Dallas-based Riverstone Residential Group understands that a website provides the opportunity to influence prospective residents’ impressions of a community. However, not all companies have the technological skill to create their own Web pages. But in January 2011, Riverstone went one step further, launching a Web solution service for the multifamily industry with the Riverstone Web Platform (RWP). The RWP is based on a content management system (CMS) that allows those who purchase the service to customize their website, and it also offers back-end electronic document storage capacity. Customizable features include unique branding opportunities, custom domain-name registration, and a full search engine optimization program to help drive more traffic to the websites. After the initial launch of its website, each community will update and make content changes to its RWP site on its own through the CMS. Customers can also access support services from Riverstone, including training and technical assistance for the CMS, domain-name maintenance, and Web analytics, which will identify areas of marketing success and areas needing improvement.The RWP lets communities create sites that engage prospective residents on multiple platforms, including smart phones and tablets. The bundling of services is particularly important. Property owners traditionally work with outside Web designers for the costly execution of a website, without the benefit of training for future maintenance. The early returns have been great: A study conducted by Riverstone comparing Google Analytics data for communities before and after the RWP transition showed a 61 percent average increase in traffic.
