We’ve said it once, and we’ll say it again: chatbots are the future of multifamily customer support. In today’s world, traditional customer support methods just can’t keep up with the 24/7, 365 needs of consumers. But chatbots can, and they can do a lot more than simply showing off floorplans. Here’s how multifamily chatbots like BetterBot are redefining customer support for today’s property management teams.
Always-on service
58% of all of our customer’s traffic occurs after hours – that’s pretty significant. People today expect great customer service on their own time, whether that’s 8 am or 8 pm. By limiting your available hours to regular business hours, you’re greatly reducing your capacity to connect with these prospective leads. What’s more, we’ve found that, 20 years ago, 50% of prospective renter leads go unanswered by the property – and that stat is surprisingly the same today. What we hear through this stat is that property management teams are understaffed and don’t have enough time in the day to respond to each and every lead themself. Unfortunately, this is the case with most property teams, and likely won’t change. It’s a big problem, but fortunately it’s one that chatbots can help solve.
When you start using chatbot tech, you’re essentially creating a customer service rep that’s always on and available. People looking for information on your property or wanting to set up an appointment can do so whenever they’re free. All you have to do then, is follow up!
A wealth of resources in the palm of your hand
Today’s chatbots can do so many things, and are fully customizable based on your team’s (and customers’) unique needs. Want to show off your property’s amenities? Check. Really excited to let people schedule appointments online? It’s simple to do with a bot. From giving prospects access to 3D tours to allowing current residents to request and schedule maintenance, what your bot can do is only limited by your imagination. Check out our BetterBot Demo to see a sampling of what your bot could do.
Guided conversation makes it easy to get leads
There are several different types of chatbot solutions available on the market today, and not all are created equal. From bots that use AI-based natural language processing to mimic human speech, to those leveraging pre-written conversations to some that use a mixture of both, there is a lot of variety in terms of the bots your property management team could potentially use. And through our trials, we’ve found that guided-conversation bots (those that use pre-written, branched dialogues) outperform other bots by a wide margin.
When it comes to getting leads, you want to create a naturally-flowing conversation with your prospect. Lead gating doesn’t work, but by engaging customers in conversation with your chatbot, you can naturally lead your prospect where you want them to go, whether that’s to an information form, or to book an appointment.
Better access and time saved
One of the awesome things about having a chatbot is that it allows customers to reach you across a variety of channels – not just on your property’s website. Our chatbot can be integrated wherever you have a digital presence, which means that people can interact with your bot and reach you on any social media platform. If you’ve built up a great digital marketing strategy, this means that people who learn about your property from Facebook, for example, can go to your Facebook page and immediately get answers to any questions they have without having to navigate to your website.
Now more than ever, people value time and accessibility, and they want to be able to find you on the platforms they’re already on. The easier you can make it to engage with your customer service team, the more likely you’ll be able to convert those leads to new renters.
Where the future of multifamily chatbots is headed
So where will we see chatbots go in the future? Ultimately, we think chatbots will become the primary marketing channel for people to connect with properties. As the multifamily space continues to integrate social media into their strategy, ensuring bots have an omnichannel presence across these platforms will be key in boosting engagement and generating new leads.
Ready to build a bot for your property management team? BetterBot can help. And when you’re done, don’t forget to check out our guide to making your bot the best it can be.
