually rewarded w/money, does that work for this demographic? Need to evaluate all programs/services & adjust #AptChat
— Kristi Fickert (@Marketing_Mommy) February 14, 2017
@Marketing_Mommy Agreed – lifestyle rewards may be better received than $ #AptChat
— Lia Nichole Smith (@SatisFactsLia) February 14, 2017
@Marketing_Mommy $ definitely works for the younger demographics #AptChat
— Karen Kossow (@AthleteatHeart) February 14, 2017
@AthleteatHeart Would transportation related reward be useful? I.e., a bike or prepaid Uber/Lyft gift card? #AptChat
— Lia Nichole Smith (@SatisFactsLia) February 14, 2017
@SatisFactsLia Today I would say that there could be benefit to that (depending on the market) #AptChat
— Karen Kossow (@AthleteatHeart) February 14, 2017
Something a bit related re: languages, some of our regions offer their regulation guides in arabic, chinese, etc #aptchat
— CFAA (@CFAA_FCAPI) February 14, 2017
Are there any “targeted” marketing efforts you’ve found that work well (international domains, popular apps, etc.)? Which ones?
@AptChat A3- I did notice last year that in S. FL for our international renters mobile presence was key #AptChat
— Karen Kossow (@AthleteatHeart) February 14, 2017
@AptChat A3 continued- and FB was a big driver for us. Numerous initial contacts came through FB from our international population #AptChat
— Karen Kossow (@AthleteatHeart) February 14, 2017
@AptChat A3- continued- and these customers would return to FB and keep up with our updates #AptChat
— Karen Kossow (@AthleteatHeart) February 14, 2017
So true! They participate in FB and will review your community! #AptChat https://t.co/zSlObEGAXV
— Mindy Sharp (@MsMin) February 14, 2017
@MsMin And these renters were not students…. just the S. FL international population. #AptChat
— Karen Kossow (@AthleteatHeart) February 14, 2017
@AthleteatHeart Kindness is appreciated by these residents so much! Again, costs nothing! Reward is great! #AptChat
— Mindy Sharp (@MsMin) February 14, 2017
Are there any communication gaps/cultural differences to be aware of? At move-in, move-out, other points in resident lifecycle?
@AptChat Some groups don’t understand that a Smoke Free community means you really can’t smoke in your apt #AptChat
— Karen Kossow (@AthleteatHeart) February 14, 2017
@AptChat Many differences: men are in charge, often want to work with men and always negotiate even after lease is signed. #AptChat
— Mindy Sharp (@MsMin) February 14, 2017
@MsMin @AptChat Yes! Today’s sales training should include how 2 handle the “negotiators” for sure. It’s really big in some cultures#AptChat
— Kristi Fickert (@Marketing_Mommy) February 14, 2017
@AptChat Certain groups view women differently which can be a challenge at times #AptChat
— Karen Kossow (@AthleteatHeart) February 14, 2017
@AptChat A5: Explaining service requests. I’ve seen residents attempt repairs because they thought they were responsible. #AptChat
— Lia Nichole Smith (@SatisFactsLia) February 14, 2017
A5: It’s very difficult to convey proper m/o expectations & apt. condition. Just another gap/barrier that happens often. #AptChat
— Kristi Fickert (@Marketing_Mommy) February 14, 2017
@Marketing_Mommy Visual cues might help – photos of what the apartment should look like at move out. #AptChat
— Lia Nichole Smith (@SatisFactsLia) February 14, 2017
@SatisFactsLia @Marketing_Mommy Then they share those pics w/ them upon notice to show what move-out condition should look like. /2 #AptChat
— Mike Whaling (@mwhaling) February 14, 2017
@mwhaling @SatisFactsLia yes! Great idea! #aptchat
— Kristi Fickert (@Marketing_Mommy) February 14, 2017
I made tutorials for online rent pay, writing checks, how the shower works, how to ride the bus, where to buy their preferred food #AptChat https://t.co/uMN14AdCsG
— Mindy Sharp (@MsMin) February 14, 2017
@AptChat applicant screening protocol can be challenging. #aptchat
— Stephanie Oehler (@StephanieOehler) February 14, 2017
@StephanieOehler @AptChat But starting to get better as some can now screen for the credit outside of the US #AptChat
— Karen Kossow (@AthleteatHeart) February 14, 2017
Our next #AptChat is slated for Tuesday, February 21, 2017 at 12 pm Eastern, and we’ll be discussing how to turn your staff into your biggest brand cheerleaders. In the meantime, be sure to sign up for #AptChat updates to get these recaps and more delivered straight to your inbox!