Love month is almost over! It is time to Spring into March & April. What are you doing to celebrate with your residents?Below are a few of my favorite things for this time of year.

MARCH

While March seems to be all about St. Patrick's day there are other things to celebrate.

* Mach 3d is National Cold Cuts Day. because residents love food, this is an easy one to celebrate by simply having a selection of cold cuts, breads & topping set out for your residents to come in and make their own during lunch or dinner time

* March is usually when there is a Spring Break. Celebrate it. Simple appetizers and drinks will do for this.

* PI Day is the 14th. Have a selection of pies from local bakeries and invite residents to a taste test party on National Pi Day, which falls on 3/14 every year. Another fun way to celebrate is giving out individually wrapped pieces of pie or hosting a pie baking lesson where residents learn how to prepare a pie, then cook it in their unit.

* Speaking of St. Patrick's Day ~~ how about a Beer tasting Party? Or a Hot Potato bar?

* And then there is Easter at the end of the month.Try an egg Coloring afternoon for the kiddos. If the weather is nice, Easter Egg Hunts are fun. For the Adults ty an Easter KEG Hunt! Or how about pictures with the Easter Bunny?

APRIL

April Showers bring May Flowers

* Purchase flats of flowers for residents to plant in front of their apartments orr flower boxes on the balconies.

* Earth Day comes each year on April 22. Kick off the spring season and celebrate appropriately by starting a community garden with seasonal produce. Community gardens are a sustainable way to engage residents and make your green space beautiful — all while revitalizing the environment.                                                                                                                                                                                      * Host a Spring Cleaning Event! Spring cleaning includes cleaning out! Host a clothing and home goods drive in a common area where residents can drop off donations. Consider making the first week a Stop-and-Swap for residents only. Then, donate all the remaining items to local charities!                                                                                                                                                                                    * Ice Cream Happy Hour! This is one of the simplest resident event ideas. And it offers plenty of fun for all ages! Spice this event up by including unique ice cream with seasonal spring fruit flavors like kiwi, mango, grapefruit, or pineapple!

Remember to get the best results & attendance, create some excitement about your events. Hang lots of flyers around the community. Put a couple on the mirrors in your rest rooms, fitness center, hallways, front door, by your coffee bar etc. Where there is a wall ~~ there is a flyer!

AND post it on Facebook ~~ several times, several different ways. Social Media is the number one way of making connections with you residents & creating a sense of community! It should be a big part of your marketing!

After the event, share photos on Facebook. People love seeing their pictures posted.

Don't forget to have a resident survey available at your events for your resident to give you feedback. Ensuring your residents are happy is key to getting more renewals.

Keep your events simple. You have plenty to do when you are onsite! Knowing what & when to post for your area & demographic is so important. Responding to EVERY comment is also important. Social Media is supposed to be 'SOCIAL'! Utilizing social media for your community can help inform residents, improve communication, and generate prospects & valuable feedback.