by Paul Willis

With demand for new leases slowing in recent months, operators are even more focused on retaining their current residents. Units recently had the chance to chat with Holli Beckman, Chief Marketing Officer at WC Smith, about how apartment communities can boost their chances of keeping residents in the fold and the wide range of benefits of doing so. 

This is a broad question, but what are some of the things—large and small—that apartment operators and communities can do to boost resident retention?  

Beckman: It starts with the first contact. Apartment communities need to provide a comfortable, pleasant and efficient leasing experience. 

To that end, multifamily has, for the most part, embraced the benefits of using AI and automated responses to provide prospects with immediate responses to their inquiries. Case study after case study has proven that customers prefer the immediate response over waiting for a human interaction. Communities that use this technology are setting the right tone for the entire leasing experience. Looking further down the line, apartment communities also need to provide a positive move-in experience, which can also have a lasting impact on how a resident feels about their community.   

Read Paul Willis’ article in Units.