Why Customer Relationship Management is Essential in the Rental Industry
Software designed specifically for Customer Relationship Management, or CRMs, are commonly used across a wide range of industries. While they have been around for decades, they are only recently surging in popularity in the property management industry. They are now a crucial component of managing rental properties, especially for multifamily complexes or owners managing many multiple properties. If you aren’t using a CRM yet, you need to start today.
What is CRM software?
CRM software helps property managers and owners organize and navigate relationships with tenants and prospective residents. It offers a database of resident information and useful functions for fast communication with prospects and tenants, and other processes like rent payment and lease signing.
A CRM will typically store information for each tenant or prospect, including their name, contact information, and address. It also will offer emailing tools that allow you to communicate with residents individually or in groups, notifications and reminders about messages from current and prospective residents, landing page builders, website and advertising engagement metrics, and more. This allows you to store all property-related communication in one place; you can handle maintenance requests, building-wide notices, and lease renewals all in the same database.
The use of CRMs in the multifamily industry is skyrocketing due to recent changes in the leasing process and the rising popularity of self-service models. Analytics data and engagement metrics help landlords understand what’s converting traffic, transforming property management into a data-driven industry. As CRMs become a necessary tool in the world of multifamily rentals, new functions and features are being explored every day.
Automating the Customer Journey
Artificial intelligence (AI) chatbots and other automation features are being integrated into some CRMs. While AI communication was once thought of as a replacement for human teams, realistically it has proven to increase efficiency in communicating with a large audience. Chatbots help managers handle a large inflow of communication and can glean useful information from tenants and prospects by collecting survey data. This can help leasing teams understand which sources conversions are really coming from and where money is best allocated.
Automation services are also attractive to current and prospective residents, and they consistently maintain immediate follow-ups and responses to questions and requests. Many inquiries can be resolved with chatbots directly, without involving the management team at all, and chatbots can organize other inquiries and provide the team with information about the request for increased efficiency in communication. When a prospect doesn’t receive immediate communication, it shows that there isn’t a proper level of care and respect, and the lead dies. Being able to offer immediate service is an extremely valuable asset. Additionally, it helps the onsite team prioritize leads that are most likely to become lease conversions.
Pairing automation tools with the CRM database helps to develop a personalized communication experience for leads and residents. In an automated age, customers expect personal interactions, so this level of attention to detail enhances the customer experience and improves conversions. When you develop an automated communication service, you are really creating a better experience for people who are looking for an apartment. With personable, consistent, and intimate communication, leads can become conversions overnight.
In an age of technology and efficiency, consumers want to see user-friendly automated rental services and managers who are easily accessible and responsive. For landlords, Customer Relationship Management software and automation tools are the way to achieve that.Â
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