Schedule a Tour - A Love Letter

We are all tired of Covid this, Covid that, and the “new normal” but one thing I have to admit that 2020 gave me is a new appreciation for technology and the software companies behind them. Can I tell you how much I love “Schedule a Tour” on property websites? This is such a simple little feature but was a true workhorse in 2020. Software companies quickly pivoted in 2020 to add options for self-guided and virtual tours to their already existing self scheduling widgets. Why do I love this so much?

This is contrary to people’s 2008 idea of a property website but it shouldn’t be used with the sole purpose of showing off some staged photos of “sparkling pools” and listing endless amenities with mind numbing text. The purpose is to turn visitors into prospects. What?! Isn’t a visitor already a prospect? You can’t contact a website visitor as a prospect if they don’t leave a guest card now can you?. Sure your 2008 website has a guest card form on the last tab but no one is filling it out except maybe your resident in unit 214 looking for a package.

Now when I’m talking about “Schedule a Tour,” I mean a true scheduling widget with a calendar integrated to your property management software and the ability to choose the tour type. Self scheduling on your website gives visitors a compelling reason to become prospects. Especially when offered multiple tour types. The addition of self-guided tours and virtual tour types appeals not only to those practicing social distancing but to people who might have odd schedules, live halfway across the country, or are on the more introverted side. Social anxiety is a real thing and management companies should accommodate people where they are able.

What happens if you don’t have “Schedule a Tour” on your website? You lose your prospects, even the ones that submit a guest card. I shopped a property that did not have schedule a tour on their website. They called me to schedule while I was driving and unable to access my calendar. Had they offered “Schedule a Tour” on their website I could have scheduled my own appointment time. This property only offered in person tours but due to bad Texas weather, I would not be able to view for another week. All sense of urgency was lost. Another property only had the dreaded pop-up guest card labeled “Schedule a Tour” and a tab that said virtual tour that led to a broken link. So much wrong there.

Virtual tours linked directly on the website look cool but they aren’t winning you leads. I would argue saving the link to the virtual tour for when a prospect requests to schedule a virtual tour through your tour scheduling widget.

On top of being a compelling call to action on your website, self scheduling tours adds efficiency for your property teams. There’s no more back and forth emails to find a time that works with someone ghosting in the end. No more awkward phone calls at the least opportune time. Calls can be used to focus on establishing rapport with the prospect rather than trying to find a time to meet. The hardest part of my job in sales is having to coordinate schedules so I imagine properties experience the same issue. With a CRM, emails will be sent automatically to remind the prospect of their appointment creating another touchpoint. It’s the little things in life that I treasure and I love self scheduling whether it’s for a doctor’s appointment, parent/teacher conferences, or touring a property.

If you do not have tour scheduling functionality on your website, contact your CRM and website providers. There are 3rd party integrated solutions but it is best to check with your current providers first. The fewer log-ins, integrations, and added html, the less management and the better.