URBN Playground 7/1/19 URBN Playground 7/1/19

Marketing vs Operations: Building a Successful Property in the Age of the Customer

In the past, while customers controlled the buying decision, sellers controlled not only the products/services being offered, but information about those products and services.

Today, thanks to technology and the Internet, sellers no longer control information about their products and services. At the tap of a button, users can share reviews and information about their experiences with the rest of the world.

For property developers, this means that simply winning awards and receiving traditional media attention for your property and program is not enough.

To win the hearts and business of customers in an era where the rules have changed, property developers must go beyond typical measures of prestige (such as awards and fancy amenities) when it comes to marketing their property. They must now focus instead on ways to enhance the service experience for every customer.

The Conflict Between Marketing and Operations

Of course, enhancing the customer experience is easier said than done, because it involves a conflict between marketing and operations. Marketing focuses on top-line revenue and, accordingly, seeks invention and creativity in order to win new business, while operations is concerned with cost, efficiency, and execution. This being the case, conflict is inevitable.

Wearing the marketing hat, one is focused on reaching as many new and potential customers/buyers/renters as possible, possibly at the expense of keeping up the standard of operations. Wearing the operational hat, one might be tempted to keep costs low and not invest in the additional enhancements needed to raise staff functionality and service levels.

These two hats are often seen at odds with each other – however, I’d like to suggest that they are not at odds, but rather, complementary.

Excellent operations lead to enhanced reputation in the long-run and drive sales.

A good marketer will not neglect the importance of operations, while a good operations manager will understand how operations drives revenue.

Investing in Customer Happiness

A clear sign that marketing and operations is being done right is simply happy customers.

Happy customers are the result of a great reputation (the promise) + a great experience (the promise fulfilled).

Marketing drives the promise, and operations fulfills the promise. Working hand in hand, both marketing and operational functions should be making investments in:

#1 - Training and equipping personnel:

As your occupancy rates grow, and as the value of the property increases, the investment into staff should grow accordingly. Staff should be trained to deliver an even higher level of service, and there should be an increased sense of mission for top-performing staff.

#2 - Research and development:

Top businesses are never satisfied with achieving a level of success – for every achievement, they strive to top it, and add more value to their stakeholders and the lives of the people they touch.

Likewise, instead of just striving to be the best in the industry, look at how to innovate even further through research and development. This will ensure you become not only a market contender, but a leader for years to come.

#3 - Constant improvement of service levels:

Success is easier to attain than it is to maintain. A player with an established reputation in the market will be put under more scrutiny and shown less mercy when a mistake is made. Therefore, the goal should be to have a service provider that is creative and that will never be satisfied with service levels, constantly striving to maintain, improve, and surpass them.

When the gap between marketing and operations in bridged, property developers will be able to deliver the level of service that gets people leaving glowing reviews on online platforms.

Think of your customer as basketball’s proverbial Sixth Man, the first person to be substituted from the bench. The Sixth Man is that player who can play multiple players and roles throughout a game, and is just waiting for the signal to jump into action. The presence of a great bench player is a sign of team depth and excellence.

Just like in basketball, every customer you serve represents untapped potential, waiting to be unleashed. If you execute your service plan right, you end up with many bench players who could be stellar substitutes for your marketing team, your PR team, or your crisis communications team – at the ready, just waiting to tell the world how great you are.

This continues in a positive cycle, because glowing customer reviews will lead to a better bottom line and increased staff morale. That in turn will ensure operations keeps running like a well-oiled machine. And that consistency and excellence is what will keep people coming back.

How deep is your bench of delighted customers?

URBN Playground 4/18/19 URBN Playground 4/18/19

The Burden of Prestige: Avoid These 4 Amenity Management Mistakes

Winning awards, receiving free media attention, and achieving rave word-of-mouth reviews and staying relevant in the media after a grand opening – these are all goals of any property developer, owner, or amenity manager.

Developments with a prestigious reputation can command a higher value, boosting the top and bottom line.

However, with prestige also comes the two-fold burden of 1) having to invest more into the hamster wheel of keeping up appearances, and 2) the very real danger of allowing service standards to slip during this time, and not living up to the “hype” while facing greater scrutiny.

No business owner ever intentionally allows the burden of prestige to affect their business… but often it’s a subtle, slippery slope. Being well-known leads to more inquiries, which lead to more work, which leads to more complexities, and so on.

Many times, amenity companies start out with the right intentions – they hire the right staff, provide thorough training, and innovate to come up with best practices for running the show. However, the very things that make a property great often end up being neglected in the process of keeping up appearances.

In my 20+ years of experience in the industry, I’ve noticed a few common mistakes that many amenity companies make in their attempts to maintain their “prestige”:

1. Focusing overly on physical amenities to deliver a “wow” factor.

Physical amenities are costly investments and the demand for different types of amenities can change very quickly, depending on what’s trending.

Purely relying on amenities to sell your property is not enough – the entire experience of staying in the building must be considered, from the service provided at the front desk, to the fitness instructors, to the cleaning and laundry services.

A common misconception I encounter frequently is that having superb amenities will drive sales – however, poorly managed amenities can lower the value of a property over time. Conversely, smoothly-run, consistent operations lead to an experience that people come to rely on and trust.

2. Diverting staff to focus on the media.

This is when staff are pulled from their daily operations to plan, coordinate, and host media tours, visits, and photoshoots. If this happens too often, it prevents the staff from delivering and maintaining a high quality of service to guests/residents.

Resources should not be diverted to making the place look good for the CEO who is getting interviewed or walking through. It should just look good already.

As a property manager or developer, if you need to double-check with your provider to make sure the property is presentable for special occasions, you may want to re-evaluate the service package currently being deployed.

3. Conditional “sprucing up” of the property.

Often, many amenity managers decide to “spruce things up” only when the media comes by, be it enhancing the landscaping or flowers, adding new equipment, fixing faulty lighting, or even changing old linen.

This sends the message to staff that the place should only look tiptop when the media comes by, instead of 24-7. It will subtly influence the way the staff behave and serve on “regular” days versus “special” days.

4. Focusing only on traditional media reviews.

You may receive a rave review in a newspaper, but that doesn’t mean residents or guests will come pouring in. In today’s highly connected world, reviews on social media platforms are a huge influencing factor in determining if people trust your brand.

To not only reach the top but stay on top, property developers should be seeking amenity providers who have a long term mindset and the creativity to really innovate over time.

Despite all of these challenges, the burden of prestige is indeed a big opportunity, if taken advantage of correctly.

Tackling the burden is possible. If you have a long-term mindset, paired with a strong operational amenity partner, you can ride the wave of prestige and at the same time, continue to maintain and improve.