Property Management BLOG or NEWSLETTER? What’s the Diff?

The world of marketing strategy can be a bit confusing. The lines between marketing tactics are often blurry and sometimes deploying a solid online marking plan can seem like learning a foreign language. The words are familiar, but the subtle differences between their real meanings can be hard to decipher.

What’s the difference between a property management company blog and newsletter? is a question I hear pretty often. So, just in case this question has also been on YOUR mind, I thought I’d take some time to share my experienced perspective.

WHO? The first distinction between a property management blog and newsletter is the target audience.

A blog is designed to attract people who are browsing online – usually anonymous website visitors who are interested in property management. These website visitors might include prospective clientele, professional investors, “newbie” property managers who want to learn from you, real estate agents, other miscellaneous web surfers, and occasionally an existing owner or tenant. Blogs are less personalized – the reader knows you are talking to anyone.

Newsletters are for existing clientele. They not only educate your existing owners and tenants, they also keep them informed and make them feel valued. Prospects who have already expressed an interest in your company through a conversation or website visit may also sign up for and enjoy your newsletter. Newsletters are more personalized – they can speak to specific needs and interests.

WHAT? In actuality, the articles you post to your newsletter and your blog can be exactly the same, but there are some best practices that might help you decide how to use the articles you create.

Blog readers crave original content. These visitors are generally strangers. They don’t know much of anything about you or your company. They definitely want to learn FROM you, but they may also want to learn ABOUT you. The blog articles should radiate your company’s personality, demonstrate your business values and ethics, promote your expertise, and build trust with strangers (possibly prospective clients). You can solicit original guest posts from other industry-related professionals; however, you should never copy/paste content from another online source and should avoid posting duplicate content from another website you may own.

Newsletter subscribers want a different kind of content. They absolutely appreciate learning from you, but they are also interested in what’s going on in your company. You can use a newsletter to communicate special events, staff changes, updated procedures, seasonal reminders, new services, etc. Your newsletter readers may also like to hear about resources, new vendor partnerships, and enjoy reading relevant blog articles you recommend (even if you did not write them). Newsletter content does not always have to be original. It just needs to be relevant and valued by the reader.

WHEN? Another difference between a blog and a newsletter is frequency.

Blog articles can be posted as frequently as you like. At LandlordSource, we try to post a new blog article about once a week or so. Sometimes we post more often, sometimes less. If you have a content production machine going at your property management office, you might even post daily. Kudos to you if that’s the case! Property management website visitors like fresh content – it shows the website is not stagnant or neglected.

Newsletters usually aggregate content and deliver it on a predictable schedule.  This allows you to communicate time-sensitive information and touch base with the owners and/or tenants on your newsletter list regularly. Remember…a newsletter helps you retain existing clientele. You want to send them frequently enough you’re your clientele feels important and you capture opportunities for referrals…but not so often that they lose their appeal.

WHERE? Newsletters and blogs are delivered to different places.

Blogs are only delivered online. The best ones are integrated with your property management website so that web surfers who land on a blog article can easily navigate your website to find out more about your company and your services.

Newsletters offer more options. You can deliver them to mailboxes, inboxes, websites, and put them right into the hands of a real live person.

WHY? This is a key question when you’re deciding whether you want to start a blog, a newsletter, or both…

A blog is a “pull marketing” tactic; it’s about attracting people to you. Specifically, blogs are about attracting traffic to your website. The words you use in your blog articles help web surfers find you through search engines and the information you share maintains their interest once they arrive. A well-written blog should increase overall web traffic and encourage visitors to stick around awhile because reading your blog fulfills their quest for knowledge. You don’t need anyone’s permission to post a blog article because it is not invasive at all. Blog articles just sit around online until someone discovers them. And, if you write something amazing or entertaining, blog visitors may share your articles through social media channels.

A newsletter is more of a “push marketing” tactic. Most of the time, you actively send a newsletter to a specific list of people. It is a good idea to obtain permission before mailing a newsletter via direct mail (or else you might just be wasting money). You MUST obtain permission to send a newsletter via email to prevent excessive SPAM complaints. People need to “sign up,” which gives you a good reason to collect basic information like a name and an email address.

Newsletters are about building and maintaining relationships. They can also help you get referrals from existing clientele; they can easily forward your newsletter to a friend, colleague, or family member who is looking for a property manager.

HOW? Ideally…your property management company should blog and send newsletters. These tactics can work together to meet your marketing goals.

A blog can provide you with lots of original content to aggregate and send out to newsletter subscribers. Our Property Management Newsletters clients sometimes feature a blog article with a click through link to read the rest of the article on their website. This keeps the newsletter length under control and can help you get your subscribers to visit your property management company website.

If you don’t write original content, you can purchase landlord or tenant newsletter articles from LandlordSource. This content is not really suitable for a blog because it is not unique to you. Other property managers purchase and use these newsletter articles. They are great for email newsletters, however. And, they help property managers who don’t have time, desire, or writing talent successfully launch a newsletter marketing program. You can use the articles as they are, or pull ideas from them to write original content

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1. Email Marketing: Classic or Clunker?
2. Email Marketing: Rules of the Road
3. Email Marketing: Arrive At Your Destination
4. Email Marketing: Care & Maintenance

Dee Allomong has over 10 years of experience in Internet technology and strategic marketing. You can reach her at DeeAllomong.com.

Disclaimer: LandlordSource does not represent the article content in this website as legal advice. It is shared information only and up to the reader to use this information responsibly, seeking legal advice as necessary to their business.