Property Management

The single biggest expense in Business

We all know the single biggest expense is payroll. The trends in technology are moving us in the direction of reducing the headcount.

It will be the outsourcing of back office and highly repetitive tasks that will happen first. On line payment options, third party accounting firms etc...will take away the current day tasks of many of our Assistant Mangers.

I think the secret is out now, they will be the first to go. So my cry to all of you; It's BRAND YOU time in this so called YOUniverse! It's time to shine or be extinguished.

Downsizing of Middle Managment

  Palm just introduced the tool that will allow more assets to be run by fewer people. AM's RM's and AVP's beware and be ready. This is the tool that will get you out of your office and into the field. I will have more on this in future posts.

The new and imporved 4 P's of Marketing

Ryan Karpeles provides us with a very good take on People which I think is a new "P" in the revision of the 4 P's of marketing that we posted about yesterday.

via Ryans' blog:

Listen, don't talk.
Focus on their needs, not yours.
Care for others, and they'll care about you.
Provide value, and you'll be valued.
Read the whole post by clicking here

Thanks for the great post Ryan. M

The Blog

Blogs are popping up everywhere in the real estate industry; from news feeds to specific property blogs. I found a blog this morning, Mosler Lofts where a condo buyer will be providing updates on the building as it progresses with construction.

We currently write blogs for two apartment communities; Harbor Steps in Seattle and Park Station in St. Louis Missouri and hope to add a few for Portland Oregon and Denver Colorado real soon.

It truly is the age of the Citizen Marketer. Could be good and clearly could be bad.

I think there is a new phrase to be coined here and that phrase is conveyor belt marketing. Blogs, Web 2.0 sites and the like are all engineered to move prospects to our company or property web sites. The hope being that by the time they get there they will feel like they are doing business with an old friend or at very least a trusted friend.

Employee Commitment

Talk about employee commitment.

The Buffalo News had a great piece over the weekend about how four part-time Wegmans employees “visited every one of Wegmans’ 70 supermarkets, plus the Rochester corporate headquarters, on a four-day odyssey through five states in one Oldsmobile Alero.”

Why? Click here to find out.

via MorningNewsbeat.com

Captive or Captain

"You are either the captive or the captain of your thoughts." -Denis Waitley

Only you have the power to choose which it will be. So many of us choose to be the captive many times. What if we make the choice to take over the helm today and be in charge. Have some discipline about ourselves and apply that discipline as a commitment to make a better life for ourselves.

It really boils down to the people you hang around and the books you read. They have supreme influence over whether we choose to be captain or captive.

Renewal Parties

Tired or Wired? I think that renewal parties are old, tired and frankly not what residents truly desire or care about in this attention economy!

4 P's of Marketing

Is it me or is this sort of an outdated and overrated philosphy? I have heard more than I care to hear about it as of late and I just wonder what the community thinks.

I personally like the new and improved version of the 4 P's.

Marketing 4 Ps 2.0

There is a thought, that given the choice between a mediocre product with a great team or a great product with a mediocre team, the smart person would chose the former to be successful. Similarly, while the old 4 Ps are still valid and important, maximizing the new 4 Ps will be the new mark of success… securing and dominating search Position to attract People who are Passionate about your Purpose. What will prove most challenging and frightening to businesses in this new world is that they have the least amount of control over the most important elements for success. Usher in the brave new web world and the new marketing mix.

See more here....

The Dip

The Dip by Seth Godin This book is a must have for your library. It's an short inspiring read about being the best in the world and what it takes to get there.

Relationship Sales

I think it is fair to say that we should do nothing to sell prospects on our  communities, while giving them the most powerful sales pitch of their life. It can be done if our sole concern is providing them with ease and peace of mind.