The Challenge
For owners, property branding and marketing are often an add-on service, requiring an extra investment beyond standard leasing and management. Some buildings came to us with an existing brand identity in place; others had none at all, leaving residents and prospects without a clear story to connect to. The opportunity — and challenge — was to position our marketing services as a value driver worth the investment.
What made our offering unique was that our marketing team wasn’t siloed like an outside agency. We were fully connected to the property managers and leasing agents who oversaw day-to-day operations, giving us insight into everything happening at a building — from occupancy challenges to resident feedback. This allowed us to craft strategies that weren’t just creative, but deeply relevant to each property’s real needs.
Although property marketing services existed before I joined, I played a major role in making them more sophisticated, scalable, and results-oriented. I also rebranded our flagship Property Marketing Services deck from its original 33 Realty version into a refreshed Evernest version, modernizing the design and content to reflect our new company identity.
The Action
I elevated property marketing into a full-service suite of offerings, acting as both project manager and creative designer. My role spanned:
- Identity & Branding: Naming properties, designing logos, and developing cohesive brand systems.
- Websites: Building AppFolio-powered property websites with easy owner-side editing of promotions, pricing, and incentives.
- Collateral: Designing brochures, flyers, and other creative assets to maintain brand consistency.
- Social Media: Launching and curating building-specific accounts to highlight neighborhood amenities, leasing specials, and resident life.
- Signage: Producing window clings, banners, and wayfinding signage that directly boosted walk-in tours and leasing activity.
- Promotional Items: Curating branded move-in gifts and giveaways that fostered resident loyalty and brand awareness.
- Events: Collaborating with property managers to host resident events (e.g., wine-and-pie nights) that created a sense of community and encouraged retention.
In every case, I worked closely with ownership, presenting drafts for review and feedback to ensure alignment with their vision and goals.
The Impact
- Increased walk-in tours and inquiries at properties with high-visibility signage.
- Improved resident engagement and satisfaction through tailored events and social media initiatives.
- Helped owners understand the ROI of branding as an add-on service, leading to more buy-in for marketing investments.
- Supported leasing teams in hitting occupancy goals faster by transforming buildings into recognizable, desirable brands.
View the Property Marketing Services deck below, to see the variety of service offerings and visual examples for each offering.
Madalyn Mueller 