40 Social Media Post Ideas for Apartment Communities

My apologies for this being the longest post in my blogging history, but you will thank me in the end. I normally preach short blogging, but the simple format should make it easy to extract the information you want. 

-Remember your objectives. Help prospects come to the best property in the area, reduce costs... It is ok to post about water & energy conservation and such. You will be surprised at the outcome of awareness. 

-Some posts created for one platform such as Facebook, may not be right for another platform.  So, use the following apartment community social media posting guide and let me know if you have any struggles with your campaign. 

-Post updates frequently, but right for the platform. For example, post to Facebook 3-5 times per week. No more, no less. Hubspot reported pages under 10k followers experiences a 50% drop in engagement per post if they posted more than once per day. 

Ideas for Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest Posting

Post updates frequently, but right for the platform. Post on Facebook 3-5 times per week. No more, no less. Hubspot reported pages under 10k followers experienced a 50% drop in engagement per post if they posted more than once per day. See my blog post on this subject for other platforms. 

Test posting times by posting at varied times of day. 

1. Share funny photos & videos for sharing. Happy residents sell other residents.
2. Ask for feedback on property improvements
3. Post about amenities
4. Unit availability
5. Share promotions 
6. Ask for “likes”
7. Post questions. Facebook software ranks comments higher.
8. Tag & like local business & community pages
9. Ask poll questions with multiple choices
10. Share local deals, specials, coupons, etc.
11. Post tips & how-to’s that are helpful
12. Follow-up with responses & tag individuals to encourage conversation
13. Encourage energy and water conservation 
14. Recognize acts of kindness, etc.
15. Shopping lists and meal planning on a budget
16. Holiday fun
17. Share event photos & news
18. Share local business & community updates
19. Share community pet photos
20. Share your Pinterest photos
21. Share fun quotes
22. Post “this or that” types of questions
23. Share pet-lover updates ie. vets, spas, sitters, etc.
24. Post the community newsletter
25. Address community questions
26. Host a Tweet-up for your city or local social group
27. Indoor gardens, food, & recipes
28. Fitness tips & how-to’s are helpful
29. Promote your website or app
30. Share moving tips & advice
31. Local employment opportunities
32. Update career advice & industry news

33. organizing spaces

34. Decorating limited spaces

35. Fitness tips 

36. Career opportunities 

37. Fun commercials

38. Drone pics of your property

39. Word search or crossword puzzle of your area

40. Summer concert announcements

 

If you want help implementing your social media strategy or reputation management, please contact us at www.ellevengroup.com. Or if you are reading this after July 1, 2019 visit www.chatterstart.com for immediate pricing. 

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How to Deal with a Bad Social Media Review

Depending on the social media platform, your strategy will vary. Doing what is right by the customer is always the best way to manage these issues. You always want to make the customer happy. Upon reading this you likely have a problem, but in the future it is best to satisfy your customer before they get to the posting phase of doing business with you.

In general you will want to follow these steps to deal with a bad customer review. 

1. Calm down.  Only contact the offending reviewer with a level head.
2. Try to contact the customer offline – or at least off the review site itself. Best is to be able to talk to them in person or over the phone. See if they left a comment card or if you have any contact information for them.
3. Be overly polite and nice. People have a hard time arguing with polite people. (Kill ’em with kindness!)
4. Tell them you understand their frustration or why they are upset. Empathy wins.
5. Take steps to clear up the issue and make an honest effort to do so.
6. Make sure that there is verifiable or at least anecdotal evidence the consumer or ex-employee will be able to see and believe the issue is resolved.
7. Ask them to remove or at least modify their review.
8. Explain to them that other people work there and that bad reviews are hurting their friends that work there or people who count on those jobs to support their families.
9. It’s not about you! It’s about them.  Make them think they are doing a good deed by removing their review.
10. Offer them something in return as a gesture of good faith, such as a free coffee or free meal at your restaurant or cafe, or to come in and see changes you have made that will alleviate their concerns.

If the claim if false, vulgar or inappropriate you will want to contact Yelp, Facebook, Google or whomever controls the platform of the post for resolution. Our first advice here is to try your best to work with them. DO NOT get into a fire fight with these companies. This will not work out. Persistence and understanding will be your best tools with them. If that doesn't work, contact us and we will see what we can do. There is no sure solution in these situations, but the majority can be remedied.   

How to Use Ephemoral Content in Your Social Media

Once Snapchat started the fire, Facebook and Instagram weren't far behind. Your message should be short and sweet. That is what "Ephemoral Content" is. And there is one caveat, it disappears after 24 hours. The attention span of not only the rising generations has changed expectations, but the attention span of the general public has changed as well. This leaves us as marketers and business owners in a change or die position. To better illustrate the point, Statista reported 188 million daily Snapchat users, not to mention 400 million Instagram stories every single day. Are you profiting off that activity?   

What content can I use for ephemeral topics or posts? Ephomoral posts can be about trending topics or even regional events and weather. It is ok to create a post about an unexpected winter storm in spring, get traction with it and then let it fall off your page. A flash sale, holiday discount, office birthday or live event would run perfectly on this platform. "Don't miss out" really applies here. It's not just a gimmick. 

Ephemoral content also allows you to convert tire kickers into buyers with incentives to buy now. Use colors and design that will grab attention and are relevant to your message. 

When writing ephemeral ad content, be sure to have a strong and clear call to action. "Today only" or "20% off Easter Weekend" set a clear deadline and create on urgency in the buyer's mind. Keep copy to a minimum. You don't have long to grab their attention; 3 seconds on average.  

Blogs are getting shorter and more to the point as well. So, go create some ephemeral content and dominate your marketplace. 

Google AdWords Rebranding to Google Ads

On July 24, 2018, Google AdWords is becoming Google Ads. This new Google Ads brand represents the full range of campaign types available today, including search, display and video. 

What’s changing?

Starting July 24, 2018, you will begin to see the new Google Ads brand-including the new name and logo-reflected in the product interface, Help Center, billing documents, and more. The URL you use to access your account will be changing from adwords.google.com to ads.google.com, and the Help Center, (which I use), will change from support.google.com/adwords to support.google.com/google-ads. Changes to the Google Ads branding will not impact your campaign performance, navigation, or reporting. 

To learn more about this change, including changes to the DoubleClick Digital Marketing and Google Analytics 360 Suite brands, read about the new brands for their advertising products on the Google blog. 

Credits: shared from www.adwords.google.com

6 Reasons New Years Resolutions Fail

So you’re full of turkey, your fingers hurt from wrapping presents and you’ve got a stomach full of egg nog. What’s next?

While the holidays are mostly reserved for close friends and family, perhaps the most personally satisfying of them all is welcoming the new year.

A new year brings a new chance with new opportunities. It’s an ideal time to focus on self-improvement, setting new ambitions, and starting over. What about that extra ten pounds of body fat you’ve been trying to lose? You could set a resolution to shed it by the summer. Problem solved! Right?

Possibly, but…

A recent study conducted by the University of Scranton suggests that only 8% of people actually follow through with New Years resolutions. 

Why is it that so many of us just can’t follow through? Here are 6 reasons why we fail.

Failure to plan

Fail to plan, fail to succeed. Setting the resolution is half the battle. You also need a plan. Place the same amount of importance on this as the resolution itself.

Unclear goals

In today’s world we rely a great deal on GPS. But our destination is usually clear before we even set foot in our vehicles. There may be a dozen ways to get to the same place, but in the end you arrive at the desired destination. Before you commit to your resolution, be absolutely clear about what you want.

Distractions

What was I about to talk about again? Oh yeah, distractions. In 2018, distractions are becoming an ordinary part of our daily life. It’s nearly impossible to steer clear of just about all of them. I get it, they’re everywhere. But tuning these out—even keeping them at a minimum—is critical if you’re going to succeed.

Unrealistic expectations

Imagine a 9 month old baby running a 100 meter dash before they’ve even taken their first steps. Sort of impossible to fathom, right? That’s because it’s not very realistic. Your resolutions should reflect the reality of where you currently are and you should use this to measure just how far you’d like to go. Make it challenging, yet pragmatic and sensible.

Lack of consistency

So you’ve established your goals. They’re clear, you’ve got your plan, you’re prepared. But now you have to stick with it. Now you have to be consistent. Imagine riding a bicycle and slamming on the brakes every 5 seconds. You’d never get anywhere would you? Once you’ve settled on what you want, you must constantly work on it. Every. Single. Day.

Lack of Self Belief

You’ve probably heard the age old saying: seeing is believing. But, this message in reverse rings just as true. Before you can achieve something, you must be able to expect it of yourself. This comes with believing you can do it. Believe in yourself, and you’ve won half the battle.

Take it one step at a time!

The first day of the year brings with it quite a bit of responsibility. We’re given a whole new set of 365 days. It’s a lot of time and we’ve got a lot to think about. But the only way anyone’s every run a marathon is by putting one foot in front of the other. You take one step at a time and before you know it, you’re at the finish line.

Sell Your Business for MORE With These Steps

The present value of your business is based on a few components. I will quickly glance over some but want to get into preparing your business to sell so I will be very brief. If there is enough interest I will have a friend in the business post as well and possibly speak at one of our seminars sponsored by elleven marketing group. If you are really serious about selling your company then you will want to have a valuation done on your company. We have friends that will do this for free for smaller businesses so don't pay for a business valuation unless you absolutely have to. That being said, assets are an obvious part of the value of your company. Buildings, inventory, equipment...everything on your balance sheet. (If you don't have a good set of books, your company will be difficult to sell) But outside the obvious, the real value the prospective buyer looks at is...Expected Future Earnings.

So what is "Expected Future Earnings" worth? Well, that depends on factors such as how predicable the earnings are, how long the projected sales will be sustained, level of risk, size of existing company, anticipated earnings from growth, etc. 

Revenue is a strong indicator, but profitability goes hand in hand with it. don't let anyone tell you differently. With revenue say your company sells $100, 000 per year, that is basically a $100, 000 per year revenue stream. Quite often businesses are valued on a multiple of revenue. The multiple generally depends on the industry so you may need help with that. But so you know what you are talking about, multiplied by two is called a "two times sale", by one is called a "one times sale" etc. 

This multiplier is heavily altered by profitability. A company could do $3 Billion in annual sales, so would it be worth $3 Billion? Obviously not. 

So what are the factors you can work on first to most dramatically increase the value of your business? That's right, revenue and profitability. This is where a SWOT analysis is vital. If you haven't already had one. Our team will do one free of charge. Again, elleven marketing group changes zero dollars for this service. It identifies Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats. Then we know what strategy you will need to put in place to bring up your revenue and profitability. Don't call a broker until you have a plan and know where you are going. Most won't give you the time of day. If they do, you will most likely not get as much for your company as you would otherwise. It is better to sell a remodeled house that operates well and it is better to sell a remodeled business. 

Written by Samuel Sadler of elleven marketing group 

11 Point Marketing Plan

So many consultants make a marketing plan sound so complex that the average business owner won't understand what they are talking about. So I thought I would put down the 11 most necessary things that should be in your marketing plan to at least get you started and give you some idea of where you are going. I could obviously write a book or eleven about the subject so be aware there is a lot more to it. But here is a very uncomplicated version. Some look old school, but they are there because they work.

1. Market Research- This will save you a lot of time. Your business idea may already exist, not be profitable enough for your interest... Here is some of the research that needs to be done:

• Demographics
• Existing competition and sales
• Existing products/services
• Existing Pricing and Demand
• Needs for your product or services. Yes, this is different than demand. 
• Suppliers

Don't start #2-10 until you have done #1, but keep the rest in mind while doing #1.

2. Target Market

• 
  
• What part of the market are you going after? Are you going for a niche?

3. Product

• How does your product compare against what is currently available? How is it different?

4. Competition

• Who is your competition and what makes you different? How does your approach differ?

5. Core Values and Mission Statement

• Talk about your customer, your product and what makes you different. Talk about your "Why". Why do you do what you do? Partner with Bigger Than Cancer or local schools? 

6. Marketing Strategies

• What is your greatest opportunity? Where is the gap between you and your competition?
• Will you hold trade shows? Partner with Bigger Than Cancer? Local Schools? Will kids sell your product as a fund raiser? Training programs? How will you hit a niche or a market your competition is not?
• How will you create a buying opportunity your competitor cannot? 

7. Pricing and Positioning

• This should be obvious from the info you got from your research in #1

8. Branding

• This is your corporate identity and who you are. Starbucks is a consistent product with a power outlet and internet connection. Atmosphere is casual but professional to attract business meetings and professionals. You know you will pay more, but will sit with a different crowd and won't be interrupted by screaming kids.   

9. Budget

• What is it going to take to run your strategy and how quickly do you need to execute that strategy? A strategy doesn't have to break the bank. 

10. Marketing Goals

• What do you want to accomplish? What are realistic, quantifiable goals?

11. Monitor Results

• Track your sales, lead flow, trffic, conversion ratios, 
• Everything CRM, if you are too small for a CRM use Evernote, Google Docs, something! You cannot track your conversion ratios if you are not capturing contact info and following potential clients through the process. 
• Yes, surveying clients still works but is based on their honesty so it is best to have a third party do the asking. 
• DEFINITELY encourage and reward your clients for online reviews. One client, a small carpet cleaning company had a tiny budget and that is all we did for them the first year. It was ridiculously successful. 

If you have questions about any of the above either email me at here or visit our website here

8 Ways to Increase Conversion Ratios with Video

#1 Use frequently in Social Media- How To's are a great way to keep in touch with prospective clients. Give them real golden nuggets they can use that have real value in a quick, concise manor. Many of our clients have found that a new weekly video has not only gotten them higher conversion rates, but have increased client loyalty and even saved money in their Tech Support departments as their clients become more knowledgeable through their weekly training videos.

#2  Insert a Lead Capture Form- I know it sounds cheesy, but in many cases works. That's what your video production should be all about is what works. Don't let the artists in your video company make art overrule making money. Wistia offers a feature called a Turnstile so you can pop a lead capture form anywhere in your video. It's worth the argument with your video company.

When Wistia analyzed over 15k videos with turnstiles they found that videos that had turnstiles placed in the first 10-20% of the video had the highest conversion rates, (roughly 38-43%) with 20% conversion rate at the 70 mark and 15% at the 90 mark. When the video completes, the percentage drops by 80%. You can either contact elleven group at www.ellevengroup.com or DIY at Wistia.com

#3 Keep it short and entertaining, especially if it is the first one your prospect sees. In our fast-paced world where we watch over 4 Billion videos a day on YouTube you have to compete for time with awesome content, value or entertainment in as short an amount of time as possible. It is better to have a viewer go back and watch a part over again or click on the next video than to become bored with the content altogether.

#4 Use a custom thumbnail- A smiling human face or really interesting pic will do the trick. Smiles are internationally recognized as being inviting and disarming. Have you ever seen a Residential Realtor's business card without their smile mug plastered on it? It's there because it has been tested and it works. Even if they are goofy looking the branding company or photographer should be able to work with it. Yes, some people would rather do business with goofy looking people because they sympathize with them, feel they would be honest and would work harder for their business.

#5 Frontload your videos so the viewer gets the most information possible. If you struggle with this you can always go back to the old saying, "Tell them what you are going to tell them, tell them" CUT THERE! (and insert a call to action)

#6 Instill Trust Immediately- It is still hard to beat the CEO of a company on a homepage. Approaching the viewer in a trustworthy pose getting them to emotionally buy in. Take ownership of problems and give them a personal touch. Then they can view more info once they have bought in. Many companies have reported this alone has increased conversion rates by up to 80%. We have seen it do better than that when it is done right. Here is a Dominos Pizza President J. Patrick Doyle  taking responsibity for actions https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AH5R56jILag within the company. Do you see the impact?

#7 Words of warning- Clients love to hear where the landmines are in the industry. You gain credibility and gain that patriarchal role very quickly.

#8 Share your video EVERYWHERE you can. Especially with Google using word recognition software to SEO your video you should leverage your video production as much as possible. People nowadays would rather watch a 2 minute video than read a 4 page report...So give them what they want and let them buy from you.

Reference sources:
Dominos Pizza President J. Patrick Doyle
Wistia website, Margot Twitter comments
https://wistia.com/doc/turnstile#add_turnstile_to_your_video

Does a Non Profit Need a Model Release?

I could start by telling one of many stories where someone did something stupid and got in trouble, or a touching story about how a video more than quadrupled a non profits donations, but that's not the speed of the internet. You want the nitty gritty and you want it now. So here goes.

First off, if you are publishing a photo/video for educational or informational purposes the general rule is that you DO NOT need a model release. When use changes to commercial purposes, you do. Just like any law there are some gray areas for what I am talking about here. That is why you don't see a lot of definitive writing about it. But if you stick to those guidelines in general it will keep you out of trouble.

Second, if they tell you not to film them, don't. Even if you have a great shot or footage of them, cut your losses. Believe me, it's worth it. You and the company you shoot for will be glad you did.

Third, if they say you can use their footage in writing, you can. It is obviously better to have the full release form signed.... but if you get an email or text message from them stating that you have permission then you should be just fine. It is few and far between when someone sues the little production company that can't pay out a lot. They usually go after the bigger pockets.

Fourth, claiming the first amendment you can shoot in public places. Do not let your camera linger on one person or event such as a wedding or you will probably get the cops called on you whether you have good intentions or not. Especially not a kid no matter what craziness they are up to. If there is a crime scene you can film public servants such as police officers and fire fighters but do not focus straight on attention to grieving or injured people. Be compassionate of what they are experiencing and get glancing or off-angle shots more behind them then beside or in front of them.

Fifth, it is best practice to announce they are being filmed at functions or fundraisers. Anyone not wishing to be filmed will then either mention they do not want to filmed or stay out of your way.

Best of luck to you in your filming and non profit projects. Please feel free to contact me with any questions. This blog is meant for entertainment purposes. One should first contact an Attorney for interpretation of laws or before proceeding with said activities. Thank you to Kivi Leroux Miller for some of the content of this article.

Diagnosed- Diagnosed the TV Show has been announced to air this November. I am Samuel Sadler Creator of Diagnosed the TV Show. I wanted to personally write this blog entry as this project is so dear to my heart. We are using our production company ADHD Creative to film this life changing show. The show will follow people from the time they are diagnosed with cancer through the entire battle in a real and unscripted format. 

The show will help the cast members with their needs. They may have no way of paying medical bills, they may want to see snow for the first time, meet a celebrity or they may just want to be normal for a little while. We can help them make their dreams come true with the help of our sponsors and hero contributors. We set up channels for contributors to donate to a specific cast member so this show will be more intimate than the world is used to and people will know who their money is helping.    

On August 1st 2014 we opened up The official Diagnosed TV Show Facebook page to a limited number of friends and then to the public August 8th. We launched the official Diagnosed TV Show Twitter account @DiagnosedTV August 1st as well. We are now in the casting call stage and are accepting applications for cast members. Anyone having been diagnosed with cancer is encouraged to apply. We recommend videos accompany the entries. 

We understand we cannot help everyone that cancer affects, but we can change the lives of a number of them. Our focus is not to cure cancer, but to improve the lives of some of those that have been diagnosed. We want to encourage them and many others in their fight against cancer. 

This is a very personal and emotional project for us. Please accept my personal invitation to you to join us in this amazing cause and change the lives of many forever. They just might change yours. 

Please visit www.diagnosed.tv for more information and find us on Facebook or Twitter. We appreciate the outpouring of support that has come in this first week and look forward to working with you all in this amazing project. Please contact us if you would like to be involved in any way. There is need for help in almost every aspect of the project.  

   

Diozati Construction Group has a new name, a new look, new officers and a new Agency of Record. Diozati Construction Group in Corinth, Denton County Texas is has changed things up. No more of the South Florida Sunshine Renovations, having moved to the Denton area some 7 years ago General Partner and 51% owner of the company mentioned, "We moved here from Boca Raton, FL and have loved being here. We love the people and the eclectic culture Denton offers. We thought it was time for a change and needed a brand that said who we are, not where we used to live. Diozati was the perfect brand for us and it fits like a high performance sports car. I like how sports cars fit better than gloves." 

Don't let the "General Partner" title fool you. Jerri Sadler runs Diozati Construction Group. She is not the average little blonde with a Cosmetology License. She runs the company with a passion for style and excellence. "Every project we do is like a sculpture. They all have something beautiful inside, the artist simply has to chisel away the extra stone." 

Diozati Construction Group services include roofing, General Contracting, concrete, stone, painting, gutters...anything you would need to repair or update a home. Diozati prides themselves on working within almost any budget making them very popular among Realtors, Home Inspectors, Real Estate Investors and other industry professionals. The attribute Realtors reportedly like the best is the speed Diozati is able to complete a project to meet a closing deadline or to get a house on the market quickly under budget. 

When  it came to choosing an Agency of Record Diozati chose the elleven marketing group who developed their new name and look and Diozati is putting the word out that they mean business. 

There are two very impressive new programs Diozati has launched. First is the english program to teach all their employees and subcontractors english. "Some of our people will not stay as long because once they learn english they are worth more money and they will go to other companies. The ones that do stay will be more loyal than ever. Besides, it's the right thing to do. They are more confident now. Although we always have someone on the job that speaks english for our client's convenience, soon almost everyone will be able to communicate better with the client." says Mrs. Sadler. They welcome any volunteers to help with the program.       

The second program is the water test. Diozati will water test every roof before they leave the project. they say, "It only makes sense to be sure something works before leaving the client's property. It is better for us to leave with the peace of mind it is done correctly and won't leak." They are reportedly the only residential roofing contractor to do either one of these practices. I don't think they are just another Denton roofer. I think they are a Denton roofer with style.         

Find out more about Diotati Construction Group at their website here or www.diozati.com or find them on Facebook here or https://www.facebook.com/diozati or at the Denton Chamber of Commerce. 

  

How To Get On diy network

There are a few ways to get on a major network such as diy network as our clients can tell you. Almost all our clients have been on major TV networks. There are very few marketing credentials that rival being featured on network television so here are a few roads you can take to get there.  

First- You can go to a link in the capacity of a guest on demand. This means that the network will request certain people, companies or projects like a casting call. Editors, Writers and Journalists of many types and mediums request guests or subjects as well so make sure you ask your agency of record to make you aware of any opportunities that come up as the credibility coming from such activities is great. You can click here to see what diy network is currently looking for.  

Second- Create your own show and get it on a network. There are a lot of ways to accomplish this. You want to start with a production company that will help you get the proper documents in place to protect you and then get you with the correct people that can make your vision a reality. The production company can help you with a show treatment, pilot, teaser, sponsors, etc. Even if they are not the right people to take you there, most will at least point you in the right direction. 

Third- Advertise on an existing show- This can be very effective as the talent typically endorses you and you are in good position with the viewers. If you take this route, make sure you get a clip with the talent reviewing your product/service. This is a great bang for your buck when it comes to marketing dollars. Your marketing agency of record will be able to turn that into gold. For example, elleven marketing group currently handles advertising on diy network, BIZTV and all other sponsorship opportunities for SIRETV or "Success In Real Estate TV", a show directed toward those wanting to buy homes for tens of thousands of dollars less that retail. Many of the viewers are Real Estate Investors. Click here to visit the elleven marketing group website. 

Fourth- Buy Airtime- Enough said. Make sure you see a "cost per ten thousand" (viewers) and/or a media packet for the show and/or time slot on the network. This will dictate to a certain extent how much your air time costs. Try to advertise during a show that not only has a similar target audience you have, but one that also shares your philosophy, ethics, ideals and possibly niche markets such as real estate investing, small business, etc... 

Fifth- Do something so ground-breaking, amazing or creative it warrants being featured on a TV show. Once you have done this Producers may contact you or you can contact the Producer of the show to see if they are interested in what you have done. 

Keep in mind on many shows the Producers may be looking not only for content, but for value you can bring or offer the show and/or it's viewers. If the show can profit from having you on your chances of getting what you want rise accordingly.