The Problem with eBlasts in Multifamily

eBlast. Email Blast. Mass Communications. These names all refer to the same thing and evoke the same heavy sigh and eye-roll combo from your marketing team. Why? Because sending eBlasts is a pain in multifamily.

Why do marketers struggle to send eBlasts?

There is a lot more involved in sending an email than people realize. You have to write the copy, find graphics (if needed), come up with a catchy subject line, format the email, select the right target audience (this can be a real pain depending on the software used), and finally schedule it for the appropriate time and day.

On average, this process takes two to three hours per email. Most PMC’s only have one marketer managing five to ten properties. That’s a lot of emails for a marketer to be responsible for on top of the rest of their marketing initiatives.

Why can’t agents send eBlasts?

Each property has three to six agents on staff, why don’t they send the eBlasts if marketing doesn’t have the time? Every communication from your property should be written with the look and feel of your company’s brand. Your marketing team knows what image sizes work for your email and how to write with your brand voice. Your agents don’t have the time, training, or expertise to create emails that truly reflect your brand.

Most PMC’s are forced to choose between brand consistency and response time. Neither of which you want to sacrifice. So, the question remains: How can busy marketers send eBlasts?

Create a library of eBlast templates

A lot of your agents request the same handful of eBlasts. Instead of having your agents or marketing teams rewrite and format the same emails, create a library of templates.

It’s like packing a first aid kit. You don’t know when you’ll need a band-aid, aloe, or cough drops, but having ready-to-go supplies is going to pay off in the long run. You can do the same by making a library of templates for your agents to pick from.

How does it work?

To make a library of eBlast templetes, you need your marketing team to pre-make email templates. It is only four steps:

1. Create a list of commonly sent eBlasts
2. Write copy for each eBlast on your list
3. Format each eBlast
4. Give agents access to the eBlast library

Your marketers only need to create the emails once and agents from every property can use them. All an agent needs to do is select the template they need, swap out a few details, and hit send!

Benefits of a Template Library

Reduce Production Time

By switching to the template library system, you can reduce the time it takes to send an eBlast from hours to minutes! Each email starts 90% complete; your agents only need to make a few minor tweaks to finish it up!

Reduce Creation Effort

A template library means you only need to create one email for each topic, instead of one email for each property for every topic. This change can save your marketing team’s time and sanity!

Redistribute the Workload

Most PMC’s have a lot more agents than marketers. By using the template library system, you can shift most of the responsibility for sending eBlasts to your agents. Once your marketing team creates the library, they can let the agents handle the rest.

Send Branded Emails

Your marketers are the experts when it comes to working with your email platforms. Plus, they know how to make an email reflect the look and feel of your brand. By having your marketing team create templates, you can ensure every email is polished, professional, and branded.

Use Brand Voice

The template library system allows the marketing team to write the eBlast copy. This simple step ensures every email is written with the brand voice. Plus, having emails pre-written should eliminate any typos from sneaking into your emails.

Conclusion

Creating a library of eBlast templates eases the strain on your marketing teams, without sacrificing quality. After a bit of setup, your agents can send time-sensitive, marketing-approved, typo-free emails in under a minute!