What is the Resident Zone?

Before we jump into the Resident Zone, here is a refresher on the concepts behind Lifecycle Programming:

• A playbook is the complete guide to automated customer lifecycle marketing. It maps out personalized content to engage customers from the time a prospect fills out a guest card until they move out.

• A zone defines where the customer falls in the customer journey.

• A play is designed to move customers from one lifecycle stage to the next. 

The Resident Zone encompasses all customers from the time they sign a lease to until they move out. If you have looked through our Playbook, you probably noticed the Resident Zone has more plays than the other two zones combined.

There are three reasons why this zone has the most plays:

1. It’s the only zone where the PMC’s make money (so we want to keep customers there!)
2. It has the longest time frame. A customer can be a resident for years. So, it is important to keep them engaged throughout their residency.
3. The Resident Zone has the most lifecycle stages; therefore, it has the most plays.

Why Should You Program the Resident Zone?

Resident satisfaction is the key to maintaining a high occupancy rate. Keeping residents happy isn’t always easy and it is a big deal.

• Did you know, 53% of leases are NOT renewed?
• Or that property management companies lose an average of $2,811 every time a resident does not renew.

Clearly, resident retention should be a priority for every property management company, so why is resident turnover so high?

Most PMC’s are not using automation tools, or at least not to their potential. Without automation, PMC’s don’t have enough time or resources to engage with residents, sell to prospects and handle maintenance around the property.

Let’s explore how automated resident plays can help!

Benefits of Automating Resident CLM Emails

Goal: Keep residents satisfied and eager to renew their leases.

Let’s take a look at what resident satisfaction can do!

1. Providing helpful information to new residents eases the moving process.
2. With a property management team that is caring and helpful, residents will be happier and more likely to recommend your property.
3. Happier residents are more likely to renew their leases.
4. You have to spend time and resources educating each new prospect before they will lease. If a resident renews, you can fill units immediately and for free.
5. Plus, automation makes it easy to engage residents. This gives agents more time to tour, interact with residents or anything you can think of to better your business!

 By automating your resident follow-up, you decrease costs and increase resident satisfaction. Result: Increase your ROI!

Resident Zone: Pre-Move Play

The goal of the Pre-Move Play is to ease transition into residency for future residents.

Start State: Leased

End State: Moved-In

Email Samples for the Pre-Move Play: 

Resident Zone: Welcome Play

The goal of the Welcome Play is to keep residents happy.

Start State: Moved-In

End State: Stable

Email Samples for the Welcome Play: 

Resident Zone: Satisfaction Play

The goal of the Satisfaction Play is to check in with current residents to make sure they are pleased with the property.

Start State: Stable Resident

End State: Renewable

Email Samples for the Satisfaction Play:

Resident Zone: Renewal Play

The goal of the Renewal Play is to make residents want to renew their leases.

Start State: Renewable

End State: Renewed

Email Samples for the Renewal Play:

Resident Zone: Move-Out Play

 The goal of the Move-Out Play is to maintain a positive impression by provide a smooth move-out process for residents who did not renew.

Start State: Renewable

End State: Moved-Out

Email Samples for the Move-Out Play:

Conclusion

Using a combination of resident plays creates a sense of community, introduces residents to the area, and makes sure residents are still pleased with the property throughout their residency.

Programming the Resident Zone gives your residents everything they need to make your property their home. They won’t want to leave, because everyone knows there’s no place like home!

 Now you are ready to start your own Automated Resident Plays!

Your Turn. What could your agents do with the time they save by automating resident communications?

Tune in Next Week. We are automating the Prospect Zone!