How to Stand Out Against the Property Management Competition

How many times have you heard a property manager complain that the market is oversaturated?

“There are just too many property managers in my area competing for the same leads.”

That’s simply bunk. Baloney. A convenient lie property managers sometimes tell themselves as an excuse to get around poor performance. After all, too many players leads to scarcity and famine, right?

In reality, the property management industry in the United States is still in its infancy. There are approximately 300,000 property management companies operating in the U.S., but nearly two million real estate agents. What’s that tell you? Even better, the American property management market is slated to grow by nearly 17 billion USD in the next five years.

In short, if you’re not getting leads and closing deals left and right, the problem is likely you, not your competitors.

What About Property Managers in Small Markets?

It’s one thing to operate in a big market like Atlanta or Los Angeles, but some property managers genuinely do face a challenge when it comes to standing out from the competition. If your company is in a small town and there others on the scene, it can feel like mission impossible trying to get landlords to consider your services. And honestly, even property managers in bigger markets feel this pressure.

If you’re a startup and trying to go head-to-head with companies that have dominated the market or 20, 30, or even 50 years, it’s understandable that you have have an uphill battle in front of you. Fortunately, there are tools you can use to stand out from the competition and convince property owners to work with you.

Focus on Perception

First, it’s important to consider how your business comes across to others. Is your branding optimized to connect with prospects, highlighting the identity and values that make you unique? What about your online presence? Do you have a great property management website that’s consistently capturing leads and helping you to close deals? Do you have good reviews from past clients or tenants or is your reputation in the toilet?

Identifying how others perceive your brand will equip you with actionable steps to position yourself for greater success.

Strengthen Your Business Operations

It’s important for every property management entrepreneur to take stock of their business from time to time. Get honest with yourself: what is working and what simply isn’t?

Almost every property management company has challenges in one (or all) of the three operational areas: people, planning, and processes.

People

It all starts with the right people, but unfortunately, far too many property management companies don’t have an efficient team. Building a strong business from the ground up means focusing on putting people in the right roles and ensuring that everything is running efficiently. At DoorGrow, we teach our clients how to use assessments, time studies, and other resources to monitor their team’s performance and identify areas of weakness for improvement.

Planning

What’s your plan look like for the year, month, and week ahead? If this question leaves you scratching your head, you definitely need to take a second look at how your business is operating. Without clearly defined goals and team members owning those goals, it’s impossible to drive forward momentum and measure results.

Processes

Perhaps the most frequently overlooked area of business operations, established processes help to reduce wasted time, eliminate problems, and even keep spending in check. Investing the time needed to define the processes in your business and implement tools to help your staff follow those processes can dramatically revamp your company from top to bottom.

Interested in learning more about how to solve operational challenges in your property management business? Book a call with us to see how we can help.

Clearly Define Your Value Proposition

When someone asks you why they should choose your company over the property management competition, what’s your answer? A coy smile and a quick “because we’re the best” doesn’t cut it. Potential clients want to understand what services you offer and why they’re fundamentally better than whatever the other guys are selling.

Unfortunately, far too many property managers don’t spend the time to differentiate themselves from their competitors, leaving pricing structure as the only negotiable on the table. When you lower your prices to court potential property owners, however, you end up with tire kickers and problem clients who just want the cheapest option out there. Not only does this invite a world of headaches for your management team, but it can also decimate your bottom line.

Don’t get sucked into a bad cycle you can’t escape. Spend the time working on your value proposition and then highlight that on your website, marketing materials, etc. You’ll end up blowing prospects out of the water with your impressive service offering, making it easier than ever to close deals.

Shore Up Your Leaks

We’ve been teaching property managers about how to shore up leaks in their sales pipeline since the very start of DoorGrow over a decade ago.

More than a few things have changed in that time, but we still believe in the importance of plugging the leaky buckets in your business.

The theory behind this is pretty straightforward. When every bucket in your pipeline has leaks in it, you end up bleeding thousands in lost revenue. By identifying where you’re losing time and revenue, you can shore up the leaks and dramatically increase your close rate. Watch the video above to learn how.

Get Proactive About Landing New Business

Just like any other entrepreneur, property managers often become lazy. You sit at your desk waiting for your phone to ring and the emails to come flooding into your inbox. Yes, over time, generating typically becomes easier, but you have to be consistent in chasing after new business.

Just like a bodybuilder goes to the gym every day, beating the property management competition requires an ongoing grind. The squeaky wheel gets the grease, as they say, and your business is no different. By continually investing in the right marketing techniques, building a local referral network, and prospecting for potential leads, you’ll close more doors and edge out the other companies nipping at your heels.

Ready to supercharge your property management business? Learn how the DoorGrow Mastermind is designed to help you catapult ahead of the property management competition and generate impressive results.