Smart Apartment Solutions, an occupancy solutions company that supports the apartment industry with creative marketing products, is proud to announce it's involvement with the successful lease-up and re-positioning of the 168 unit community, River Oaks Apartments in Battle Creek, Michigan. Within days of obtaining 98% occupancy within a five month period at Cascade Ridge Apartments in Jackson, MI, the Smart Girls of Smart Apartment Solutions in Ann Arbor, Michigan, accepted this latest challenge early in March of 2009. "The client approached us with a recently acquired asset in which they began vacating the community in order to begin in the process of rehabbing of vacant apartment homes," says Smart Girl, Dawn Ford. The client, Resource Residential of Omaha, Nebraska, had done a really nice job with the unit upgrades, which included brushed nickel appointments, new counter tops, updated and upgraded appliances, new fixtures and the best feature of all, an electronic gate at the entrance. Through the process of their Smart Examination, the Smart Girls found that not only would the community benefit from re-positioning but they had a 10-years bad reputation within the Battle Creek community to overcome. The Smart Girls began by analyzing the target demographics, the resident selection criteria, internet presence and the marketing collateral material, met with their client and began the roll-out of the "cool starts" marketing campaign. "Cool starts" encompassed print material, an animated 60 second commercial about the changes, radio, direct mailers, newspaper ads and press releases, a robust outreach marketing plan, local events and partnering with local charitable and non-profit organizations.
"This campaign was so much fun with the bright vibrant colors and seeing the different effects of the clip-art, in your face messages and cartoon images used to communicate the message of change," says Dawn Ford, managing partner of Smart Apartment Solutions. The end result was a positive change in occupancy of 30% in six months. "Although we still have a ways to go, the momentum is there and we look forward to raising the occupancy numbers and continuing to build upon the positive reception we are starting to see within the local community" Ford adds. "We couldn't have done it without you", says the client of Smart Apartment Solutions of the Smart Girls involvement in this lease-up assignment.