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Reading Room Articles
The best-kept secret of reducing resident turnover is that there isn't one! The most effective ways to reduce turnover are based on simple common sense and the good old-fashioned Golden Rule that everyone knows! Treat your residents as you would have them treat you. You can start to take a bite out of turnover NOW by putting a few simple principles into practice. Here's how: Quick Tips for long-term Resident Retention • Call each resident by name. • Listen to what each resident has to say. • Be concerned about each resident as an individual. • Be courteous to each resident. • Be responsive to the individual needs of each resident. • Know your residents' personal community history. • Take sufficient time with each resident. • Involve residents in the community. Ask for their advice and suggestions. • Make residents feel important. Pay them compliments. The Eight Greatest Resident Service and Retention Tips of All Time 1. Have A Unique Service Philosophy Communities need a unique service philosophy or mission statement, which should complement their overall management style. The service philosophy should describe exactly how residents will be treated when they live in your community. 2. Obtain Resident Feedback Get resident feedback any way that you can. Set up resident focus groups, perform surveys at least once a year (preferably twice), conduct personal interviews when a resident has given a notice to vacate, and send a postage paid envelope and survey with all security deposit refunds. The more you involve residents in your community, the more they will tell you how to improve it. Listen, evaluate the information you receive, and act on the suggestions. 3. Inform People about your Service and Retention Programs Use your resident service system and your resident retention program as powerful marketing tools. Call your future and current residents, send them thank you and holiday cards, and provide them with positive newsletters. Do anything and everything you can to keep them informed about your community. 4. Close the Gap What residents expect from a community can be very different from what they receive. The same holds true for what management thinks residents want and what the residents actually want. Work to close these gaps so your perceptions match your resident's expectations. 5. Meet and Exceed Expectations Residents bring expectations to every situation. You must meet these expectations to satisfy the resident; but you must exceed their expectations to ensure long-term loyalty. Exceeding expectations is the key to retention and referrals. 6. Resident Reward Programs We have all heard the old saying "What gets rewarded gets done". Any type of reward program aimed at the resident (including referral programs; resident appreciation day, week or month; and simple thank you's for paying the rent on time or having an attractive balcony), will motivate the resident to continue living in your community. Rewards make residents feel special, and they will remember that special feeling. Do this for your team members also. 7. Create A Public Identity The identity that is created for you community must match the identity residents perceive of themselves. Identity is just one factor future residents use in deciding to live in your community in the first place. The image and identity you create in the community, backed up by your actions, influences when and how long residents will live in the community. Of course, there are many reasons that a resident might move away that we have very little control over, including the desire to purchase a new home and job transfers; but some communities are now beginning to successfully capitalize on these potential reasons for leaving. Their strategy is to implement special reward programs and incentives that create a public identity for the community that welcomes future resident that are interested in purchasing a new home or are likely to be transferred. These communities are controlling their own destiny instead of falling victim to the biggest reason people are moving today. What other reason for turn over can the community control or capitalize on? 8. Train and Empower Your Team Members Quality employees provide quality service. Train your team members to do their jobs and provide superior resident service. Then give your employees the authority to make decisions to satisfy the resident, even if it goes against company policy. Support your employees in all their decisions to satisfy and keep the resident. When the community goal is to reduce resident turnover everyone needs to be involved. One last thought! Always remember that you and your team members are on the front line to the residents and future residents. The team must be treated with the same care, respect and importance as your residents. If you want your team members to provide superior service, make a special effort to make certain that they are happy and excited to come to work everyday. Remember that the person in charge often reflects the attitude and success of the community. If someone is having a bad day it will show on the performance and faces of all team members. 
As Chief Imagination Officer of The Sales & Marketing Magic Companies, Tami Siewruk shares more than 20 years of experience in multifamily housing, encompassing leasing, marketing, management, training, authoring, consulting, developing, and Brainstorming! For more information on Tami's newsletter, Sales & Marketing Magic for Apartment Managers; the latest Tools & Forms Catalogue; The Annual Multifamily Housing Brainstorming Sessions™; or to receive Tami's top ideas, FREE, via e-mail, please call 727-784-9469 or visit www.SMMOnline.com. |
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