What does a five-star Google review really mean?

Most multifamily owners and operators would say it can help generate a lead, a tour, or a lease signing. Now a growing weight of evidence suggests a positive change in online reputation also is tied to increased revenue performance.

First, how do you truly measure online reputation? Online Reputation Assessment (ORA) scores by J Turner Research are the multifamily industry’s objective standard for a property's online reputation. ORA statistically ranks community reputation on a scale of 1 to 100 across all markets and asset classes.

What can you do if your ORA score is sliding, or, even better, how can you supercharge one that is trending up?

John Hinckley has some ideas.

The RealPage Living Suite senior vice president co-founded and runs the company’s Community Rewards program, used by 32 of the nation’s top 50 multifamily owners, that offers digital reward points for interactions across the resident journey from lease signing to surveys, feedback, online rent payments, referrals, renewals, and more. Hinckley’s success formula is summed up in a single word: engagement.

“Over the last 10 years, the industry has proven very adept at tracking and responding to social media,” he explains. “That’s the defensive side of reputation management. The offensive side is all about resident engagement.”

What’s trending in resident engagement? What are best practices? Hinckley offers six insights based on millions of engagement actions across communities as small as 20 units and up to 1,000 units or more:

  1. Continuous Engagement. Nearly every touch point along the resident journey can be an opportunity to connect, recognize, and reward to show appreciation to your resident base. “Awarding points is just a fun way to inspire as much engagement as possible and have residents share their feedback and experiences with the community,” Hinckley says. “The program does not incentivize residents to write reviews on third-party sites or influence positive resident sentiment. However, continuous engagement creates opportunity for a more active online community.”
  2. Leave No Resident Behind. “If somebody moves into their apartment and doesn’t get plugged in to the community, especially online, it’s a missed opportunity. Be proactive. Make it easy for them to get connected to the community online as early as possible. The more they talk, share, and tag, the more likely they will talk about your community,” Hinckley says.
  3. Think Gamification. “Use gamification techniques to capture residents’ attention and spur them to connect with the apartment community in ways they might not have done on their own,” Hinckley advises. “Humans are motivated in a variety of ways, so it’s important to understand what gets your specific resident base to engage. Some want to be recognized at the top of a leader board. Others want to win a contest or drawing. For others, it’s feeling appreciated. Some are motivated by simply belonging to a community; others want to be invited to offer feedback to improve issues and challenges.”
  4. Why So Serious? Encouraging online engagement shouldn’t be strictly business. Hinckley cites how one community director created a lighthearted eat-in event during the pandemic lockdown. Management would deliver a free chicken sandwich to your door if you would eat it on your balcony, along with other residents. It was a big hit.
  5. Potholes vs. Netflix. “Give residents a voice in community-wide decisions,” Hinckley suggests. This virtual democracy can be an online polling question like “Do you prefer a Netflix subscription or parking lot repairs?” Hinckley says the results can surprise.
  6. Participation = Engagement. Track participation rates. That’s the key metric to follow. Find out what attracts community participation. Repeat.

Creating campaigns to engage residents is more than a show of good will and community building. A more engaged community can lead to a more valuable community. Higher engagement impacts your online reputation, which can lift ORA scores, a rating Hinckley believes will soon be a must-know score for the renting public.

As for that golden correlation between reputation and asset value, watch as RealPage reveals the results of a three-year study.

Learn more about ways to boost your multifamily property’s online reputation.