You have the data, but what are its limitations and do the metrics really tell the whole story?
During the 2021 AIM session Social Media Data Mining, expert panelists discussed the various ways to collect and analyze data gathered via social media platforms to improve their reputations and operations.
Panelists noted that operators should start with the property management agreement and to be sure that privacy policies allow you to share data. They also asked, is your CRM set up to feed that data?
“When you go into any of these social media platforms, you have to do so with designed intent to reach your end goal,” said Eric Clark, vice president of marketing for BMC Investments. “If your goal is to be technology savvy and data driven with any of your marketing initiatives, make sure you have all of the other pieces -- whether that's CRM or the right policies and procedures in place to achieve that goal.”
Be specific and know your goals as a brand.
“It’s all about customer experience and having a consistent brand across the board,” said Annette Valle, founder and chief executive officer of Social Kapture. “It comes down to what’s the story you want to tell and what data you want to look at, and then make changes to the content based on that.”
Panelists pointed out that with so much data available, it’s crucial to know what is relevant to your brand so you can ensure success and maximize revenue based on that information.
Over the past 18 months, people have demonstrated that they want to shop from home and that includes searching for an apartment. In fact, 58% of consumers find it more engaging to connect with brands on social media rather than in a physical location, such as a leasing office.
“Consumers are looking at brands on Facebook and Instagram before they even decide if they want to go see your property,” Valle said. “So having a balance between both is a good idea.”
Michelle Alicea, senior director of marketing for Kairoi Residential, highlighted that the scope of marketing is continuing to evolve beyond just a brand's website into multiple social media platforms.
“Launching your social media platforms are just as important as launching your community’s website,” Alicea said.
It also produces user-generated content, which is generally free content.
“We believe user-generated content is some of the best content out there,” Valle said. “Seventy-nine percent of consumers say that their purchasing decisions are highly influenced by user-generated content.”
Valle said that they had a social media influencer move into a community who posted a video on Tik Tok about her apartment home and it had so many likes that it was repurposed and posted to Instagram and Facebook.
“User-generated content is all around us,” she said. “People are always taking and sharing photos via social media so utilize that to your advantage.”
Every community is unique and has different goals. So panelists suggested highlighting a community's strengths, such as being pet-friendly, and recommended to post the stories or photos pertaining to those attributes on social media platforms.
When measuring data, each community is its own brand. So operators should know the metrics they need that best suit that community.
“It’s still really fragmented. As much as we’re all looking for that one-stop solution that will provide the necessary data, it doesn't exist yet,” Clark said. “We all have different metrics we’re looking at.”
Clark urged that when analyzing data, operators need to know how to utilize it to maneuver and make the appropriate changes.
No matter how an operator views the data, according to Clark, they should remember that social media is on the rise and it’s not going anywhere. As the panelists suggested, it’s important to be consistent, authentic and have quality content.
“First focus on engagement and make sure that you’re compliant with any privacy policies, and then use the data to tell a good story,” Clark said.
- Annette Valle, Founder of Social Kapture
- Michelle Alicea, Senior Director of Marketing & Public Relations at Kairoi Residential
- Eric Clark, VP of Marketing at BMC Investment
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