by Stephen Ursery

First came the sprint to implement.

When the pandemic struck, operators across the country had to hurry to expand their touring options. Solutions like self-guided tours and live video tours became a necessity as social distancing protocols and coronavirus-related precautions either severely limited or temporarily eliminated traditional in-person, agent-led tours.

“When the pandemic hit, it was like, ‘OK, we’ve got to pivot, but we can do this. We just have to do it quickly!’” says Brandie Thomas, Director of Marketing at Sacramento, Calif.-based Demmon Partners, an owner/operator with a portfolio of 2,000 apartments in Silicon Valley and northern California. “It’s been kind of a whirlwind.”

Now, after more than a year of an all-hands-on-deck effort just to make sure prospective residents have a way to experience their communities, operators are digging into their touring data. With recent improvements in customer relationship management (CRM), they’re starting to determine which tours are more likely to result in a lease, how different tour types may impact their marketing spends and how they measure demand.

To read the entire article, click the link to the National Apartment Association website.