Twitter is an emerging social media site that provides a quick, easy and low-cost way to deliver targeted messages to current and prospective customers. I recently spoke with Alison Rice (@freshbrewedit) from Builder Magazine about the various ways Urbane is benefiting from Twitter … here is an excerpt from that article:
“Twitter offers builders more than a platform for brief announcements. Users say the site enables companies to create deeper relationships with their customers by responding publicly or privately to “tweets.” Just listen to Eric Brown, owner of Urbane Apartments in Troy, Mich. “I believe the way people are purchasing things is changing, and not very many people are paying attention to that,” says Brown, who dropped all traditional advertising several years ago in favor of social media sites such as Facebook, MySpace, Flickr (a free photo-sharing site), Twitter, and others that allow users to connect online with friends and acquaintances.
“He believes making social media successful for business purposes, though, does require a different attitude than many companies have had in regard to marketing or customer service in the past. “The more transparent you are [in terms of providing information to customers], the faster you can build your community,” Urbane’s Brown says. “But corporate executives are not very attuned to being open and transparent with customers.”
“Those that are can reap tremendous benefits. Urbane, for example, has saved significant amounts of money in recent years by opting out of print advertising and using social media instead. “Most larger operators’ marketing budgets are eaten up by print ads and rental apartment catalogs,” Brown says. “Those are very, very expensive whether or not anyone reads them.”
“Urbane has also used social media to create a vibrant sense of community at its properties, where Twitter-using residents can get the latest on neighborhood happenings and other events by following the company’s Twitter feed. Can users post negative things about their apartment or the property? Sure, but Brown says that risk is worth taking. “Our most interesting consumer evangelists seem to come from situations where we have dropped the ball,” he says. By being on Twitter, Facebook, and other sites, Urbane knows when a customer or prospect is unhappy and has the chance to respond privately and publicly and, ideally, resolve the problem. “It gives you a chance to participate in the conversation and start creating community,” Brown says.”
You can read the full article here.
Connect with Urbane on Twitter:
@Eric_Urbane
@Kim_Urbane
@Heather_Urbane
@UrbaneApts
@UrbaneHotlist
Eric Brown
Eric’s background is rooted in the rental and real estate industries. He founded metro Detroit’s Urbane Apartments in 2003, after serving as senior vice president for a major Midwest apartment developer. He established a proven track record of effectively repositioning existing rental properties in a way that added value for investors while enhancing the resident experience. He also established Urbane Media, a social media marketing and PR laboratory, where innovative marketing ideas are tested. Eric has been featured in Entrepreneur Magazine and Business Week Magazine. You can connect with Urbane_Media on Twitter. Eric also writes regular articles for the following publications; Multi Housing News Social Media Examiner Search Engine Guide
Follow Me:
Related Posts -
Curated Marketing Articles Here are some weekend reads and links that we found interesting and of potential value for your business and apartment marketing trek. They are in no order, enjoy the weekend! Twitter Profiles Now this was not a scientific, data filled test haha, if you been on my blog long...... -
Turn Key Social Media for Apartment Communities Well, it has happened! Someone has created a Turn Key Social Media Product Offering for Apartment Communities. That someone, being Daniel McCarthy, chairman and CEO of Network Communications, Inc. (NCI), one of the nation’s largest local media companies, with web sites and local magazines serving the housing market are...... -
The challenge is creating content We posted recently posted an article, How Many Channels Can You Manage. The point of the article was to point out to our readers that web traffic and digital exposure to your brand or apartment community come from many different places. Most everyone has heard of Flickr and You Tube, yet how...... -
SOCIAL MEDIA WILL WORK FOR YOU Urbane Lab #123108 The buzz surrounding Social Media Marketing seems to grow louder each day. It is almost as folks think it is something you can buy off the shelf, some wonder drug. There is MySpace, Facebook, Twitter, flickr, YouTube, LinkedIn. Ning, and several more. Then there are the book marking sites,...... -
Own Your Social Media Failure or Success We had a new client in the Urbane Lab recently that we had prepared a proposal for who was piping mad. As he read through our offering he commented that this is mostly the same as what the last "Social Media" shop promised, but didn't deliver. He was pretty distraught with his......
Related Websites - Why Is Social Media Advertising The Hottest Market For On The Net Service Providers In 2009? 5 steps of social media marketing strategiesThe pattern has been set, and the stats are staggering. An approximated 150,000,000 lively end users are on Facebook. thirteen hrs of video clip are uploaded to YouTube every moment. Internet two. continues to transform our entire world in the most essential social media......
- The Uncommon Benefits Of Social Media Many businesses are still trying to figure out social media and the role it can have in their marketing. If you want to make effective use of social media for your business then the following article will prove to be helpful. Most businesses take a short-sighted perspective and approach, but......
-
Social Media 101: Tactics and Tips to Develop Your Business Online Amazon Says: 100 ways to tap into social media for a more profitable business In Social Media 101, social media expert and blogger Chris Brogan presents the best practices for growing the value of your social media and social networking marketing efforts. Brogan has spent two years researching what the...... - Professional Blogging Roundup: On RSS Feeds, PR, Writing Tips, and More Happy belated Thanksgiving. Did everyone enjoy their four day weekend? I know I did. The turkey was great. Here we are again with another edition of the roundup; lots of interesting things to read and think about! Corporate For some thoughts On Blogging, College Mogul, Drupal, and Acquia check out......
-
16 Top Tips For Using Social Media By Adam Singer of toprankblog.com: Guidelines for marketing with social media aren’t all that new. In 2006 five members of the digital marketing community collaborated on 16 rules for “social media optimization”. Fast forward to nearly 2010 and social media has begun to take a more significant role in the......
