With the competitive nature of filling their apartments every year, they wanted to work with us for digital advertising services to reach college-aged students online.
The Challenge
Ames, Iowa is a college town, which means that property managers face high annual turnover and fierce competition for occupancy. The team at Hunziker had been able to rely on their reputation, name recognition, and word-of-mouth for several years to fill their rental spaces with students.
However, as competition from out-of-town rental companies increased and students began to rely more heavily on clearinghouse websites like apartments.com to source their rental needs, Hunziker knew they needed a comprehensive digital advertising strategy to be effective. They collaborated with our digital marketing team to restructure their digital advertising strategy from the bottom up.
Summary of Solutions
- Timed their digital ads to begin around Thanksgiving and ramp-up through the spring to work in tandem with the lease cycle
- Created separate ad groups based on the number of bedrooms and area of town
- Implemented Google Display Ads to help with in-the-moment capturing of people searching for an apartment
- Implemented Google Search Ads to assist with name recognition and remind students that Hunziker is a reliable source for apartments in Ames
Before & After
As a result of our strategic digital advertising efforts, Hunziker has experienced a surge in click-through rates. Simultaneously, the decision to restructure their digital advertising to coincide with lease renewal has greatly reduced Hunziker’s cost-per-click rate. Together, Hunziker has experienced higher occupancy rates for their properties while gaining more bang for their advertising budget.