In order to stay relevant during challenging times, your marketing team should use social media to provide the same user experience as they would in person. When it comes to marketing for property management companies, digital marketing can look slightly different. Tours are canceled, amenities are closed, and many staff and personnel are working from home, so what do you do? How do you ensure your occupancy continues to trend upwards, sign lease agreements, and show potential residents that your community is the best one to call home. You utilize the growing social media trend, video.
The saying goes, Content is King but engagement is Queen and the lady rules the house.
Consider this: People remember 20% of what they hear, 30% of what they see, and 70% of what they see and hear. Let’s remix the statement above, Content is definitely King, but now video is Queen and the lady still rules the house. In fact, 85% of users in the US watch videos on their devices. 8 out of 10 users have purchased from a brand after they saw a video they created (Oberlo).
In the midst of COVID-19, we have seen an increase in the number of users present on social media – this is especially true of social media platforms that house engaging video content. 81% of businesses use video as a marketing tool and 72% of customers would rather learn about a product or service by way of video (Hubspot). If you don’t utilize video in at least one of your social media channels, you could potentially be losing out on a large percentage of your target audience. TikTok, a new short-form video app, recently reached 2 billion active users and downloads (TechCrunch). Instagram manages to stay at the top of our radar by rolling out new features nearly every week. YouTube introduced a new video creation tool to help business owners create quality content for their channels.
Let’s talk about how you can use each of these platforms to engage customers.
YouTube
Utilizing YouTube is a cost-effective way to get your community in front of a large audience, while you stay ahead of the competition and ever-changing digital marketing trends. YouTube is the second most popular search engine, having a presence there significantly increases your chances of being found on Google. We once lived in a world where if we wanted to know how to do something or what something looked like, we would do a Google search and have to read lengthy articles in order to get our questions answered. Now, chances are if we search for something, there is a YouTube video that answers our questions in a few minutes. Try it. Search for something like “best hair products” or “how to cut my dog’s nails”. When the results come up, you will see articles but you will most certainly also see the top 3 videos related to your search. Now, try searching for “virtual tour of (insert apartment community here)”. You’ll see their website, but you’ll also see any relevant videos for that community.
Customers are more likely to click on the video first then the website. They will watch the videos to see what the community really looks like, determine if they like what the community has to offer, and if so, they will go to the website.
The benefit to your business is that this may help minimize unqualified traffic and reduce your site’s bounce rate.
Google provides clear instructions for setting up a personal YouTube channel as well as a Brand Account. With a Brand account, you can create multiple owners on one account. That way, if someone leaves your company, the risk of losing access is reduced dramatically.
Check out Google’s instructions for setting up a YouTube channel for a business below.
Creating a channel with a business or other name:
Follow these instructions to create a channel that can have multiple managers or owners.
You can use a Brand Account to create a channel that has a different name, but that’s still managed from your Google Account. Learn more about Brand Accounts.
- Sign in to YouTube on a computer or using the mobile site.
- Go to your channel list.
- Choose to create a new channel or use an existing Brand Account:
- Create a new channel by clicking Create a new channel.
- Create a YouTube channel for a Brand Account that you already manage by choosing the Brand Account from the list. If this Brand Account already has a channel, you can’t create a new one—you’ll just be switched over to that channel if you select the Brand Account from the list.
- Fill out the details to name your new channel and verify your account. Then, click Done. This creates a new Brand Account.
- To add a channel manager, follow the instructions to change channel owners and managers.
IGTV
Instagram introduced IGTV in the summer of 2018, but views didn’t start to skyrocket until early 2019. IGTV was established with the declaration to move video forward and change the landscape of social media forever. Competition is natural in business, so it was no surprise that IGTV came to our screens as YouTube’s newest competitor. Unfortunately, when it was first introduced, views were low and many users continued to use YouTube to satisfy their video wants/needs. Following this decline, IGTV changed their algorithm and as of 2020, they introduced new features such as vertical and horizontal videos being integrated into the Instagram app, and currently being tested – monetization opportunities. IGTV is a great resource to build engagement and strengthen your marketing strategy.
With IGTV, you have the power to deliver longer-form content to your audience, enabling you to use your platform as a voice of reason on topics you feel strongly connected to.
If you are looking to jumpstart your presence on IGTV here are the specifications:
- Videos must be at least one minute long. The maximum length of your video can be up to 60 minutes.
- Video Type, Resolution, and Size
- Videos must be in MP4 file format.
- Vertical aspect ratio: 9:16
- Horizontal aspect ratio of 16:9.
- Videos should have a minimum frame rate of 30 FPS (frames per second) and minimum resolution of 720 pixels.
- The maximum file size for videos that are 10 minutes or less is 650MB. The maximum file size for videos up to 60 minutes is 3.6GB.
If IGTV has continued to pop up on your radar, it’s probably because of their talk about monetization. One of the factors that has interfered with IGTV’s growth is their lack of monetization opportunities, but recently they have been testing new features to allow influencers to monetize their video content. IGTV initially invited creators to test out their monetization tool and now they are testing running 15-second ads while users are watching videos. Instagram has developed monetization policies to ensure creators are posting brand-friendly content. Creators are eligible to receive 55% of the profits from their monetized content.
The future is in video, you and your business should be a part of it.
TikTok
Last but not least is TikTok, the newest social media craze. Whether you are a creator or an avid watcher, you should be on TikTok; it’s the newest, widely interesting, and addicting app that has popped up on our social media radars. 41% of TikTok users are between the ages of 18 and 24 (Oblero). What about the other 59%?
The rest of the users range from all ages younger and older, so there is no reason you should not be an active member on the app. Although TikTok has not yet officially come up with plans for monetization, users can develop a social presence on the platform and drive traffic to their website or other social media platforms.
Simply put, TikTok is an app for creatives who love to be creative. Videos range from cooking tutorials, artistic creations, makeup tutorials, and of course, dance videos. TikTok is the perfect platform to build a community and establish yourself in a community of creative and free-spirited minds.
You need to pick a platform and run with it. Pick a platform and have fun with it. Pick all 3 and publish video content from one platform on the other two. Be present on as many social media platforms as possible; you never know where you will find new customers and clients. Video is taking over the social media landscape, so it’s best to jump on trends early.
Remember, engagement is key, video is the best way to engage with your audience and show them who you are. For property management companies, use these video platforms to post virtual tours, highlight resident events, hold drawings and contests, and post apartment DIYs and home decor ideas. The goal is to be as creative as possible, show your personality, and let residents and future residents know why your property is the best place for them to call home.
Create. Amplify. Publish. Repeat.
That’s how you stay relevant in the digital marketing world.
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