Why Advertise Now?

Last night I was doing a search for some car audio products on Google and I was once again reminded of the power that advertising still has over us. Tens of thousands of possibilities came up for my review and on top of that there were some carefully inserted sponsored listings which caught my eye as well.

In the end my search was narrowed by the brands that I recognized and a couple of others that I researched further to determine whether they were reputable outfits.

Price only became and issue after I determined the brands that I was going to consider. Customer service, product quality and terms were considered but all else being equal I will gravitate towards what I know.

Advertising is certainly the most inexpensive way to build familiarity and in the business to business arena the ability to target your message is even more powerful.

I might not be buying as much these days but that news can only be good news for the brand leaders. The sluggish economy represents a tremendous opportunity to profit more greatly when the competition thins out. This also allows further leverage when conditions improve.

Cost cutting is a fact of life but we also must keep in mind the opportunity costs of falling off the radar.

Affordable Housing Finance July/August Issue

Feature:2009 Reader's Choice Finalists
Categories Include: Historic, Green, Homeownership, Mixed-Use/Master-Planned, Preservation, Rural, Seniors, Urban and Special Needs.

FINANCING:
Tax Credit Equity: Donna will talk about the latest on the LIHTC market from the NCSHA conference.

FHA: Are more affordable housing developers are going with FHA in the last year? The impact of tax credit changes to FHA policy. Does the great terms of 221d4 allow affordable deals to pencil out more readily?

ASSET & PROPERTY MANAGEMENT:
Software: Jerry will look at some different affordable housing applications from the end-user perspective with a couple of case studies. Mainly just a look at business process improvement achieved through compliance software.

REGIONAL MARKETS:
Northeast Overview: Bendix is going to freelance for us and write about the latest from the state housing agencies in the Northeast and how they're using the stimulus funds. He'll also look at what projects are getting done in the region.

Closing for Advertising Space Now! Call 415-250-7328 for more information.

Apartment Finance Today Conference: 2009

With so many challenges in front of our economy and the multifamily housing industry, this year's conference will be more valuable than ever for all attendees. Some participating panelists include: Alliance Residential, Chestnut Hill Realty, ConAm, Cohen Esrey, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, Herman & Kittle, Home Properties, Laramar Communities, Legacy Partners, Mark-Taylor, Place Properties, Trillium Residential, UDR.

Come to network and engage in the critical dialogue with your peers and the leading financial firms in the industry including: Capmark, Centerline, CWCapital, Deutsche Bank, Johnson Capital, KeyBank, PNC ARCS, Prudential, Red Mortgage Capital and Walker & Dunlop to name a few.

The 2009 Apartment Finance Today Conference, March 30-April 1, 2009 in Phoenix, Arizona.

Henry G. Cisneros, former secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development and executive chairman of CityView, will keynote the Apartment Finance Today Conference, March 30-April 1 at the Arizona Biltmore in Phoenix.

The celebrated housing, business, and city government leader will highlight a high-voltage lineup of multifamily owners, developers, and capital partners working out high-level plans and in-the-trenches tactics to weather the economic storm and position apartment properties large and small for a sustainable marathon run to recovery in the future.

In a luncheon keynote presentation, Cisneros plans to address a wide-ranging agenda of issues for survival amid our era's most hostile economies. His remarks will focus on the importance of apartments and rental housing, particularly in the throes of the broader housing and economic crisis.

Here are some other highlighted panels:

Apartment Industry Leadership Roundtable
How are the best and brightest apartment industry leaders coping with the uncertainty and risk of today’s economy? What are they doing to keep their business thriving during the recession and to position themselves for the future? Sit in on one of the most valuable business discussions in our industry. You will walk away with important insights from this one-of-a-kind gathering.

Equity Investment: Negotiating Your Best Deal
With high leverage deals harder to put together, finding good sources of equity is crucial—but also more challenging. This session will help explain your options, and look closely at the most active sources and their investment interests and deal terms. Plus, specific take-away tips on key deal points and specific examples of recently closed deals.

Buying Smart: Successful Underwriting in the Age of Turbulence
Buying opportunities are out there, if you know where to look and how to assess the potential for income growth. Learn the latest underwriting and financing techniques from acquisition, finance
and investment executives, to guide you in smartly assessing and acquiring apartment projects in today’s environment.

For a complete program, visit www.aptfinanceconf.com

eMail advertising

I thought this was an interesting survey that was worth passing along. Anecdotally, we have definitely seen a growth of interest (and participation) in eNewsletter advertising in the past several months.

eMail Tops Online Ad Budget Change in '09 According to a survey of marketing executives by Datran Media, E-mail leads all other channels by a wide margin in terms of performance for their companies. 80.4% of more than 3,000 executives surveyed chose e-mail as a strong advertising performer, compared to 56.8% who chose search, the second leading performer. In addition: 42.1% chose online display advertising as a strong performer 32.8% selected offline media, such as television and print 32.1% chose direct mail 22.9% selected social media 9.2% chose mobile marketing Anticipated Online Advertising Budget Allocation in 2009 (% of Respondents) Media Expected Change Reduce Stagnant Increase Unsure Display 21.9% 33.8% 23.6% 21.1% Email 5.7 23.0 58.5 13.2 Search 3.6 28.2 54.4 13.9 Social media 5.7 24.3 43.9 26.5 Direct mail 25.6 31.2 14.1 29.1 Offline media 34.9 24.6 13.8 27.2 Source: IPSOS Marketing & Media Survey, January 2009 Importance of Selected Advertising Goals in 2009 (% of Respondents for Each Goal) Goal Degree of Importance Least Important Less Important Important Most Important New customer acquisition 2.6% 2.2% 32.7% 63.2% Increased brand awareness 11.3 26.0 48.7 14.0 Increased brand favorability 11.4 26.6 48.7 14.1 Increased customer retention 5.6 7.8 43.7 42.7 Source: IPSOS Marketing & Media Survey, January 2009 2009 Marketing Tactics (% of Respondents, Multiple Response OK) Tactic % of Respondents Monetizing online ad inventory 45.0% Behavioral targeting 53.9 Customer win-back programs 28.4 Newsletters 62.0 List growth 54.2 Affiliate marketing 42.1 Direct mail 29.9 Unsure 5.2 Source: IPSOS Marketing & Media Survey, January 2009

Leadership

There are several fantastic pieces in the MFE Leadership issue that published last month. If you missed it you can find the entire edition online here. 

The last article, Support Structure struck me as being particularly timely given the current economic circumstances. 

"Perhaps leadership is ultimately an act of selflessness, a process of listening, of tuning in to your team and providing them with the corporate assets they are yearning for. They are out there, right now. They are waiting for you to assist them in doing the right thing. They are waiting for a leader. Constantly. Everyday."

Don't let the headlines become a distraction. Keep the focus on the core business and tuning in to the team. 

Multifamily Finance in Transition

Thanks to the Mortgage Bankers Association for Today's Weekly Spotlight on their Newslink. Tough times are upon us but long term opportunity continues to present itself. I took a few quotes out of the full article that can be found here: Commercial Lenders 'Demorph'

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Commercial mortgage bankers, once thought of as "morphing" into an auctioneer role, may return next year to a more basic but powerful position as advisor and educator to borrowers in the current climate, according to industry experts.
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"The mortgage bankers of the world can play a tremendous role in educating and helping these borrowers through that," said Adrian Corbiere, executive vice president and partner at Cohen Financial, Chicago. "It's interesting how borrowers and developers are calling mortgage bankers now saying, 'Help, what do I do?’ That never happened before. Certainly, we view that as one way of helping educate that group and trying to get them to make a decision."
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"That is a mortgage banking professional's 'nirvana,' being engaged as an advisor, as a consultant" said John Davis, executive vice president at Grandbridge Real Estate Capital LLC, Charlotte, N.C. "The past few years, we have been treated as a commodity, but now [borrowers] are coming back to us and seeking our consult."