AIM 2026: *Your* Losing Attention: How to Use 'Safe Bait' Marketing to Get Attention and Leases

*Your* Losing Attention: How to Use 'Safe Bait' Marketing to Get Attention and Leases

Ashley McGovern of Nurture Boss, Gunnar Blakeway-Walen of FLATS, and Stacey Feeney, founder of Zipcode Creative, explored how multifamily brands can create social content that earns attention while avoiding the reputational risks associated with deliberately provocative content.

Their proposed framework, “safe bait,” uses controlled, low-stakes tension, curiosity, humor, and behavioral psychology to encourage interaction without creating genuine conflict. Unlike clickbait, the content delivers a payoff; unlike rage bait, it doesn't depend on anger, misinformation, or divisiveness.

Three psychological principles can help stop the scroll. Prediction error occurs when something unexpected interrupts what viewers anticipate—such as promoting an apartment's water pressure while standing fully clothed in its shower. Cunningham's Law leverages people's instinct to correct something they believe is wrong. Bottom-up attention uses movement, sound, or visual activity to attract attention before someone consciously evaluates the message.

A FLATS property provided an early test. A traditional professionally produced apartment video accumulated 529 views, 15 likes, and no shares over two years. A safe-bait video featuring unexpected visual elements generated approximately 7,500 views, 140 likes, and 49 shares in two weeks, without paid amplification.

But attention cannot come at the expense of brand. The speakers emphasized knowing four things before experimenting: your audience, your brand, your reputation, and the platform. A playful topic that works for student housing may be completely inappropriate for luxury or 55+ housing.

Safe bait should therefore be treated as a tactic—not the entire social strategy.

Key Takeaways

• Polished isn't always authentic. Social content should feel native to the environment where people consume it.
• Create curiosity, not outrage. Controlled tension and unexpected moments can earn attention without damaging trust.
• Know what's off-limits. Avoid politics, cultural controversies, rent jokes, resident mockery, and topics involving genuine resident pain.
• Protect the brand first. Consider existing reviews and reputation before inviting people into a public conversation.
• Use safe bait sparingly. The suggested starting ratio was roughly one safe-bait post for every three to five value-driven posts.
• Build a test-and-learn culture. Establish guardrails, define KPIs, experiment consistently, review performance, and give teams permission to try creative ideas without expecting every post to succeed.