This is the first in a two-part series about improving the resident experience by providing self service options that enable prospects and residents to engage with your properties on their terms and timetable.

As housing prices and interest rates remain high, home ownership seems less attainable for an ever growing segment of the population. Approximately 36% of the population currently rent and with occupancy rates remaining in the mid-to-high nineties, competition to retain current residents and/or contract with new residents is going to be stiff. Because of this, you’ll need to look for more ways to differentiate yourself from competing properties. This includes everything from the amenities you offer to the services you provide all the way down to how easy it is to rent from you. 

That’s where self service comes into play. It removes a lot of the friction and time spent waiting on the phone or going into the office to get questions answered, make a maintenance request, or pay rent, among other things. Research shows that the most important thing businesses can do for consumers is show they value their time. When it comes to responses from businesses, a majority want that response to be within 10 minutes.

Whether you’re working on site at the property or in the leasing office, you have a lot on your plate. Sometimes you won’t be able to respond in the timeframe residents and prospects expect, which could lead to a poor experience and lower resident satisfaction. By providing a way for them to answer questions on their own, you’re giving them what they need, when they want it, while freeing up your staff to focus on more complex interactions that might take longer to work through.

Characteristics of a good self service process

When implementing a self service strategy, it’s important to have an understanding of your residents. 

• What are the repetitive tasks that can easily be handled by automation, AI, or by the residents themselves? 
• What will they want to do themselves, what will be difficult for them to do by themselves? 
• Is your audience tech savvy enough to navigate the process on their own?
• What are their preferred communication channels?

Answering these questions will help determine whether or not self service will work at your properties. Once you’ve made the determination that self-service will work for you, start building your strategy around these three pillars—seamlessness, control, speed.

Seamlessness

Today’s renter wants you to meet them where they’re at. Whether that be text, email, phone, or finding the answers themselves, they expect to receive the same level of service regardless of channel. As applicants make their way along the leasing process, it is likely that they will go from self service, to interacting with your site and leasing teams, and back again. The transition between each communications channel should be seamless¹.

Nothing frustrates residents more than having to repeat themselves every time they engage with someone at your properties. To prevent this, there should be documentation of what occurred during each interaction and when they occurred, including a log of self service interactions as well. For example, if the applicant engaged with your chatbot, what question did they ask? 

Control

Timing is everything in business and today’s residents want the ability to engage with you on their terms. That means without having to go into the office or waiting on hold for you to answer. It’s all about giving residents the tools they need to engage with you in a way they’re most comfortable and when it comes to Gen Z/Millennial renters they're typically more comfortable handling it on their own. Simply put, put residents in the driver’s seat².

Speed

The biggest benefit residents are looking for when it comes to self service is speed. They want transactions (paying rent, gaining access, requesting maintenance) to happen in real time, and they want updates on those interactions to come in real time to (especially when it relates to service being done on their unit, i.e. when is the technician going to arrive, when are they done, what did they do when they were there?)³. 

Don’t worry if it’s hard in the beginning

Self service has a lot in common with automation. Both speed up processes and free up time for your teams, but can be a real headache if not executed correctly. In the beginning, it may be hard, especially figuring out what your staffing needs will be after implementing these new technologies, but over time you’ll hit a rhythm and know where time and energy are saved and where you need to move your focus to next.

Learn more 

To learn more about how Entrata can help you deliver self service options to residents and prospects, request a demo today or check out our ebook, The Multifamily Guide to Self Service.

¹ 3 Essential Characteristics Of Self-Service
‍² 3 Essential Characteristics Of Self-Service
‍³ 3 Essential Characteristics Of Self-Service‍