Connect & Discover:

Today’s

Digital SavvyStudent Renter

FORRENTUNIVERSITY.COM™,

A DIVISION OF

FOR RENT MEDIA SOLUTIONS™

WENT TO YOUR PROSPECTIVE

STUDENT RENTERS TO

UNCOVER AND UNDERSTAND

THEIR DIVERSE NEEDS AND

CHALLENGES ASSOCIATED WITH

OFF-CAMPUS HOUSING.

WHEN IT COMES TO SEARCHING

FOR AN OFF-CAMPUS APARTMENT,

STUDENT RENTERS ARE QUITE

SAVVY AND RESOURCEFUL. THIS

GUIDE WILL PROVIDE

FORRENTUNIVERSITY.COM™

CUSTOMERS WITH INSIGHT ON

HOW STUDENTS SEARCH FOR OFF-

CAMPUS HOUSING, WHAT THEY ARE

LOOKING FOR IN AN OFF-CAMPUS

COMMUNITY, HOW THEY PREFER TO

COMMUNICATE, AND WHAT FACTORS

ENCOURAGE RESIDENT RETENTION.

Table of Contents

Engagement6

Search8

Conclusion10

Amenities & Features5

Resident Retention3

The Basics1

Discover More#DiscoveringU

Renter Survey

AN ONLINE SURVEY WAS

CONDUCTED FROM

MARCH 15 - APRIL 15, 2013

THROUGH EMAIL INVITATIONS,

WEBSITE ADVERTISEMENTS ON

FORRENTUNIVERSITY.COM™, A

BLOG POST, IN-PERSON INTERVIEWS

ON THREE UNIVERSITY CAMPUSES,

AND ON SOCIAL MEDIA OUTLETS.

A $250 INCENTIVE WAS USED TO

ENCOURAGE PARTICIPATION.

Survey Results

The survey had a diverse distribution of 1,078 respondents, 894 of which were current students. At 81%, the bulk of participants were between the 18-25 age group. The majority of students surveyed lived off-campus, at 58%. However, with 24% of students surveyed living on campus, there is a huge opportunity to market your off-campus communities to those students.

The Basics1

Engaging with Prospective Student Renters

With nearly ¼ of all students surveyed living on-campus, it’s crucial for off-campus communities to engage with prospective renters in order to put their community information in front of these potential renters. It’s never too soon to begin targeting all students, including freshman. Freshman will likely make the decision to either live on-campus another year or move off campus by the Fall semester of their first year, so engage with them early on!

Many college students are new to the area as freshmen, and are not familiar with their new surroundings. Sharing information about your community around campus is a great way to spread the word to prospective renters. Here are a few ideas:

•Handoutcouponsorgiftcardstolocalrestaurantsandotherincentivesforstudentstocometouryourcommunity•Sponsoracampusevent•Hangflyersaroundcampus•Findawaytocross-promotewiththeuniversity(partnerships)•HandoutstadiumcupsandT-shirtswithyourlogoatsportingeventsorbyjustwalingthroughcampus

THE LIVING SITUATIONS FOR

STUDENTS ATTENDING COLLEGE

IS DIVERSE. WHILE OVER 58% OF

STUDENTS SURVEYED LIVE

OFF-CAMPUS, 24% OF STUDENTS

STILL LIVE ON-CAMPUS. IN

MOST CASES, COLLEGES AND

UNIVERSITIES HAVE LIVE-IN

REQUIREMENTS ON-CAMPUS FOR

FRESHMEN. THOUGH THIS MAY BE

TRUE, IT’S LIKELY THAT STUDENTS

WILL AT LEAST CONSIDER MOVING

OFF-CAMPUS AFTER THEIR FIRST

YEAR OF COLLEGE. WITH THIS

KNOWLEDGE, IT PROVIDES AN

EXCELLENT OPPORTUNITY FOR

COMMUNITIES TO MARKET TO THESE

STUDENTS LIVING ON-CAMPUS.

The Basics2

Learn more tips & tricks for engaging with students.

GetInvolved

read more

Discover More#DiscoveringU

Discover More#DiscoveringU

Keep Them Coming Back

THERE IS A COMMON

MISCONCEPTION THAT STUDENTS

MOVE EVERY SCHOOL YEAR, BUT

62% OF STUDENTS SURVEYED

SAID THEY ACTUALLY STAY IN THE

SAME PLACE FOR A FEW YEARS.

AS PROPERTY MANAGEMENT

PROFESSIONALS, RESIDENT

RETENTION IS ALWAYS ON YOUR

MIND. WHILE A MAJORITY OF

STUDENT RENTERS STAY IN A

SINGLE COMMUNITY YEAR AFTER

YEAR, WHAT ARE YOU DOING TO

ENCOURAGE THE OTHER 38% TO

STAY IN YOUR COMMUNITY? say renewal rate is most important when renewing leases

56Percent

say responsive management is most important when renewing leases 22

Percent

Resident Retention3

Provide Value

Among the students surveyed, 56% say that the renewal rate is most important when considering renewing their leases.Weknowthatpriceofrent(budget)maybethe most important consideration for a majority of students; however, it’s not all about the price. Students are also looking at value and getting the best ‘bang for their buck.’ Two factors that are indicative of value from a student’s perspective are a responsive management team and amenities that fit students’ lifestyles.

Hire The Right People

In fact, 22% of respondents say that responsive management is most important when considering lease renewal. For many students, renting an off-campus apartment is their first foray into independent living, and they’ve never had to handle setting up utilities or handling maintenance issues and even resident disputes. It’s important that your leasing team be properly trained to work with students, because parents and students alike will appreciate a management team that can provide guidance, resources or assistance as soon as an issue arises. Remember, your team is an extension of your brand, so their ability to relate and respond to the student renter dynamicreflectspositivelyonyourreputationasaleaderinstudent housing.

Discover More#DiscoveringU

As an off-campus community, it’s also important for you to have a good relationship with the university that your student renters attend. You can position yourself as a valuable resource and liaison between student renters and their university by keeping the lines of communication open and sharing important campus information and updates with your student renters.

Students also care about amenities - they are looking at the value of the resident services that are offered within a community as part of their renewal decision. Highlight community amenities that are appealing to this demographic, such as tanning beds, fitness equipment, and a clubhouse where students can spend time with friends. Create a “buzz factor” around these amenities by offering a promotion that highlights how exciting they are, which in turn will foster community engagement. A few ideas:

• Hosta“BiggestLoser”competitiontoencourageresidentstousethefitnesscenter

• Hostapoolcompetitionforresidentpoolsharkstoparticipateinandofferagrandprizetothewinner

• Hostatanningcontestforstudentstogetbronzedfortheupcomingseasonandtopromotetheuseofyourcommunity’s tanning beds

Knowing that 38% of students are in the market to find a new apartment, there is an opportunity for you as a marketer to take advantage of the listing features on ForRentUniversity.com and be sure that your listing is fully optimized for maximum reach. Keep in mind that while you are trying to reach new student renters, you also want to reach your current renters. They are comparing you to other communities, so it’s valuable for you to highlight that your community provides everything they want in order to retain them. Be sure that your property photos are up-to-date, and place a strong emphasis on the community resident services and lifestyle that you can offer to the student renter demographic that will enhance their living-learning experience.

students looking fora new apartment38

Percent

Resident Retention4

Create a “Buzz Factor”

Price

Students are typically on a tight budget and are using financial aid to pay for college, so it’s not surprising that price is of most immediate interest when considering an off-campus community. They are seeking the best value and resident services for their money—it’s about more thanjustfourwalls,afloor,andabed—theyarelookingfor a positive living and learning experience as well. ForRentUniversity.com makes the apartment search process easier by providing an option to search for off-campus apartments by price.

Distance to Campus

While undergraduates tend to prefer the ability to walk to class, graduate students, faculty, and staff may prefer to live farther from campus. With ForRentUniversity.com, users can search for properties within a 15-mile radius of the college campus, which makes it easy for all apartment shoppers to find the ideal community for them.

Reputation

Students, and especially their parents, want to know that an off-campus community has a positive reputation before making the decision to move there. It’s important to monitor your community’s reputation - while negative reviews and feedback may not ruin your reputation, lack of response will have a significant impact, so it’s important to handle the situation promptly and professionally. For Rent Media Solutions’ FRSocialUniversity Reputation Management enhancement provides a platform for communities to keep an eye on their ratings and reviews as well as their competitors, and can uncover any potential concerns based on renter feedback.

Oncestudentsfindpropertiesthatmeetthetopthreefactors(price,distance,reputation),thenthey’lldelveintotheoff-campusapartmentsearchmoredeeplybycomparingamenities,features,floorplans,videoandengagethroughsocialmedia withw of all communities that meet their requirements for price, distance, and reputation.

Students are busy, and they don’t want to spend a lot of their time searching for an apartment. By making price, distance to campus, and reputation information immediately visible to student renters, your community has an advantage—after all, you will have provided the most important information right at students’ fingertips! Pique their interest with eye-catching photos and videos showcasing your property, and highlight the features and amenities available to renters that fit their lifestyle.

Distance from Campus is #245

PercentReputation is #321

Percent

Price is #175Percent

Amenities & Features 5

What Are Students Looking for in Off-Campus Housing

MakeYour Property

Stand Out

A Winning Strategy

• Buildasenseofcommunity.Thebestwaytoengagewith residents is to make them feel a part of your community, both in person and on your social platforms. Students rated this as the most appealing aspect of a community’s social media presence.

• Keepstudentsup-to-datewithinterestingeventsand news happening around campus, as well as upcoming events within the community. They’ll appreciate the valuable information!

• Showcaseyourbrandpersonality.Humoristypicallyagreat way to increase engagement on social channels. Also, be sure to incorporate your team—residents want to get to know everyone!

How to Engage

Remember, if students have anything negative to say about the community they live in—they will absolutely be using social media to voice their complaints. By having a social presence, you can easily monitor your online reputation.

Take it to the Streets

• Sharehyper-localdealsfrombookstores,restaurants,and bars. Cross-promoting with businesses and organizations on and around campus is a great way to increase outreach and build brand awareness! In fact, 43.5% of students surveyed are most interested in deals and promotions on their community’s social

media platforms.

• Recruitbrandambassadorsora“StreetTeam”—participants can help market your community by handing out branded giveaways, sharing information about the community, or visiting events to promote the community. Reward team members with rent discounts or other small incentives!

Gain an Audience

• ConsidersettingupaTwitterorInstagramaccountfor your community, to connect with residents—many Facebookusersarenowflockingtothesetwosocialplatforms. By adding a presence for your community on these, you’ll be on trend with student renters and capture their attention!

• Addphotos.Millennialsarehighlyvisual,andwantto see images—especially of interiors, amenities and community lifestyle. Popular among this age group are “selfies”, photos that are taken by oneself to share via social media. Encourage student residents to share your community through their eyes on your social media platforms - a great way for prospective renters catch a glimpse into what your community is all about! 43% of students find photos most appealing when it comes to a community’s social media presence.

Engagement6

There is a huge opportunity for communities to engage with student renters on social media. While 46% of students surveyed connect and prefer to engage with their communityonFacebook,anearly-equalamount(42%)ofstudentsdonotengagesociallywith their community at all. As a FRU customer, you have a great opportunity to reach

both groups since social media is a significant part of your listing’s details. FRU makes it easy for you to engage with renters and prospects and encourages more likes and followers to your social media pages! Here are some great ways to build social engagement with student renters:

Inform Instantly

In addition to engaging on social media, 77% of students surveyed say that they would join a mobile text messaging program provided by their community, such as FRMobile’s Text-a-Resident/Text-a-Prospect, which gives communities the opportunity to connect and engage with renters and prospects in order to share important information via text message. This age group sends an average of 75 to 100 texts a day, so a program like Text-A-Resident/Text-A-Prospect is a great way to reach them!

You could give students the chance to opt-in to receive messages regarding topics that are most valuable to them, including shuttle schedule changes, resident events, campus news, community updates and emergencies. Students want to be a part of their community, and having access to important information via text is an easy, effective way to keep them in the loop about what’s going on in your community. Just be sure you don’t send too many text messages—they don’t want to be overloaded with information, such as a text letting them know their rent is due! Keeping in touch and sharing relevant updates with residents may impact their decision of whether to renew their lease and lead to their retention for the duration of their college years.

77Percent

would join amobile text messaging program

provided by their community

Engagement7

Discover More#DiscoveringU

Become Digitally Savvy

Apartment shopping on mobile devices, including tablets, is becoming more common at 29%, especially since sites like ForRentUniversity.com use responsive design, which makes viewing rentals on-the-go easy. However, a whopping 79% of students surveyed still prefer to use a desktop to conduct a more thorough search, because they are able to take the time to share and compare multiple apartments and print out listings that they are interested in. ForRentUniversity.com is a great resource for students and parents at any point in the apartment search process!

Students are not just looking at one website to make a decision, either. Over half of all students surveyed review 3ormoresites,includinginternetlistingservices(ILSs),university websites, and apartment rating sites when conducting a Google search for off-campus housing. Students desire multiple validation touchpoints when searching for an off-campus apartment, and they are seeking consistent content across platforms. 25% of students surveyed either review websites of individual apartment communities or apartment ratings websites when conducting their off-campus apartment search.

Over 47% of students surveyed use an ILS such as ForRentUniversity.com to find the right community for them. ForRentUniversity.com is the perfect place for your community to be seen, since it is a unique ILS that is tailored to fit the needs of students and parents. It provides users the opportunity to search using filters that are relevant to students, including distance to campus, amenities and price, and also offers helpful resources that both students and parents will appreciate.

79Percent

47Percent

students searchon a tablet device

students prefer to use a desktop

students surveyed using an ILS

29Percent

ILS

Search8

Lights, Camera, Action!

Once students have found your community on an ILS, such as ForRentUniversity.com, it’s important to provide the content that they are looking for. Since 70% of students use video as part of the decision-making process, it’s more valuable than ever to provide videos showcasing your community and lifestyle. Some students are from out of the state or even out of the country, so they do not have the opportunity to visit the community before signing a lease. Your videos should showcase these four things:

• Community Belonging: Highlight how your community engages with residents and makes them feel welcome.• Resident Life: Showcase the lifestyles of your student renters to give prospective renters an opportunity to

visualize themselves living in your community.• Apartment interiors: High-quality photos and video are especially important for students who will not see the

apartment in-person before making their decision!• Resident testimonials: Renters want to know that other residents have enjoyed living in your community. After all,

75% of renters base their rental decisions on ratings and reviews.

students use video as a part of their decision-making process 70

Percent

base their rental decisions on ratings and reviews75

Percent

Search9

Discover More#DiscoveringU

Now that you have more insight into what the student renter is looking for and how they search for off-campus housing, it’s important to build a marketing strategy that reaches this demographic. ForRentUniversity.com is the ideal way to capture these renters—it can be your digital marketing strategy to help diversify your off-campus community to include students, their parents, and their university.

Students are busy, so ForRentUniversity.com provides the search options that students desire in order to make the off-campus apartment search an easy process.

ForRentUniversity.com is more than just an ILS—it gives you the opportunity to expand your digital reach using social media, mobile technology and video, and provides reputation management to help you listen and respond to what students are saying about your community.

You’ve seen what considerations students make when deciding where to live and how they prefer to search for an off-campus apartment—and now, with the help of ForRentUniversity.com, you’ll be able to tailor your marketing strategy to reach this unique demographic in an impactful way.

Conclusion10

Discover ForRentUniversity.com

Discover More#DiscoveringU

For More Information on For Rent Media Solutions, visit www.ForRent.com.

For Rent Media Solutions™

For Rent Media Solutions™ provides property managers and owners with diverse marketing and advertising products created to drive

LEADS. These products are easy to use, easy to understand and designed with the renters in mind. For Rent Media Solutions published

ForRent.com® Magazine and other targeted publications nationwide, as well as operates five niche websites for apartment shoppers. For

Rent Media Solutions displays your community listings in various mediums, including print, social, online, mobile and video, all distributed

on an extensive network. Visit ForRent.com for more information.

Special Thanks to the Following Contributors of Connect &

Discover: Digital Savvy Student Whitepaper:

Brittany Worrell Boyce

Berick Bacani

Mike Barnes

Erica Campbell Byrum

Daniel Davidson

Lester dela Cruz

Wendy Froehlich

AJ Hartless

Kim Cory

Amanda McCrowell

Terry Slattery

Will Stacy

Christie Fleck Struble

Conclusion11

Cory brings more than 15 years of student housing experience and most recently served as the director of sales and marketing for

University Village/Homestead America in Columbus, Ohio. While in this position, Cory managed the day-to-day operations, marketing/

sales programs and public relations and staffing initiatives as well as training and development for more than 2,000 units. She has an

established record of leadership in developing successful sales teams and is driven to give customers a positive memorable experience

through customer service. She continually strives to build and enhance brand awareness by identifying with today’s college student,

friends, parents and universities. Cory is a recognized national speaker and has been featured in several industry publications. She is

based out of Columbus.

About Kim Cory

Begin discovering TODAY

created for YOUand designed with

DISCOVER a diverse media solution…

YOUR prospect in mind.

bit.ly/ConnectandDiscover