When it comes to promoting “next-generation” products and features to potential tenants, more than a quarter of multifamily professionals (26.8%) choose to do so face-to-face, through personal showings, demonstrations, tours, and other means of communication.
Beyond face-to-face communication, respondents to MFE’s exclusive 2017 MFE Concept Community study also make use of advertising (17.9%) and marketing campaigns (14.3%) to spread the word about their next-gen products. Only 10.7% promote these features over social media. Newsletters and brochures are among the least-common sources of next-generation communication for potential residents, and only one respondent uses e-mail for this purpose.
Next-generation product promotion in personal showings is most common among Midwestern multifamily professionals, at 35.7%, compared with just 18.2% of Northeast professionals. This method is also most common among companies with revenues between $1 million and $5 million per year.
The survey, conducted by our data partner on the 2017 MFE Concept Community, The Farnsworth Group, examines usage and perceptions regarding next-generation building performance. This year’s survey, which received responses from 159 multifamily builders, developers, and architects, sheds light on current conditions for industry professionals by addressing the following questions:
- What are the current trends in next-gen products?
- Which next-gen products are industry pros currently installing or considering installing?
- What efficiencies are being promoted to residents about these products, and how are they being communicated?
Over the coming weeks and months, we’ll share additional tidbits and stats from the survey in anticipation of the annual Multifamily Executive Conference, which will be held this year Sept. 18–20 at the Bellagio in Las Vegas.
