I recently caught up with an old friend who is the former President and COO of the Village Green Companies, Terry Schwartz. Many of you might remember him as Multifamily Executive's, "Executive of the Year" in 1996. 
For the purpose of this blog I wanted to ask him a few questions that I am sure he is not typically asked of the trade press. Over his 16 years experience as the President of one of the nation's most prominent developers, managers and builders of apartment communities he has been called on by a good many firms and certainly has had his share of experiences.
Here is the brief exchange:
RB: Based on your experience at Village Green through your current role at Dover Group what would you say that the best vendors do that separates them from the rest in the multifamily industry?
TS: They do what they say they are going to do! They are timely, responsive, accurate, reliable and CONSISTENT!
RB: What were the key factors that you wanted to know before doing business with a company?
TS: ALL OF THE ABOVE as well as high standards!
RB: What advice would you give a service provider looking to enter the multifamily housing industry?
TS: Be able to respond to your customer in a timely manner and with professionalism but most particularly, “do what you say you are going to do.” DO NOT OVER PROMISE AND UNDER DELIVER!!
The message that Terry sends is clear and consistent. If you read between the lines it sounds like he has learned more from his bad experiences over the years than positive ones. Keep this in mind when training sales people, producing marketing materials, considering your after-the- sale support program and designing new product/service offerings.
Relationships are critical in this industry and maintaining high standards will set you apart from the rest.
For the purpose of this blog I wanted to ask him a few questions that I am sure he is not typically asked of the trade press. Over his 16 years experience as the President of one of the nation's most prominent developers, managers and builders of apartment communities he has been called on by a good many firms and certainly has had his share of experiences.
Here is the brief exchange:
RB: Based on your experience at Village Green through your current role at Dover Group what would you say that the best vendors do that separates them from the rest in the multifamily industry?
TS: They do what they say they are going to do! They are timely, responsive, accurate, reliable and CONSISTENT!
RB: What were the key factors that you wanted to know before doing business with a company?
TS: ALL OF THE ABOVE as well as high standards!
RB: What advice would you give a service provider looking to enter the multifamily housing industry?
TS: Be able to respond to your customer in a timely manner and with professionalism but most particularly, “do what you say you are going to do.” DO NOT OVER PROMISE AND UNDER DELIVER!!
The message that Terry sends is clear and consistent. If you read between the lines it sounds like he has learned more from his bad experiences over the years than positive ones. Keep this in mind when training sales people, producing marketing materials, considering your after-the- sale support program and designing new product/service offerings.
Relationships are critical in this industry and maintaining high standards will set you apart from the rest.
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