Are you still wondering how to grow your property management business? When was the last time you thought about branding? Successful companies understand the importance of branding, which is why billions of dollars are spent by companies on brand marketing every year.
However, many property management companies are only focused on the work of property management or marketing specifically for new leads, and understandably so — but no matter how successful you are in the industry, you can always be more successful.
This is where the power of property management marketing meets branding potential.
What Is Brand Management?
Brand management is the art and science of crafting, maintaining, and enhancing a brand to resonate with its target audience and stand out in the market. For property managers, it's the process of building and safeguarding their brand's reputation and visibility to stand out in the market from other property management companies.
At the heart of brand management lies the understanding of a brand's core values, vision, and promise to its consumers. This understanding forms the foundation upon which every branding decision is made, from logo design and color choices to marketing campaigns and partnerships.
Brand managers strive to ensure that all touchpoints a consumer has with the brand are consistent and reflect its ethos accurately.
However, this type of marketing and company management doesn't stop at creating a compelling image. It also encompasses monitoring and managing your brand's perception in the real world, leveraging analytics, market research, and feedback to refine strategies and make necessary adjustments. This encompasses keeping a close eye on online reviews, social media mentions, and other digital channels where consumers voice their opinions.
How Long Does It Take To Build Brand Awareness?
Building brand awareness is not an overnight endeavor; it's a gradual process that can vary widely depending on numerous factors. Factors influencing the duration include the industry, marketing strategies, competitive landscape, and target audience size.
For a new property management business or products in saturated markets, achieving significant brand awareness can take longer, as they need to differentiate themselves from well-established competitors. Conversely, if a brand is introducing an innovative product in a niche market, the time required might be shorter due to the uniqueness of the offering.
Marketing strategies, especially the mix of traditional and digital methods and the marketing budget allocated to branding play a pivotal role. While viral campaigns can quickly boost awareness in a short span, consistent, long-term strategies like content marketing or SEO (search engine optimization) typically build more lasting awareness over time.
Building brand awareness is a marathon, not a sprint! It demands patience, consistent efforts, and the flexibility to adapt strategies based on feedback and changing market dynamics. Most brands take months to years to solidify their position in consumers' minds.
Don't be discouraged if your company's brand awareness isn't where you want it to be quite yet. Here are three things your brand should tell your owners and potential clients for better property management lead generation.
1. Your Brand Should Exemplify Your Professionalism
It seems like common sense, but how many times have you received a business card with perforated edges or a flyer that was obviously printed on an inkjet? When you receive these, you instinctively make assumptions about the quality of the business based on the quality of the item.
There is a point where do-it-yourself to save money on materials ends up costing you money in lost business. Your property management marketing materials are the first impression that owners take home. These materials may be revisited multiple times by owners on the fence or trying to decide between numerous companies.
It doesn't end with business cards and other physical marketing materials: this is 2023, and anything less than a polished, modern property management website that is fully functional will not do. A great website and high-level content marketing plan will generate and convert leads, therefore enhancing your brand.
The same goes for your logo. A nice logo that communicates your brand doesn't require a lot of money or creativity. Use online logo-generating tools to come up with ideas, then complete the logo production and branding process with a professional marketing company to solidify your company's brand.
Don't underestimate the power of a good logo!
2. Your Brand Must Communicate Your Unique Value Proposition
Your unique value proposition (UVP), or unique selling proposition, is a statement that tells the customer how you are going to make their life better by choosing your company. The UVP communicates how you will benefit your customer, meet their needs, and what makes you different from the other property management companies available.
Your UVP should be included in your property management marketing strategies and materials in some form to make your brand memorable. You can use a slogan or tagline or even the appearance of your logo to communicate your UVP.
Better yet, use all of these methods.
However, if you don't have a UVP yet, start by thinking of the top three things your owner needs to know about your services and fit them into a statement. If you want owners to know you have a high average tenant and owner retention, you could have a tagline like "the property management company owners and tenants agree on."
Your UVP may evolve as you consciously focus on the branding of your property management company, and that is okay. As long as you have a UVP, you're ahead of the competition.
3. Your Brand Must Deliver Your Contact Information
Again, common sense, but if an owner can't contact you quickly, they will find another company.
Your contact information should be on every piece of marketing material you have and should be integrated into your brand.
How many successful companies do you know brand their contact information? Probably plenty. This means these companies have excellent brand recognition.
For example, Hotwire.com is the name, logo, and web address for this popular travel service. If you try, most people can even remember the jingle spelling out the hotwire.com name. That is solid branding that includes contact information.
Many other brands have used a phone number in their branding. Are you old enough to remember 488-8888? I bet right now you're thinking of the pizza delivery service that went with that phone number nationwide.
Your property management website, phone number, email, and address should all be incorporated into your branding efforts where appropriate.
Branding Applies to Property Listings, Too
If you're successful at leasing properties, you practice marketing every time you list and show a property. It is essential that you also practice marketing your company brand to owners effectively.
From your logo on a listing to your brand colors, website URL, and "Contact Us" information, to your preferred format of listings, including branded videos, potential tenants and owners should be able to easily identify a listed property as one of your company's managed rentals.
This recognition should invoke a sense of professionalism and encourage tenants and owners to use your management company!
Successful Brand Management Requires the Right Property Management Marketing Strategies
A property owner has enough research to do when determining which company will manage their assets. The better you can convey your professionalism, unique value proposition, and contact information, the easier it will be for them to choose your company!
Keep in mind, you don't have to do this kind of branding overhaul or long-term management on your own! The experts at Geekly Media can help you get started on the path to explosive growth! Our experts have property management, inbound marketing, and brand management experience to help property managers experience more traffic, leads, and growth.
Click the button below to start the conversation with one of our Geeks!
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