Over the years, Stan Ross, chairman of the board at the University of Southern California's Lusk Center for Real Estate, has observed an evolution of gadgets. Just by watching the changes in technology that his students carry to class each day, he's been able to keep up with each new step in electronic communication. In the 1990s, it was the laptop computer. Next came the cell phone, which eventually morphed to include text messaging and photo-taking capabilities. More recently, he started seeing a smaller device, one that students not only fixated their attention on with their eyes, but were listening to as well: their MP3 player, epitomized by Apple Computer's ubiquitous iPod.
"One day, I walked into class, looked out, and there they all were with their iPods. As an old guy, I had to find out what these things were," says Ross, 70, who graduated from college himself in 1956. "So I got one of those little iPod Shuffles, and boy, I thought I was really breaking through." Like any good teacher who learns from his students, Ross started quizzing his young tech experts on how they were using the devices, which they always had with them, whether it was an Apple iPod or another manufacturer's product. They were listening to music, of course, but he found they were also frequently downloading other forms of information, snippets of audio and video from the Internet known as "podcasts."
"When I started talking to the students, I found out they're listening to this stuff all the time," Ross says. "It's become part of their database." So Ross decided to connect with his students over that medium. Working with the Urban Land Institute, where he is a life trustee and governor, he assembled nine podcasts based on different chapters from his latest book, Inside Track to Careers in Real Estate. "It's a great direction to go in, because it's being driven by the younger generation," he says.
Multifamily operators are taking notice too. Whether it's through a dedicated podcast designed for download onto an MP3 player, or simply a multimedia presentation that can be launched from a Web site and played directly on a PC, multifamily firms are beginning to use audio and video formats to connect with colleagues, clients, and prospective residents. With the combination of high-speed access and the richer capabilities of today's Internet, many observers say audio and video presentations are poised to become the touchstone for your new residents, going far beyond the still digital photos and virtual tours of today.
Observers say that kind of short, hip production style is exactly what a good podcast, or any Internet presentation, should entail. "You don't want to make your audience download too much," says Ross. "Podcasting is a short cut, a quick shot. Everything about it is abbreviated. And that's the way it should be when you use it in multifamily. Your inclination is maybe to show every room, but I'm not sure that's as useful as a basic interior and exterior shot." Don't forget to cover the basics of location, price, and amenities, as well.
But as tech-savvy renters reach increasingly for their computers–and iPods–for their information, Internet-based video and podcasting should only become more widespread. For Ross, who's been watching the target multifamily demographic from the other side of a lectern for years, the choice of using this technology to reach renters today is an obvious choice. "In multifamily, I think this is where you want to be."