[SPEAKER_01]: Hey, it's actually, I'm usually sitting right there editing the podcast that you're listening to. [SPEAKER_01]: I'm just letting you know that this week's episode is a lot like last week, so it's going to be a recap of our July, thirty-one day challenge, where Barbara's posting a video every day on our social media, giving you a small action that you can do to build a strong community.
[SPEAKER_01]: that might be marketing, referral, goofy ways to answer a phone, how to grow your social media following, pet friendly ideas, anything that falls under your role as a property manager. [SPEAKER_01]: Barbers here to simplify it and make it a little bit easier on you so that you can still get the results that you're looking for. [SPEAKER_01]: So, tune in today, get some ideas, get some inspiration.
[SPEAKER_01]: And if you like what you see, you can get everything plus hundreds more designs and ideas and canvas templates. [SPEAKER_01]: in our all access membership. [SPEAKER_01]: Right now you can get it four hundred and eighty nine dollars off. [SPEAKER_01]: The annual membership with code save AA when you check out. [SPEAKER_01]: That is an insane deal we've never done it that low before. [SPEAKER_01]: So go check it out and I'm gonna get back to editing because my arms tired now.
[SPEAKER_02]: See ya! [SPEAKER_02]: Hey there, welcome to the multi-family mix. [SPEAKER_02]: You're go-to blend for all things multi-family. [SPEAKER_02]: Equal parts apartment marketing and retention with a generous splash of encouragement, my friend. [SPEAKER_02]: Ready to shake up the multi-family world? [SPEAKER_02]: I'm Barbara Sabona of Sprout Marketing here to serve up ideas and innovations. [SPEAKER_02]: Time to mix things up. [SPEAKER_02]: Let's do it!
[SPEAKER_02]: Hate Renewal Conversations. [SPEAKER_02]: Let's change that. [SPEAKER_02]: Did you go on for a little letter? [SPEAKER_02]: Instead, let's start with a little gift. [SPEAKER_02]: We're going to make it super personal. [SPEAKER_02]: This tiny renewable picnic basket is the cutest little thing to get in the door a little drink, a little snack, and then your perfect sprout marketing flyer. [SPEAKER_02]: Don't forget the napkin.
[SPEAKER_02]: Now let's pretend this is your resident store and not my house. [SPEAKER_02]: Ignore the Amazon packages. [SPEAKER_02]: They open the door. [SPEAKER_02]: They're happy to see you because you're bringing a goody. [SPEAKER_02]: This is how we do renewables. [SPEAKER_02]: Small actions, strong communities. [SPEAKER_02]: This is how we spread, and this is how we close the back door.
[SPEAKER_02]: You guys, this might be the easiest thing that we're showing you all month long in our small action, strong community series. [SPEAKER_02]: July eleven is National Blueberry Muffin Day, and I've got my little sign here that says we'd be muffin without our sweet residents. [SPEAKER_02]: Here in the acrylic sign, there's a variety of ones to choose from on your sprawl portal. [SPEAKER_02]: And then I ordered this ridiculously cute dessert swing set. [SPEAKER_02]: It is so cute.
[SPEAKER_02]: Now I only bought two small things of blueberry muffins because I'm just saying this up as a display. [SPEAKER_02]: I don't need them all, but you guys would get enough to fill them up and refill as residents come and go. [SPEAKER_02]: I bought these gorgeous flowers from Trader Josie. [SPEAKER_02]: We're seven, ninety nine and I bought them a couple of days before they all kind of were closed like this and they've just been opening up over the last few days.
[SPEAKER_02]: This is an old Greek yogurt jar and this is the cutest display. [SPEAKER_02]: Obviously I probably have coffee and some treats and make a point to sit and talk with my residents. [SPEAKER_02]: These are the small actions that really do lead to strong communities. [SPEAKER_02]: This is the Sprout Way.
[SPEAKER_02]: First make sure that you grab this sign, you download it, and with just a few simple steps, you can have the easiest event for a national blueberry muffin day or any day of the month that you want to serve up a sweet treat for your residents. [SPEAKER_02]: You guys, this is the easiest referral automation station that is pup approved. [SPEAKER_02]: So what do we have here? [SPEAKER_02]: We have a fire hydrant that has some refreshments for the humans.
[SPEAKER_02]: We've got some great little easy garland. [SPEAKER_02]: I even put some up to add some decor here. [SPEAKER_02]: We have your Sprout Marketing Referral Fire that you can customize at poor free in your Canvas account. [SPEAKER_02]: So if you do offer a referral bonus, this is a great place to advertise it.
[SPEAKER_02]: Then you can put some milk bones either in a jar or you can print these out in quarter pages and add the little milk bones into these little cellophane bags that seal. [SPEAKER_02]: And you can just set out a few at a time. [SPEAKER_02]: And then I went ahead with a little dog bowl here for the jolly. [SPEAKER_02]: So they can get some water if they come in to get treats. [SPEAKER_02]: You've got these great pop prints that lead straight to the referral automation station.
[SPEAKER_02]: My pup Lincoln was a great helper in setting up this station. [SPEAKER_02]: So you can even add goodies for the adults as well, but you can keep it super simple. [SPEAKER_02]: And this is your residence tour. [SPEAKER_02]: I love a good referral automation station. [SPEAKER_02]: It just keeps referrals top of the mind by switching up the beams for referral automation stations. [SPEAKER_02]: It keeps it fun in the top of people's minds. [SPEAKER_02]: Guys, this is the sprout way.
[SPEAKER_02]: Small action, strong communities. [SPEAKER_02]: Make sure to hit follow so you don't miss one day of our small action, strong community series. [SPEAKER_02]: Make sure to get those puppy snuggles fetch the best part. [SPEAKER_02]: Today is an outreach marketing day and the very first thing I thought about is what am I going to wear? [SPEAKER_02]: Because I am the physical representation of my community. [SPEAKER_02]: But I'm also going to be in and out of the car.
[SPEAKER_02]: It's really hot here in Texas. [SPEAKER_02]: So I wore something that I'm very comfortable in. [SPEAKER_02]: It's breathable and it still looks professional. [SPEAKER_02]: And then I made sure to pack my business card and my goodies. [SPEAKER_02]: So let's get in the car and I'll show you what I put together. [SPEAKER_02]: So I'm in my car. [SPEAKER_02]: Getting ready to go. [SPEAKER_02]: I've got this old Amazon Prime full of goodies and they're super inexpensive.
[SPEAKER_02]: So what I've got here is our apartments are popping. [SPEAKER_02]: There's inside just a little microwave popcorn, our little sprout quarter-page flyer that can be customized in Canva. [SPEAKER_02]: Now when I'm in and out, going to businesses, I just pick one of these or two or three, however many I want to take depending on the business. [SPEAKER_02]: And I'm going to just come in and say, hey, I'm Barbara, we sprout apartments. [SPEAKER_02]: I know you weren't expecting me.
[SPEAKER_02]: I'm actually coming in just to tell you about our awesome community that's like two minutes down the road from here and I brought you some goodies. [SPEAKER_02]: So that opens the door to a conversation. [SPEAKER_02]: Now this can be replaced with almost anything but who doesn't love popcorn. [SPEAKER_02]: small actions, strong communities. [SPEAKER_02]: This is the Sprout Way.
[SPEAKER_02]: Now Sprout Members, you can download everything that you found here inside of the blog, plus you can watch our entire outreach marketing series. [SPEAKER_02]: Thank you for calling Sprout Apartments. [SPEAKER_02]: This is Barbara, I can help you. [SPEAKER_02]: The way that we answer the phone sets the tone. [SPEAKER_02]: And yet we typically don't give a lot of thought to the very first few seconds of the conversation.
[SPEAKER_02]: I was in a bad response and smiling, I'm happy, but how do we make it better? [SPEAKER_02]: If you're anything like me when I was in my leasing days, I used to hate when immediately the caller would say, how much is your two-bedroomer? [SPEAKER_02]: Just jump right into the conversation. [SPEAKER_02]: So I used to think, how can I pattern interrupt and say something kind of bizarre off the wall that makes them stop and say, what did you say? [SPEAKER_02]: So here are a few ideas.
[SPEAKER_02]: Thank you for calling Sprout Apartments, nestled between your favorite taco spot and the best target of your life. [SPEAKER_02]: This is Barbara, how can I help you? [SPEAKER_02]: They might stop and say what? [SPEAKER_02]: What to go play? [SPEAKER_02]: Thank you for calling sprout apartments where the kitchens have counter space for every appliance that you swore you'd use.
[SPEAKER_02]: Thank you for calling sprout apartments where your garden tab says cancel your plans and so where your patio is made for string lines and wine nights. [SPEAKER_02]: Are they a little bit cheesy? [SPEAKER_02]: Yes, but the whole point is [SPEAKER_02]: Marketing is supposed to differentiate us. [SPEAKER_02]: It makes us stand out and we only have a few seconds to do that. [SPEAKER_02]: Marketing should be fine. [SPEAKER_02]: So remember, it's small actions, strong communities.
[SPEAKER_02]: And this is something free that can make you stand out from the competition and it's something you're doing day after day. [SPEAKER_02]: Remember friends, this is the Sproutway. [SPEAKER_02]: Doing things a little bit different, a little bit more fun, and making an even bigger impact. [SPEAKER_02]: If you love these ideas, members, you have a whole bunch that you can choose from.
[SPEAKER_02]: If you're not a member, go to the Sproutway.com because you don't want to miss out on this ridiculousness. [SPEAKER_02]: We have a lot of fun inside the membership. [SPEAKER_02]: Small actions, strong communities, growing your social media, following addition. [SPEAKER_02]: So if you're wanting to do that, you're wanting to grow your followers. [SPEAKER_02]: Let's start with the basics.
[SPEAKER_02]: First, make sure that you have links to all of your platforms on your website and in your email signature. [SPEAKER_02]: And then check them often to make sure that those links actually work. [SPEAKER_02]: I've had that where it didn't work. [SPEAKER_02]: I had maybe linked it up wrong, and it's kind of embarrassing. [SPEAKER_02]: So check those often in terms of platforms themselves get wonky.
[SPEAKER_02]: Then think about signage, banded signs and banners, and really be cognizant of what kind of traffic is going to be seeing those signs. [SPEAKER_02]: So for a banner, a QR tag might be wonderful so you can maybe put the icon of your Instagram or your Facebook or your TikTok and then a QR tag right next to it and people can actually scan. [SPEAKER_02]: But if it's on a banner, I would suggest maybe putting your actual handle with the logo of whatever platform.
[SPEAKER_02]: Most people that know Instagram or whatever the platform is, they'll be able to search if you make the handle really easy to find. [SPEAKER_02]: Now this can sometimes be tricky if there's many communities with the same name, so just be careful about that. [SPEAKER_02]: I love the idea of the bandwidth signs because these are for your residents and prospects that are walking in, put them in high traffic areas.
[SPEAKER_02]: You also want to include them in your marketing flyers, your collateral. [SPEAKER_02]: So remember social media is almost like the aunt or uncle of your marketing, right? [SPEAKER_02]: So your website is like mom and dad and your social media is your fun aunt or uncle that you want to see the behind the scenes. [SPEAKER_02]: And so make sure that that's included just the same way that you would include your website.
[SPEAKER_02]: Now I have a few others in your worksheet that's brought members have access to. [SPEAKER_02]: You can also activate your team by having them post and share. [SPEAKER_02]: You can have an email go out to residents that maybe has exclusive content, but they have to actually like you might put in an email a great picture of a resident of it and then say check out the entire album and when they click it opens up directly into Facebook, Instagram or TikTok.
[SPEAKER_02]: That way people are almost forced to look at stuff on your social media platforms. [SPEAKER_02]: You can also offer specific incentives when people hit follow and like maybe they unlock a certain leasing special. [SPEAKER_02]: You can also trade posts with local businesses. [SPEAKER_02]: This is a super helpful one for cross-promotion.
[SPEAKER_02]: Go to local businesses and they might, you know, do a post about you and you might do a post about them and you tag each other and now you've opened up to their audience and they're getting access to yours as well. [SPEAKER_02]: You can also have residents encourage residents to tag a friend. [SPEAKER_02]: Tag a friend that you'd love to have a glass of wine with on this patio or tag a friend that would make the best neighbor.
[SPEAKER_02]: And that exposes more people again to your community's social media following. [SPEAKER_02]: You can also use your city's geotag or hashtags for that specific city. [SPEAKER_02]: So when something fun is happening or it's trending, that might give you the chance to get local exposure as well. [SPEAKER_02]: And then share regularly what's going on at your community.
[SPEAKER_02]: Remember, [SPEAKER_02]: part of getting a great following as having content that people want to engage with. [SPEAKER_02]: So don't get so stuck on just selling. [SPEAKER_02]: Make sure that you're having a healthy mix of sales, of retention and of just for fun. [SPEAKER_02]: Things that are happening.
[SPEAKER_02]: I think when you become the local expert with what is actually happening around your community and the neighborhood in your city, this gives you so much more opportunity to get found. [SPEAKER_02]: So there's a ton of different ways. [SPEAKER_02]: You can also get stickers made that you put on packages. [SPEAKER_02]: I also think just face-to-face conversations where you ask people, hey, what's your favorite social platform? [SPEAKER_02]: Did you know we're on?
[SPEAKER_02]: We did this at a trade show and we just had our social media up with a QR tag next to it. [SPEAKER_02]: And I would just ask people to scan it right then in there and I'd see them hit follow in an hour or so we got a ton of different follows. [SPEAKER_02]: So don't be shy. [SPEAKER_02]: Ask your residents, are you following us yet on social? [SPEAKER_02]: Do you like it? [SPEAKER_02]: What's your platform? [SPEAKER_02]: And that'll give you a little bit more intel.
[SPEAKER_02]: So stay consistent and remember every single touch point counts. [SPEAKER_02]: This is small actions that lead to strong communities. [SPEAKER_02]: This is the sprawl way. [SPEAKER_00]: Meet the property manager who was at her limit. [SPEAKER_00]: She was one crisis away from having a really, really ugly breakdown. [SPEAKER_00]: Think Brittany, with the shit head incident. [SPEAKER_00]: That's where she was. [SPEAKER_02]: But also true.
[SPEAKER_00]: Drowning in females and a smell that she just could not find. [SPEAKER_02]: I knew it was a fridge. [SPEAKER_00]: Until one day, she downloaded the tool provided by Sprout Marketing, a frustration list, where she could write down everything that Vector as it happened. [SPEAKER_00]: She'd write it down, and then she could forget about it for the moment. [SPEAKER_02]: It's really cute, too. [SPEAKER_00]: Every week she would take time at the very end of the week to review her list.
[SPEAKER_00]: She picked the thing that frustrated her the most and spent twenty to thirty minutes thinking about how could this be easy. [SPEAKER_00]: From training to system frustrations, little by little she had a space where she could tackle the things that kept coming up over and over on a weekly frustration list. [SPEAKER_00]: It felt good to write it down and have a place for all those things. [SPEAKER_00]: It gave her the freedom to continue to do the rest of her job.
[SPEAKER_00]: She could still take those phone calls knowing that there's time in her schedule to tackle the things on her frustration list. [SPEAKER_02]: Can I get my life fully together? [SPEAKER_02]: Absolutely not. [SPEAKER_02]: But am I feeling little by little like I'm a little more with it? [SPEAKER_02]: Absolutely. [SPEAKER_02]: Thanks to my frustration list, I'm tackling one at a time. [SPEAKER_00]: And that my friends is how small actions lead to strong community.
[SPEAKER_02]: Alright guys, that's a wrap on today's multi-family mix. [SPEAKER_02]: Keep shaking things up at your community, your career, and most importantly your life. [SPEAKER_02]: Until we mix and mingle again, see you next week, friend.