Journal of Property Management - January/February 2010

MARKETING SOLUTIONS
STAYING POWER Always Keep Clients Aware of Your
Marketing Message and Expertise

yOu knOW it’s iMPOrtant tO keeP yOur MarketinG MessaGe in FrOnt OF yOur clients, But yOu dOn’t Want tO Be Pesky. How do you do it? Today, it’s all about providing solutions for our customers, both existing and prospective. This can be a real challenge, but here’s the good news—not every answer comes with a price tag. Here are three tips to help you to stay ahead of the pack:

SHANNON ALTER
(SHannon@
alTErconSulTInG
Group.com),
CPM®, IS A REAL
ESTATE CONSUL-
TANT WITH ALTER
CONSULTING
GROUP (ALTER-
CONSULTING-
GROUP.COM)
IN SANTA ANA,
CALIF. SHE IS THE
AUTHOR OF THE
IREM KEY REPORT
STRATeGieS FOR
WORkiNG Wi TH
SMALL TeNANTS.

know your clients

Understanding what’s critical to your customers is the key to a successful long-term relationship. Having a solid grasp of the challenges that face your customers, and how you can help solve them, is essential. Unfortunately, it’s not always easy. With a new crop of buyers just around the bend who may not be as sophisticated as their predecessors, or who may not have established relationships with management companies, Steven M. Ring, CPM®, director of client solutions for Cushman & Wakefield of California, AMO®, suggests you make sure you understand your clients’ needs by drilling down to the heart of every matter. “It’s not only important to hear what your customers are saying, but it’s also important to decipher what they are not saying,” Ring said.

your clients should see you as their best resource for ideas, trends and best practices that will save them money and create value.

“Don’t wait for your clients to ask you about
new trends,” said Joe Greenblatt, CPM, and
president/CEO of Sunrise Management, AMO,
in San Diego. “Evaluating the opportunity for
owners will help them create value and position
you as the go-to person.”
Multifamily owners, for example, may appre-
ciate a look at whether or not it makes sense
to allow tenants to pay rent via credit card.
Although not for every residential commu-
nity, this solution can increase convenience,
collections and customer loyalty. It’s our job as
property managers to figure out what keeps our
clients up at night, and to provide the answer.

Become the expert

Remember, your clients hired you because you know your stuff. Remind them of this by positioning yourself as an industry expert. Ideally,

always deliver

There are several ways we can deliver for our clients. First, always, always do what you say you’ll do. Leave your client in the lurch and you may find your reputation sinks faster than the Titanic. Second, offer information. You’ve made the effort to find out what your customers think is critical and to position yourself as an industry expert. Now take the time to provide strategic information about industry trends and best practices to your clients that they can use and implement.

Keeping our marketing message in front of clients is not magic, but it does take consistent effort on our part to remind them why they chose us—and our solutions—in the first place. n