AIM 2026: Messaging That Moves: Storyboarding the Prospect Journey

Messaging That Moves: Storyboarding the Prospect Journey

Matthew Kilmurry, Founder & CEO of Apartment Geofencing, and Jenna Miller, Vice President of Customer Experience at Bozzuto, challenged marketers to rethink personalization around a “signal-first mindset.” Every interaction—or lack of interaction—provides clues about what a prospect or resident may need next.

Their framework begins with three questions: What just happened? What does it tell you? What should you do or say next? A prospect repeatedly visiting floor plans may be narrowing a shortlist. Someone who stops opening emails may not have lost interest; they could be experiencing friction. The goal is to interpret the signal before deciding how to respond.

That requires moving from campaigns to journeys, channels to experiences, and data to signals. Instead of sending standardized messages based primarily on a marketing calendar, operators should consider the customer's mindset and objectives at each stage—from initial research and touring through move-in, residency, and renewal.

The speakers demonstrated how even modest personalization can improve results. In one Bozzuto test, prospects who viewed specific two-bedroom or penthouse pages received unit-specific retargeting rather than generic property advertising. The general campaign generated nine conversions compared with 49 conversions for the unit-specific campaign—more than five times as many.

Scaling this approach remains difficult because customer data is fragmented across systems. Bozzuto began addressing that challenge through a customer data platform, first standardizing data across more than 400 property websites and then stitching together user behaviors to identify high- and low-intent audiences. That initial use case produced a reported 20%–30% improvement in marketing spend efficiency for those campaigns.

The message wasn't to wait for perfect technology. Operators can begin now by identifying a few meaningful signals and demonstrating that they're paying attention.

Key Takeaways

• Think journeys, not campaigns. Match communication to the customer's timing rather than the marketing calendar.
• Turn data into signals. Ask what each behavior indicates and what action should follow.
• Pay attention to silence. A prospect or resident going quiet can be an important signal rather than proof of disinterest.
• Personalize what you already can. Floor-plan interest, tour activity, maintenance history, renewals, and engagement can all inform messaging.
• Connect marketing and leasing. Contradictory messages across teams and channels quickly erode trust.
• Start small and prioritize progress over perfection. Map one community and one or two journey stages, test changes, measure results, and expand from there.