Keeping your rental properties consistently filled can prove to be a difficult task at times. But, staying creative in your marketing tactics can quickly prove to be beneficial. It is important to take control and be active in marketing your properties. At the end of the day, an empty unit is costing you money. These few marketing ideas could fix that problem and just might expose your rental property to your next renter.
1. Always Keep Your Target Audience in Mind
If you currently do not have a target audience, you will want to consider defining one. Marketing to a target audience allows you to focus your marketing tactics and gives you a better chance at finding a renter. Being present in areas and on websites that your target audience is using will give you exposure to renters that would benefit from renting your property.
If your target audience is student renters, set up a booth at tailgates or on the quad during an event. Have some fun, free items available that have your information on them such as koozies, pens, or even create a t-shirt raffle. The free stuff will attract dozens of students, and now they will recognize you when they are looking for housing. The same tactic could be used for family housing. Simply set up at a spring fling or any event the public schools allow vendors to participate.
2. Market a Community
Now, with your target audience in mind, you can identify what aspects of the community would appeal to them. If your audience is families, advertise how close the public schools are, the nearest parks, or the best daycares in the area. Or, if your audience is millennials, advertise in local coffee shops within walking distance, nearby new up and coming restaurants or bars, and local sports events.
This will make your listing and property stand out. People want to know what it would be like to live in your rental before they ever visit the property in person. Advertising the community gives them a glimpse into that.
3. Have a High Quality and Updated Listing
Taking the time to have a high-quality listing can truly pay off in the end. Being as detailed about the property as possible will save you from a lot of tedious back and forth emails and phone calls. Obviously, you want to include rent, number of bathrooms, and number of rooms. On top of that, include a detailed list of amenities such as parking availability, dishwasher, and a washer and dryer. As stated previously, it would also be beneficial to also include aspects of the community your target audience would be interested in.
Having high-quality photos is another aspect of a listing that draws attention to it. If a person does not like the photos of your property, they will not even consider visiting it in person. Take the time to deep clean the property so it is as attractive as possible and then consider taking the photos with a high-quality camera. Make sure you include every room, the front of the property, and the back of the property. Take multiple angles of these features so that a person can get a feel of what it would be like to be in the home.
4. Stage Units
Having your property staged will be beneficial to have not only in the pictures on your listing but also when potential renters visit the property. The guidelines for staging rentals is very similar to that of staging a house for sale, except your rental is not already filled with furniture. This can be tricky. Renting staging furniture can become expensive especially if you have no idea when you will find a renter. Having a staged unit though allows a potential renter to envision what it would be like to live there, and increases the probability of them seeing a future there.
5. Take Advantage of Social Media
Posting a blurb about your rental property along with attaching the link to the listing can go a long way. If you made connections and friends within the community many are willing to share the post to get you even more exposure. It is a simple thing to do that does not take much time and could have a huge payoff.
Joining a community Facebook group and posting the listing there can be even more beneficial. This focuses the advertisement to people already living in the community and looking for a place to live. Being active on social media will also increase your engagement and allow for more exposure. Social media is also an easy platform to create word of mouth. Ask satisfied renters to leave a comment on your page or on a post talking about their experience renting from you. The more people you get talking about your properties, the more likely you are to find a new renter.
6. Write on Local Blogs
You may be thinking that you are not a good writer or you don’t have any interest in blog writing. It is time to think again. Blogs are exploding in popularity and many people use them are a primary source of information. Finding local blogs is as easy as typing “Chicago blogs” into Google.
Keep it conversational and if it makes you more comfortable start with writing about what you know. You can refine your blog search by searching “Chicago real estate blogs.” This way you can specifically search for outlets to focus your writing on real estate and rental properties. Putting links to your website and advertising your listings within a blog post gives them significant exposure. Becoming an active writer in a local blog also makes you more personable and creates name recognition. In the end, it is an excellent and free way to advertise.
The Takeaway
Don’t be hesitant to try a new marketing strategy. You never know what will catch the attention of new renter, so having as much exposure as possible is key. Again, an empty property is not making you any money so it is worth trying a new tactic, or revamping a current one, to try and fill it.
About the Author: Madison Clifton is a part of the marketing team at Transactly. She spends her days working with social media and writing blog posts for Transactly. She loves learning and writing about real estate, and business.
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