The explosive growth of digital and social media over the last decade has greatly increased the number of ways that apartment communities are able to interact with prospects and residents. Marketing efforts have now expanded beyond basic advertising tactics and are shifting to instead focus on creating meaningful conversations with an audience. This new focus has resulted in an increased need to develop and create content. While it’s certainly important to have a strategic plan to fill content holes, it’s equally important to fill those holes with content that is actually valuable to customers. Apartment  marketers would do well to view their content marketing not just as an additional way to push information, but instead as a chance to establish and tell their story.

Renowned author and marketer, Seth Godin, says,

“Marketing is storytelling. The story of your product, built into your product. The ad might be part of it, the copy might be part of it, but mostly, your product and your service and your people are all part of the story. Tell it on purpose. Choose your story (or the competition’s story) wisely, because you have to live with it for a long time, and if it’s not authentic, if it doesn’t hold up, you’re left with nothing.”

Here are a few important things to consider as you are crafting brand stories for your apartment communities:

What’s the plot of your story?

The first step in telling a good story is to clearly understand who you are and what promise you want to make to consumers. Take some time to identify and outline what your main points are going to be. Be authentic with your identity. It’s hard to live up to a brand story that is written beyond the reality of what someone will actually experience at your property. Pinpoint things that really make your company unique and use those as your main talking points. Is your message focused on the neighborhood your community is located in? Do you want to be known as a community for tech-savvy renters? Do you have a resident community that is especially social? While all of your content doesn’t need to focus exclusively on one message point, it’s important that all content pieces somehow tie back to the main narrative.

What types of stories should be told?

Use your current residents as a test group. Ask them what types of things really drew them to your community. Why did they choose to live there?  What topics are they interested in hearing about? You can also use social media reporting tools as a way to gauge the effectiveness of your content. Which posts or tweets are getting attention? Look to see if you can determine patterns for the types of content that are most interacted with. Then find fun and creative ways to build around those points of interest.

Who is the editor of your story?  

Assign someone within your organization to be the steward of your brand story. Although many can contribute and author content, there needs to be someone who maintains your brand identity and ensures that the voice is consistent. It’s especially important to maintain that same voice and personality across all marketing and social media channels. A brand that is constantly presenting jumbled information will never have the same effect as one who is maintaining a cohesive storyline in their marketing storytelling.

Are there new characters that can be included in your story?

Creating characters to highlight your brand attributes is an interesting way to drive additional stories. One community in Washington, DC has an official property puppy¹ to help reinforce their pet friendly culture and amenities. Other properties have created mascots to bring personality and color to their marketing. You may even want to consider having some residents contribute to your story by writing guest blog posts or creating videos about their experiences living in the community.

What stories are your visuals telling?

The images² on your website or brochures will likely be the first thing that people are drawn to. Even the most interesting and creative copy can be completely negated by images that are not compelling. Make sure that you are using images that are eye catching and that fit your brand personality. When taking photos for websites or social media pages, find subtle ways to include your brand colors. Videos can also be a great way to grab attention and to bring life to your stories.

Stories won’t be judged by their covers

Lastly, it’s critical to remember that content can only take you so far. Branding is much more than a logo or a series of stories. When done right, your creative content will definitely cause prospects to show interest, but ultimately your brand story will be judged by the experiences people have with your property staff. Make sure that you have the operational procedures in place to match the promises of your marketing.

Content marketing is a critical part of any communications plan, but it needs to be presented in ways that are thoughtful and engaging. Remember, it’s the good stories that get shared and retold. We’ve gone over some basics, now go out and write the next chapter of your community’s story!

By: Justin Stokes

¹http://2mstreet.com/emmy-2mpup/

²http://www.multifamilyinsiders.com/multifamily-blogs/how-many-words-is-a-picture-really-worth