How Awareness Channels Help Boost Leasing Results in Multifamily
Just listing your apartments on ILS sites or running search ads isn’t enough anymore. Renters—especially Millennials and Gen Z—expect to see apartment ads where they spend their time: on streaming platforms, podcasts, and social media. That’s where awareness channels like Connected TV (CTV), streaming audio, and online video make a big impact. These aren’t just for visibility—they help drive lease rates, NOI, and improve lead quality across your marketing.
Understanding the Role of Awareness Channels
Awareness channels introduce your property to renters early in their search journey. They help people recognize your brand and keep your community top of mind when they’re ready to book tours or apply. Here's a look at how each one works:
Connected TV (CTV)
Ads on Hulu, Roku, and Amazon Fire TV can show off your amenities and location in a polished, TV-style video. These ads can’t be skipped and can target renters by zip code, lifestyle, or demographics—making them ideal for increasing brand awareness and later lead-to-lease conversion rates.
Streaming Audio
Spotify, Pandora, and podcasts let you reach renters when they aren’t looking at screens—like while commuting or working out. A clear audio message like “Now leasing luxury apartments in downtown Phoenix” sticks with people and improves chances they’ll click your ads later.
Online Video
YouTube, Instagram reels, and TikTok videos let you show off your community in a fun, visual way. These are easy to track and great for retargeting. You can tell who watched, for how long, and use that data to create more effective follow-up ads.
Why Awareness Matters for Leasing
Awareness campaigns might not get direct form fills right away, but they lift performance across your paid search and social efforts. Here’s how:
- Better Brand Recall in Search Renters who saw your ad on YouTube or heard it on a podcast are more likely to Google your property name. That improves your click-through rates and brings in more qualified traffic, helping lower your cost per lead.
- Stronger Social Ad Results Awareness ads warm up your audience so they’re more likely to engage with your lead forms on Facebook or Instagram. This boosts lead quality and reduces wasted ad spend.
- More Touchpoints, More Leases Renters rarely sign a lease after one ad. They may see a CTV ad, hear an audio spot, Google your name, and click a retargeted Instagram ad before converting. Awareness channels keep your brand in their mind across that journey.
Take Action Now
Renters move fast across channels—TikTok one minute, Google the next, then Zillow. If your community isn’t showing up across platforms, you’ll lose them to properties that are.
The good news? These awareness tools are more affordable than ever. You can set zip code targets, daily budgets, and test creative without blowing your ad budget. Multifamily teams focused on increasing NOI and maximizing lease rates need to treat awareness not as a nice-to-have, but a key piece of their marketing strategy.
