What would connected data look like for renters?

What would truly connected data do for the renter experience in multifamily?

First, let’s talk about why it matters.

Research from McKinsey shows that 80% of consumers are more likely to purchase from a brand that provides tailored experiences. 71% of consumers expect companies to deliver personalized interactions ... and maybe more important, 76% get upset when that doesn't happen.

Simply, customers expect personalized experiences.

And those experiences are powered by your data.

You have probably heard that your data should be open. It should be freely accessible to all of your vendor partners. It should be easy to work with, augment, and analyze.

I know … because I’ve made all those arguments in the past.

But really, those are selfish arguments on behalf of my company and other tech-enabled vendors like ours that are moving the industry forward.

If we shift the conversation, we can see how connected data benefits renters (and therefore operators) and enables entirely new customer experiences.

Using data to tailor the experience

Let’s start with a really simple example borrowed from e-commerce. Check out this snippet from a product page on Amazon:

Just from this tiny snippet, Amazon is using connected data in at least three different ways:

? I’m logged in, so they know and acknowledge I’m a Prime member. (Loyalty and the benefits it provides)

? Their logistics data encourages me to order within a specific timeframe to get my item faster. (Urgency to drive instant gratification)

? They have my previous purchase data, which they then use to calculate the rewards I could have earned if I used another one of their services. (FOMO — “You missed out on rewards.”)

There’s a lot going on here. And that’s just one small snippet of a much longer product page.

What could this look like for multifamily?

Time to remix. Ask the question: What could this look like for multifamily?

Now imagine a similar snippet like this on a resident’s logged-in view of the community website or the resident portal. Here's what that might look like:

In three lines, look what our connected data has done:

? We know the resident is a loyal Rentgrata advocate for the community, and we’re reminding them how much they’ve earned for their effort.

? We know the resident is not yet using Bilt Rewards , the community’s preferred credit card provider, and we’re showing them what they could have gained if they were using that partner (along with an offer to get it now).

? We know that the resident is not yet using another service we offer (laundry by Tumble ), and we’re incentivizing them to try it out and get more out of their experience with our community.

All from one view. Not from three separate apps.

And we're quickly showing the value to the resident of all of these services ... not just stating that we offer them.

What other data points can we connect for the customers? How about the status of their latest maintenance request, and info about the next upcoming resident event, and their current renewal offer from Renew , and a timely offer from a local business partner, and ... you get the idea.

These are all data points you should easily be able to receive from these vendors. But this experience only works when you bring all that data together in smart, bespoke ways.

There are endless examples like this – inspiration is all around us that can help us see how to use data to improve the resident experience and increase ancillary income. In the coming weeks, I’ll share more examples like this to help you see what’s possible.

It’s not *just* that you have a loyalty program, or that you offer a way to earn points on rent, or that you provide convenient services and amenities. It’s that you find ways to connect all of those things together in a cohesive, personalized experience for your customer.

Yeah, tech vendors like me (and lots of others) want to see more accessible data so we can more easily innovate on the services we’re delivering.

But ultimately, your vendor partners aren't the ones that have the most to gain. That would be you as the operator and your residents.

Customers expect tailored experiences and will spend more with you when you deliver them.

And you need connected data from all those sources to even have a chance of making it possible.

#multifamily #apartmentmarketing #proptech #personalization