Today’s show is sponsored by Marc Cunningham of Grace Property Management. Marc has created some amazing products for property management companies, which we can say firsthand as we’ve implemented his systems here. Visit their website and try out their products! To get a 10% discount on any of Marc’s products, use the promo code “Brad”!
My guest on this episode is the remarkable Dave Borden, who was nice enough to come to town and go over some information on marketing for property managers. He’s so full of information and great advice, though, that we decided to split the episode into two parts! This is part 1 of 2; part 2 will be available next week.
This part is all about the must-haves of online marketing for property managers and property management companies. This is absolutely Dave’s area of expertise, as his company services a thousand management companies nationwide, covering a total of 300,000 to 400,000 units. His skill at what he does is revealed by his company’s strikingly low cancellation rate; they’ve only had 30 companies stop using their services.
In this part of our conversation, Dave spends some time discussing the broad strokes of a successful marketing strategy, including the various steps to take depending on what your goals are. For example, he recommends starting with a great website. If that doesn’t get you where you want to be, you can move on to a social media strategy. If that, too, doesn’t achieve enough success, the next step is a content marketing strategy with videos.
As you may have inferred from this, Dave is a proponent of taking a measured approach. This is reflected throughout the conversation in his deliberate, specific insight and advice. In short, if you’re interested in learning how to go about marketing online the right way, tune in to this episode and the one coming next week!
Here’s where you can find Dave:
Show Notes
[02:24] - Dave introduces himself briefly, explaining why he’s on the show. He then explains what his company does.
[05:00] - Brad explains where today’s conversation with Dave stems from. Dave then talks about the first question he asks companies who want to work with him, and talks about the importance of a good website.
[08:42] - We learn about the importance of being able to capture a lead in a pay-per-click campaign. Dave then lists a few places where you can create a website for free.
[10:42] - Dave lists the three elements that go into SEO: relevance, usage data, and domain authority.
[13:09] - Dave returns to the topic of establishing a goal, explaining how this relates to SEO and specifically usage data.
[16:09] - Brad takes a moment to dig into what Dave has been saying about video, emphasizing how important (and powerful) a video strategy can be.
[17:58] - We learn about using Facebook for marketing purposes as a property management company. This is part of the basic social media strategy that Dave recommends, and he walks listeners through some best practices for using Facebook successfully.
[21:56] - Brad draws out what Dave said a moment ago about putting homes on Facebook, and Dave points out that this advice is only good if you’re interactive with it.
[23:42] - You can buy likes on Facebook, Dave explains, or boost a post. Brad shares his own experience with doing this.
[25:48] - Dave reiterates that he’s here because Brad is the poster child for property management marketing.
[26:35] - We hear more about Dave’s advance marketing platform.
[28:26] - Brad adds his two cents, recommending the automated rental analysis Dave has been talking about to anyone (except people in his local area!). He explains more about how it works.
[30:14] - Dave talks us through the three parts of his process.
[33:13] - Brad and Dave talk about the possible discrepancies in automatic estimates, and why these can potentially be good things.
[34:34] - We hear the difference in number of properties that Brad signed up last year compared to this year, now that he’s using the product that Dave has been talking about.
[37:50] - Dave begins to offer some advice on the marketing strategy with video, then shifts to talking about companies that are successful. He then talks about the automated system in more depth.
[40:45] - We come back to the topic of videos, with Brad talking about the advanced marketing platform widget.
[41:46] - Dave discusses having a content strategy.
[42:36] - Brad offers a thought for videos involving having them automatically transcribed for viewers on Facebook with the sound off. He and Dave then discuss various strategies for videos and marketing.
[45:08] - Brad uses a service called Virtually Incredible; he explains here what they do for him. Dave then raves about the company.
[48:12] - If someone watches your home listing video all the way through, it gives you a lot of SEO credit for the view.
[49:49] - What you need to do depends on your goals and your market, Dave explains. This means your strategy will be very different depending on those two factors.
Links and Resources: