In 2020, a lot many things have changed. So have workplaces. With economic loss impeding the growth of the commercial real estate industry, people are looking for alternate options for office space. Now we know that the coworking and managed office spaces have already been gaining momentum for quite some time. But the recent turnaround has now given a boost in this sector.
According to JLL India, leasing of office spaces may slip 30% in 2020, whereas rentals are likely to stay stable. This is a good opportunity for managed office space leaders to tap the opportunity and market their business as much as possible and bring in more footfalls.
So here’s a quick guide to top marketing strategies for a managed office space.
1. Target marketing & advertising
Target marketing is an effective way to advertise any service. Untargeted marketing is only going to consume more efforts and provide an unexceptional output. So due diligence is a must to thoroughly list out the TG (Target Group) using different online and offline platforms. For a managed office space, the primary TG will be the leaders and administration personnel who take care of running the office space. The secondary target can be the employees who work in the offices. Since the office space is essentially chosen for them, it can be a smart move to reach out to the employees and brief them on why they need a managed office space. They can be an asset to inform their team leads about it.
2. Lead Generation
Once the niche target group has been identified, it’s time to reach out to them. The lead generation process is crucial to find prospects. Different platforms as possible, like Google, LinkedIn, and different tools can help in identifying the niche target. As per a Forbes article, the main platform for the commercial real estate industry is LinkedIn for targeted ads. Various media can be used to approach them like email marketing or in-person or through any other channel. Let them know about the services and perks they can enjoy, and how the managed space can improve their business operations and reduce the daily hassles.
3. Membership and perks
The key to happy customers is surprising them with various perks and benefits. A great idea to capture retention is offering a concession in membership plans. This can be a viable solution to the teams renting the space. A win-win situation.
Along with a long-term discounted membership, offering various perks like free working for the first few days, catering to personal needs, a flexible working place, creating a fun working environment, etc. is also a great move. Word of mouth is a powerful tool to advertise the business. So the better services they experience, the more they will refer it to their peers, increasing the business. A referral system is a smart way for the existing customers to bring more prospects in exchange for some perks.
The most in-demand amenities in 2020 as per Deloitte is as shown in the image. So ensuring to offer as many perks as possible will attract more customers.
4. Social media presence
Having a social media presence is a must in today’s time. Almost everybody is using different social media platforms like Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, etc. it’s advisable to first figure out where the majority of TG is active and then create content on all those possible platforms. Different content types like listings, services, perks, candid pictures, behind the scenes of management, highlighting the special features and services, and more can be posted to attract people’s attention to the page.
It’s recommended to follow the 80/20 rule, where 80% of the posts are general posts and the rest 20% are advertisement posts. A Forbes article reinstates where it advises leaders to maintain a mixture of engaging and promotional content.
Needless to say, it is imperative to have a website for an online presence, and get the website Search Engine Optimized, so people looking for a managed workspace can find the website easily.
5. Community engagement
Keeping people engaged and entertained is a part of any business. As per CBRE, the right kind of office space is the one that keeps employees happy and healthy, reduces their operating costs, and creates the perfect working conditions. So one should try different things to make the workplace more fun. A good initiative is ‘Happy Hours’ where people can have a super chill evening with food, drinks, music, etc. For more formal events, hosting networking events, contests and competitions like hackathons, or webinars on different topics are some options. The main objective is to incorporate learning and entertainment in the workspace.
If implemented smartly and meticulously, these strategies will definitely help any managed office space to see more inquiries dropping in, and perhaps more customers. One thing to always ensure is providing great customer service and making people who work there happy to build trust and gain more customers.
