Does Your Office Showcase You? – First Impressions

First impressions are so very important. It makes sense to have a well presented, organized, and clean office. After all, this is where you will more than likely have your first interaction with your prospective clients. Have you ever considered taking it to the next level by using your office to showcase what you do as a property manager? We are constantly upgrading our building to showcase our vendors’ quality and the importance of not deferring maintenance requests!

 

If you own your own office building, let your clients know! It shows that you have experience and confidence in investing in your market. By owning your own office building, you can also better control its appearance. This provides many opportunities to showcase the workmanship of the vendors you hire to maintain the properties you are entrusted to professionally manage.

 

If you rent, be sure that you can control your own tenant improvements and have some input on the care of the property. By renting, you can highlight to clients that you have chosen to do so, in order to free up capital to invest in other aspects of the company.

 

Use your own vendors to maintain or improve the building. For example, we use the same type of paint that we use at the rentals on the interior and exterior of our building. It’s not cheap, but we are able to demonstrate how durable it is and how it will actually save money over time.

 

Our flooring contractor has done all of our flooring and we have a mix of carpet, vinyl, tile, and stone. Some years ago, we used our siding contractor to re-do the front siding and stucco, and then added stone to look more like newer construction.

 

We use our parking lot as an example to multi-family property owners, showing them the importance of sealing cracks and painting annually and also seal- coating every three to five years.

 

Obviously, we can go on and on with examples of work you can do at your own office to showcase your vendors’ abilities and set a good example for your clients. Think of your office as a showroom with real- life examples of product and craftsmanship!

 

Your relationship with your vendors should improve by having them work at your office and in such closely monitored conditions. In fact, they likely will do the work for a discount! Unfortunately, not all the work we have had done at the office has been up to our standard. However, this was an opportunity to work with our vendors to set up expectations, not only at our office building but at the rental properties as well. We all probably love the thought of having to call a vendor back out to a job due to quality issues!

 

Regardless of how well maintained your office is, it is super important to have the right furniture and decorations. Work stations need to be neat and organized. Do you utilize dual monitors for your team? It really improves the neat, organized, and professional look. It is also proven to maximize efficiencies and, in return, your team will absolutely love you for it! Clients will perceive a messy work space as a work place that is disorganized and chaotic. This issue alone could turn away

potential business. Also, have your office professionally cleaned on a regular basis. It looks and feels great and again shows the kind of quality you use when cleaning rental properties.

 

Our waiting room has our awards and designations on full display. You have worked hard to get these and they help give you the credibility you deserve!

 

If you have the room, build a large enough conference room to host large meetings or continuing education classes. This is great exposure for you and your business!

 

Welcome and use technology throughout your office! This shows your clients that you are keeping up with the ever-changing industry and willing to invest in your company. Making a good impression and using your office as an example of how you manage and maintain the properties you professionally manage may just improve your bottom line. We should all “Practice What We Preach!”