Post on 17-Sep-2018
Online Reputation Management:Lead Students to Your Doorstep
Sponsored by
Scott ManningRegional Manager
CA Ventures
Jennifer WorshamVice President of
OperationsEdR Management, Inc.
Meet the Experts
Joseph BatdorfPresident
J Turner ResearchModerator
SURVEY OF OFF CAMPUS RESIDENTS
21,028 Responses
18,784 (89%) Students
2,244 (11%) Parents
Conducted in January 2018
PARENT RESPONSESDid you visit any apartment your student was considering prior to leasing?
No37%
Yes63%
How involved were you in the apartment selection process for your student?
8.14
4.996.97
PARENT RESPONSESThere are many factors that go into making a decision to lease at a property. Out of a total of 100, approximately what percent of that decision was based on online reviews?
42%
STUDENT RESPONSES
DEMOGRAPHICS
Female
66%
Male34%
7%
27%
29%
22%
12%
4%
0% 10% 20% 30% 40%
Freshman
Sophomore
Junior
Senior
Graduate Student
Post Graduate
SOCIAL MEDIA CHANNELSWhat social media channels do you use the most?
70%
69%
56%
37%
12%
7%
3%
2%
0% 20% 40% 60% 80%
Snapchat
Other
APARTMENT SEARCH
17%9%
12%7%
9%7%
5%3%
4%11%
9%6%
0% 5% 10% 15% 20%
JanuaryFebruary
MarchAprilMayJuneJuly
AugustSeptember
OctoberNovemberDecember
In what month do you generally start looking for an apartment?
APARTMENT SEARCHWhat is your primary source of information when looking for off-campus housing?
65%
51%
39%
12%
7%
1%
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70%
Online search
Referral from a friend
Awareness of the area
Social Media
University referral
Other
FACEBOOKDo you visit a property’s Facebook page before leasing at the property?
Yes 41%
Yes 33%
Yes 38%
No 59%
No 67%
No 62%
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%
Female
Male
Overall
FACEBOOKWhich aspects of the FB page did you pay the most attention? (pick 2)
88%
80%
12%
11%
9%
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%
Reviews
Pictures of the community
Gauge the quality of residents
Resident Interaction
Community Events
PARENT INVOLVEMENTDid your parents visit any apartment you were considering prior to leasing?
Yes37%
No63%
How involved were your parents in the leasing process?
3.49
7.454.96
Parents 6.97
RATINGS AND REVIEWSAt what point did you utilize online ratings and reviews to gather information?
52% As I was beginning my search
Once I narrowed my search to 4-5 communities
Once I narrowed my search to 2-3 communities
Once I selected the property I was most interested in
14%
22%
11%Do you utilize online reviews in your apartment search?
No14%
Yes86%
RATINGS AND REVIEWSIn your opinion, what is the general sentiment of reviews given by students?
Mostly Positive
42%
Mostly Negative
23%
Mostly Neutral
35%
RATINGS AND REVIEWSHow much do you trust online reviews?
6.67/10
How much did the online reviews affect your decision to visit a property?
6.26/10
Polling Question #1There are many factors that go into making a decision to lease at a property. Out of a total of 100, approximately what percent of that decision was based on online reviews? What was the average by students?
30-40% 40-50% 50-60%Over 60%
RATINGS AND REVIEWSThere are many factors that go into making a decision to lease at a property. Out of a total of 100, approximately what percent of that decision was based on online reviews?
47% PARENTS42%
RATINGS AND REVIEWSHow likely are you to rent at an apartment community that is strongly recommended by a friend but has negative online reviews?
5.96How likely are you to rent at an apartment community that has positive online reviews but is not recommended by a friend?
5.86
RATINGS AND REVIEWSWhat are the four most influential aspects when looking at different reviews for a property?
63%
60%
57%
56%
51%
43%
36%
34%
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70%
The relevancy of the review to your likes/dislikes
The Star rating
The recentness of the reviews
Number of reviews
The sentiment of the reviews
A manager/company response to reviews
The frequency of reviews
The date of last review
RATINGS AND REVIEWSPlease (stack) rank the following in order of importance to you when looking at these reviews for the property?
The content of reviews (4) 2.18
Star Ratings (1) 2.36
Volume of reviews (2) 3.26
Date of reviews (3) 3.27
Manager/Company Response (5) 3.87
RATINGS AND REVIEWS
Yes No
Have you ever posted a review for an apartment online? 28% 72%
Has your apartment community asked you to post a review online? 32% 68%
Do you look at the Manager’s response to a review? 68% 32%
MANAGER RESPONSE What are the top two things that you look for in a
response?69%
44%
34%
29%
13%
11%
1%
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80%
Commitment to resolve the issue
Authentic/Customized response
The right attitude
Timely Response
An apology
Establish a line of communication
Other
MANAGER RESPONSE
In your opinion, How important is it that a manager responds to a review? 6.55
Has your apartment community asked you to post a review online? 6.44
MANAGER RESPONSELooking strictly at the response from the manager for the reviews, which one do you like better?
Response 1 66%
Response 2 16%
They are the same 17%
KEY TAKEAWAYS At least one third parents are visiting an
apartment prior to leasing. Two-third students are reading manager
responses and looking for a commitment to resolve the issue and an authentic response. Students are looking for pictures and reviews on
a property’s Facebook page.
Jennifer WorshamVice President of Operations, EdR
Put Yourself In Their Shoes
Session/Speaker Survey
How are we doing?
Scott ManningRegional Manager, CA Ventures
Best Practices – Handling Negative Reviews
Monitor all platforms and respond quickly. Dedicate someone to be the responder. Keep responses brief, genuine, and respectful. Bring the conversation offline by having them contact
the leasing office. If you know who the review came from call them. Hear them out. Often by doing so they might remove
the review after being heard. Do not start an online war/battle with the reviewer.
Best Practices – Getting The Right Reviews
Encourage customers to leave feedback early on! From touring to move-in, it’s never too early. It’s ok to ask for reviews. Person-to-person
request are best and are often the most effective. Do not offer incentives to customers in exchange
for reviews. Thank customers that give positive reviews. Highlight positive keywords in your response.
Pick Your Battles This resident went on a rant about a building
that was delayed in opening, and about the length of the move in line.
We had a dedicated person on move in whowas just responding to social media post.
We were able to gather 9 reviews that were 5stars from June – Sept during the delayedmove in compared to only 2 reviews of 1 star.
Maximizing Your Post Keep residents engaged.
Its easier to get positive reviews from people who are staying active on your page.
#FREEZETAG#BigMoney#TourTicklerTuesday
Discussion Points 38% of prospects visited the properties
Facebook pages prior to signing a lease. We focus a lot of our social media efforts here for
this reason.Prospect visit the properties pictures and reviews.
67% of residents state they have NOT be asked by the apartment community to post a review.Low hanging fruit for most properties. AskUse 3rd party companies to help solicit reviews.
Scott Manningsmanning@ca-
studentliving.com
Jennifer Worshamjworsham@edrtrust.com
Contact Information
Joseph Batdorfjbatdorf@jturnerresearch.
com