In today’s highly competitive multifamily industry, understanding your competitors’ marketing and advertising strategies is essential for maintaining a competitive edge. This updated guide provides a framework for conducting comprehensive competitor research in the digital age, replacing outdated methods with current best practices.
Community: _____________________________ Date: _______________
Contact: _____________________________ Title: _______________
A. The Community Positioning and Brand
- What is the property’s brand positioning in the digital space?
- What values and lifestyle does the property project through its online presence?
- How does the property’s digital identity align with its physical presentation?
B. Digital Marketing Strategy
- What digital platforms is the property actively using? Rate effectiveness of each (1-10):
- Website: ____
- Facebook: ____
- Instagram: ____
- TikTok: ____
- YouTube: ____
- Google Business Profile: ____
- Email marketing: ____
- Paid search: ____
- Display advertising: ____
- Listing services (specify which): ____
- Other: ____
- What are their digital strengths? (rank in order of effectiveness) a. b. c. d. e.
- What are their digital weaknesses? (rank in order of significance) a. b. c. d. e.
- Website analysis:
- User experience quality: ____
- Mobile optimization: ____
- Virtual tour quality: ____
- Lead capture mechanisms: ____
- Resident portal features: ____
- Content quality and freshness: ____
- SEO effectiveness: ____
- How quickly do they respond to digital leads? Test each channel:
- Website form: ____ hrs
- Email: ____ hrs
- Social media: ____ hrs
- Chat/chatbot: ____ hrs
- Google messages: ____ hrs
- What digital tools are they using for:
- Apartment searching: ____________________
- Virtual tours: ____________________
- Online applications: ____________________
- Resident experience: ____________________
- Maintenance requests: ____________________
- Payments: ____________________
C. Target Market and Digital Audience
- What demographic segments are they targeting through their digital content?
- Which social media platforms seem to generate the most engagement for them?
- What messaging themes resonate most with their audience based on engagement?
- How do they segment their digital marketing for different floorplans or prospect types?
D. Digital Advertising Analysis
- What specific keywords are they targeting in paid search? (Use SEMrush or similar tool)
- What is their estimated monthly digital ad spend? (Use SpyFu or similar tool)
- What unique selling propositions do they highlight in their ad copy?
- How are they leveraging remarketing and geofencing strategies?
- What special offers or concessions are they promoting in digital ads?
- What landing pages are their ads directing traffic to?
E. Measurement and Strategy Development
- Based on all research, what are the primary opportunities for digital differentiation?
- What digital marketing channels are they underutilizing that we could leverage?
- What technology advantages could we implement to gain a competitive edge?
- What content marketing niches could we dominate that they’re neglecting?
- What messaging gaps exist that we could fill with our digital strategy?
Competitor research in the multifamily industry has evolved dramatically from clipping print ads to comprehensive digital analysis. By implementing this modern framework, you’ll gain actionable insights into your competitive landscape and identify strategic opportunities to differentiate your property in the digital marketplace.
Remember that today’s most successful multifamily marketers take an integrated approach, combining digital sophistication with genuine relationship building. Use these insights not just to react to competitors, but to proactively position your property as the premier option in your market.
