Do you want to advertise your rental property online? At least 73% of rental seekers used online resources for their search process. Traditional marketing methods like yard signs (18%) and print ads (11%) were much less effective.
Digital marketing can add a significant upswing to your tenant selections while lowering your vacancy rates. Learn all the tips for savvy digital marketing strategies here.
Apartment and Home Rental Sites
More and more renters are using rental listing sites to search for their next rental. Online listing sites offer renters many search benefits:
- Interactive map locations
- Up-front listing information (amenities, pet policies, school zones, etc)
- Quick and easy price comparisons
- Photographs, videos, and virtual tours
- Floor plans and unit details
- Online scores and reviews
- Unit availability dates
- Lease and rental length options
Renters can sort through multiple property listings with just a few clicks. A comparable traditional media rental search (driving around, collecting brochures, calling property managers) would be much more time-consuming and exhausting.
There are many rental marketing sites you can use to reach out to tenants, with their own flexible listings platforms, perks, and pricing plans (some are even free). Examples include:
- Apartments.com
- Zillow
- Trulia
- Realtor.com
- Avail
- Zumper
- RentDigs
- PadMapper
These sites already have millions of users and visitors ready to rent. If you’re looking for fast, easy, and effective ways to advertise a rental property, rental listing sites are one of the best marketing tools.
Social Media Marketing
A social media marketing campaign is another great way to reach prospective tenants. It helps you:
- Generate exposure
- Establish a consistent online presence
- Share appealing photos
- Boost your organic marketing
- Communicate with current and potential tenants
- Increase “word-of-mouth” recommendations
- Make your marketing more genuine
Online consumers rely on review scores from former customers and recommendations from people they trust, such as friends, family, and influencers. If a prospective tenant looks up your social media accounts and finds nothing, they may see that as a red flag.
Most social media accounts are free or very cheap, even for business purposes. Some of the top social media platforms include:
- Youtube
- TikTok
- Snapchat
Some platforms are already prime to advertise rental property. Facebook Marketplace includes a specific category for rental searches. Pinterest and Instagram are media-rich platforms perfect for showing off your apartment rentals or home rental sites.
You can also get creative with other platforms. For example, text messages have an impressive 98% read rate, compared to e-mail’s dismal 18%. You could retool an email marketing campaign for a more successful WhatsApp campaign instead.
Web Promotions and Deals
Everyone is eager to save some money, especially when it comes to moving costs. Online exclusive promotions, deals, and discounts can be a very effective digital marketing strategy.
Cost-cutting incentives for tenants can potentially be the deciding factor between you and another rental property. These include:
- One-time rental promotions (first month free, etc.)
- Free or reduced WiFi
- Ongoing discount plans
- Special discount rates (military, senior, student, etc.)
- Move-in specials (waived security deposit, no pet fees, etc.)
- Nearby amenity or leisure discounts (sporting events, gym memberships, public pool/park fees, etc.)
- Free subscription to cable and/or streaming services
- Reduced parking fees or free parking upgrades
These incentives are very tempting for prospective tenants, especially in the current rental market. Many renters are struggling with high rent hikes after the pandemic and will be eager to save on security deposits or monthly pet fees.
Tips to Advertise Rental Property Online
Listing sites, social media accounts, and incentives are a great way to attract notice. But you can lose potential tenants just as easily through simple mistakes.
Take High-Quality Pictures
Pictures are everything in the rental business. Most people don’t look at dark and dingy apartment rental photos and think “that’d be a great place to live!”
Professional-looking photos will attract tenants just as quickly as poor-quality photos will make them lose interest. High-quality photos include:
- Good lighting
- Clean spaces
- Natural camera angles
- Bright colors and whites
- Spacious views
- No obvious filters
If your rental space is empty, you can add virtual staging so potential tenants can imagine themselves living there. Virtual staging is also significantly cheaper and easier than traditional staging.
Respond to Reviews
Online consumers use online reviews when they evaluate apartment rentals. They want to see the potential upsides to living on your rental property. However, they’re also leery of fake positive reviews and issues cited in negative reviews.
You can increase tenant trust by responding to reviews, both negative and positive. When you reward positive reviews, you incentive reviewers. The exchange also shows potential tenants the reviews are sincere.
Responding to negative reviews will also help mitigate tenant concerns. They’ll get to see how your property management handles conflict resolution. It can also help you weed out fake negative reviews from trolls, disgruntled former tenants, or competitors.
Include Multiple Contact Methods
Highly visible contact info is digital marketing 101. However, it’s important to include multiple contact methods (phone, email, online form) as everyone has preferred methods of communication.
Some people prefer to show up in person, while some people may prefer to fill out an application through an online portal. Some people will never call or answer their phones except in emergencies. Some people will even prefer to contact you through social media.
Flexible communication allows you to attract tenants who are aversive to certain methods of communication. It will also help you establish the best communication strategy for that tenant while they’re renting from you.
Hire Property Managers
Property managers are industry experts who already know all the insider tips for successful digital marketing. They’re also well versed in the local area demographics and have experience with what marketing strategies see the most success.
You may not have the time or effort to spare managing listings and social media campaigns, while ensuring every tiny detail is perfect. Hiring a property manager gives you all the pros of digital marketing without the stress.
Start Increasing Your Tenant Selection and Satisfaction Today!
If you need new ways to advertise rental property, there are many tried-and-true digital marketing strategies. As long as you avoid common marketing mistakes, you’ll start seeing new tenant applications in no time.
If you’re still searching for property management with years of experience and expertise, look no further! Reedy & Company is ready to bring you and your tenants the high-quality services you deserve. Contact us to learn more.
