Being a property manager is as much about managing relationships as it is about managing a business. Keeping homeowners informed with the latest news and updates is an essential part of resident satisfaction and maintaining a healthy, productive operation. Here are five ways you can make communicating with residents more effective and efficient.
Centralize Communication
In an era where everyone relies on their smartphones for all forms of communication, it only makes sense to embrace the technology available to you to communicate with your tenants. But between text messages, emails, and phone calls, it’s hard to maintain clear lines of communication with tenants, and stay proactive. Using software like Usewalter that centralizes communication with tenants through a live chat feature and email integration on one platform, you can streamline maintenance requests, inquiries and spend less time making calls or following-up with numerous texts.
Keep Your Resident Contact Information Up To Date
It is often a challenge to keep in touch with your residents if they change their phone numbers or get a new email address. And updating contact information each time a change occurs only adds to your workload. With Usewalter, all of your residents’ contact information exists in one place, and you can communicate easily with them without having to worry about which phone number or email is appropriate.
Establish A Target Response Time
There can be a long delay between receiving a maintenance request and resolving the issue. Missed calls and unanswered emails can pile up and create an unnecessary back-and-forth that further delays addressing the issue. That’s why it is essential to establish a target response time to follow up with residents in a timely and efficient manner. Usewalter’s platform lets you create and assign tasks with your building staff, so you can resolve issues more efficiently and keep your tenants updated on progress using the live chat feature.
Keep Residents Informed
Nobody likes a surprise – especially when it comes to where they live. Keeping residents informed of any news or notices related to their building helps establish trust and reassures them that their home is well-managed. The news announcement feature on the Usewalter platform allows property managers to immediately inform residents of any upcoming routine maintenance and building updates without having to publish memos or print paper. Tools like this that are easily accessible on a single platform minimize the steps needed to communicate more effectively and ensures residents receive the information.
Create A Sense of Community
The easiest way to help residents feel at home is to help cultivate a sense of community. And one way of doing this is to encourage feedback. Let residents know that their opinions matter, and invite them to get in touch with you directly. The live chat feature on Usewalter facilitates easy communication between residents and property managers, and keeps interactions conversational.
Finding ways to keep the lines of communication open, clear and friendly with your residents will increase your productivity, improve your customer service, and minimize the time you might spend chasing after people or keeping track of tasks.
