What better way to step up your virtual touring strategy than to host a Virtual Open House? The Remy, a LIVEbe community, hosted a 100% virtual house which resulted in 51 participants and 9 signed leases by 4 PM… that same day.
Hosting a virtual open house enables your team to expand its reach and impact while catering to those unable to tour in person for a variety of reasons. Furthermore, these virtual experiences instill trust and transparency into the leasing process while allowing your team to be safe and more efficient — meaning fewer tours and less face-to-face time required!
We’ve gathered our best practices and created a simple 5 step process to ensure that your Virtual Open House is a success for everyone involved!
1. Schedule Ahead.
In order to have adequate time to prepare and promote your open house, be sure to choose a date at least one week in advance! If you’re a Realync client, schedule a “Public Live Tour” on your Realync app or web dashboard. As virtual open houses begin to gain traction, consider planning out a series of open houses as needed to cater to prospective residents schedules.
2. Promote. Promote. Promote.
After you have created a link for a Public Live Tour, it is time to spread the word! If leveraging Realync, this is automatically done for you when scheduling the Public Live Tour.
The promotion possibilities are endless. At the very least, post visuals to all of your property’s website and social channels. Be sure to include the link to register as well. By having prospects sign up, you will be able to check periodically to see how many people have registered and keep pushing posts accordingly. The more attendees, the merrier!
In addition to your public marketing channels, send a direct email blast to your prospective residents. Encourage your current residents to also invite their network and consider increasing or adding a Resident Referral for the event. In the email, be sure to include key information including the date, time, registration link, and of course, a reminder to have snacks on deck!
Finally, as the open house day draws near, send an email reminder a day or two in advance of the open house as a “last call” for registrations. If you’re leveraging Realync, Realync will automatically send your open house registrants an email reminder 10 minutes before the tour begins.
3. Plan and Prepare Your Community Tour Path.
In order to ensure a seamless experience for your open house visitors, map out which units and amenity areas to highlight during the tour. Take the time to walk through your plan so you are comfortable with every step! While doing so, make sure that the space is looking its very best and ready to be seen by all of your prospects.
When in doubt, include everything that would be included in an in-person open house. Here are some key stops to include in your Open House:
- Community entrance: Show off your curb appeal while virtually welcoming your prospects as if they were pulling up in person.
- Leasing Office & Front Desk
- Apartment units
- Amenities
- “Hot spots”: Next door to a coffee shop or gym? Close to local transit? What are the favorite bars down the street? Be sure to not forget these key highlights!
4. Ready Your Team.
As you would in an in-person open house, be sure that your team members are prepared and at their stations. First, identify who on your team will participate in the tour! Write out key talking points for your team to make sure they are mentioned during the tour. Include where each team member should be located so that everyone is in their correct spots. Finally, give these notes to your team in order for them to practice and then ditch the notes for the real thing! Act natural and professional — just like you would in-person.
5. Practice Makes Perfect.
Complete a practice run through once, or even a few times. Check your Internet connectivity and get comfortable talking throughout the tour on camera. The Realync Client Success Team will even practice with you!
Keep these tips in mind while practicing!
- When you start the Live Tour, start near a window or wherever you have a strong connection.
- Embrace selfie mode! Introduce yourself at the beginning of the Open House and don’t forget to do all of your amazing closing work at the end. We want this experience to be real and genuine. Your prospects want to see your lovely face and get to know the person who is leading them through the Open House, just as they would in-person!
- Be intentional about the pace you are moving. Be careful not to walk too fast or too slow!
The Open House!
On the day of the tour, make sure your handy dandy stabilizer and iOS device are charged up and ready for action. Give yourself plenty of time before the day of the tour to prepare the spaces you are going to show during the Open House. Finally, remember to follow-up with your attendees with the recorded link of the open house and clear next steps. By following these simple guidelines, your virtual open house is sure to be a success.
