How to Get the Most Positive Reviews from Your Renters and Avoid Negative Ones

It seems like the only ones that write negative reviews are the few “bad actors” living in the buildings we manage

Whenever people search for an apartment or a housing provider, what do they look for? They look for reviews and ratings. Whatever services and properties you manage should be on your website. It all comes down to the ratings and reviews your property or management company gets.

But, how do you receive positive reviews? Through good marketing, of course!!!! While you may think of marketing as the “thing” that attracts renters, effective marketing also delivers positive reviews. Effective marketing and positive reviews must be made part of your ongoing process. You cannot say which comes first, just like the chicken and the egg. You need to take care of both. Once you get good reviews, you need to add them into online search advertisements and other marketing materials. Here are the steps that can help you get the most positive reviews and reduce or eliminate the negative ones:

Ask In Person. The best way to get good reviews is to ask in person. When you work with a resident who is happy with you, remind them to give you a review and hopefully a positive one. A personal request can be one of the most highly effective ways to “score” a positive review. Studies suggest that asking in person can increase the chances of receiving a favorable review by up to 7 to 8 times than by asking through email. The “key” when asking for a review is have the person who is most connected to the renter request the review. For example, if your head of maintenance or onsite manager, not you, had most of the dealings with the renter, that is who should ask for the review. As the customer, the renter trusts the person they have dealt with and are more likely to provide a review and in doing so, respond positively.

Ask Via Email. If you or those that work for you were not able to ask for the review in person, contact your former renters via email. Asking for reviews through email can seem tricky. Here’s a tip: send a survey and in it ask for your former tenant to grade certain aspects of their experience while living on your property before sending a request to write a review. By getting back the survey, you will know whether your former resident was happy with you and / or your property, and if not, you merely won’t request them to write a review. If their survey responses ae negative, you obviously would not ask them for a review, but at least you can use the information you received in the survey to learn how you can make improvements.

Here are some tips you can use to write an email for requesting a review:

• The email should be from a real person’s address, rather than the company’s address. You or your team member should send the email.
• You should ask for a review nicely, keeping your tone formal, upbeat and professional.
• Include a clear and concise “call to action” message and a button or link to the survey.
• Address the person by their name to add a personalized touch.

Use Social Media. You or your company should have a Facebook page and a Twitter account. You should also learn to work on social media, interact with the audience and ask your renters for reviews. Facebook and Twitter can prove pivotal for marketing your property(ies). Potential renters can learn more about you through social media and will frequently study your reviews before contacting you.

Negative Reviews. Do not be afraid about receiving negative reviews. Even the world’s top companies and leading brands get negative reviews. You can use the negative reviews for your marketing also by developing inspiration from negative reviews and creating marketing content. You can even search engine optimize (SEO) your reply making the negative review a ‘win-win” situation for you. Furthermore, the one thing you should always do is to reply to every review. Yes, even the negative ones. You might be able to give a proper explanation as to what caused the resident’s problem, or even acknowledge a mistake and describe how you have taken steps to correct the matter. The potential customers who could be reading any review would most definitely be satisfied with your reply.