If the industry watchword for 2020 was contactless, the word this year is frictionless.
It makes sense. Prospects and renters now have a taste of virtual touring and leasing. Now expectations are high for even more on-demand renter services and convenience. How far should you go to create a frictionless experience across all stages of the renter life cycle?
Or, how will your competitors use artificial intelligence (AI) and other friction-fighting technologies to gain an advantage and differentiate their properties?
To help anticipate next steps, here are six trends from the RealPage database to consider:
- Every Hour Is Business Hour. It may be no surprise to learn 50% of property tour appointments are set outside of typical business hours on websites that support scheduling. Today’s mobile-enabled renter expects 24/7 convenience.
- Short A-List. Nearly 40% of renters toured just one or two properties in their most recent search. It’s never been more important to front-load your story with every asset at your disposal. Engage early and often.
- Sticky Chat. Chat usage is up 40% year over year. It’s the way engagement typically starts today, either live or through an AI bot for chat or text. Kortney Balas, vice president of information management for JVM Realty, reports, “In September 2020, 57% of visits were set by an AI chatbot. An AI chatbot is a low-risk and high-reward strategy.” Statistics show up to 70% of visits set by a chatbot are done without any agent interaction, freeing staff to nurture prospect and renter relationships.
- “If I Can Do It Online, I Will.” Virtual tours with live agents represent 39% of all tours (for properties that offer it). It’s a logical corollary to Trend No. 2. With less desire to tour properties, the virtual tour with a live agent becomes a go-to option.
- Phony Prospects? Identity fraud is up to 40% YOY three years running. It adds needless risk and safety concerns across tours, applications, and payment. It’s never been more imperative to have a comprehensive identity verification and fraud mitigation solution in place.
- Solo Tours. Nearly all renters (86%) prefer to tour a property on their own, without an agent, if the option is available (which it isn’t in about two-thirds of all properties).
For long-time industry observers like Nikhil Venkatesh, the way forward is rapidly coalescing around an even more robust virtual experience. “The market is rapidly moving to the Four C’s … choice, convenience, cross-device, and, perhaps most important, creative storytelling,” explains the senior vice president of consumer solutions for RealPage.
“Consumers want control. They want us to meet them on their terms,” Venkatesh says. “It benefits multifamily owners to recognize that and offer them an immersive experience, a rich storytelling experience, that preempts a desire to look elsewhere.”
No one can predict 2021 and beyond. With luck, the worst of the pandemic is over. What is clear, the Four C’s form a new imperative that promises a more friction-free way forward for renters and owners alike.
Learn more about ways to differentiate your properties.
