James Dilgul, Head of Marketing at Fixflo, provides a run down on digital marketing techniques for block managers.

The digital world is a daily part of our lives. As of August 2020, 46.6 million people in Britain said they used the Internet ‘daily’, up from 45.1 million in the previous year. Search engines are the first port of call for those looking to find information or services, and potential block management clients are no exception. According to Google data, “block management company + [location]” receives up to 720 searches in the UK a month depending on location. Google also reports that searches which include the term “near me” have grown by 40% in 2020 versus the previous year. This leaves a lot of potential for block management companies looking to expand their portfolio.

Traditionally, much block management business occurs offline. You might place an advert or feature an article in a local newspaper or trade publication with a link to your website. Word of mouth is an important tool, too; this is a people-driven industry in which nurturing relationships with contractors and other professionals is vital to grow and prosper. However, the Covid-19 pandemic has shown us that methods like these may not be enough. Face-to-face relationships are more difficult to build when physical meetings are not possible, while printed publications are threatened by a world where an increasing number of activities are carried out online. In a rapidly changing future, digital marketing could offer a more sustainable way for block management companies to engage clients and generate prospects.

Putting Your Best Foot Forward

Digital marketing starts with your website. Before you start marketing efforts, it’s important to make yours as good as it can be. This doesn’t mean things have to be fancy; what’s more important is that the information is relevant and targeted.

Consider what the RMC director looking to make a switch from their current managing agent would want to know and be looking for. What would appeal to them? 

Your website is your shopfront, a chance to present yourself, explain what you do and establish yourself as trustworthy. It should be easy to follow, understand and navigate. 

Mobile-friendliness matters, too. A lot of Internet usage happens on mobile devices, and from May 2021, a website which does not work well on a mobile phone will appear even lower in search results following Google’s planned search algorithm update.

Search Engine Optimisation

When your audience searches for a word or phrase, Google tries to provide the most relevant and useful results first. This is because the typical user does not tend to look beyond the first page of search results. The word or phrase used to find you is called a keyword. Your goal is to be as high on Google as possible for the keywords most relevant to your business, therefore increasing the chances you can be found. If Google thinks what you do is relevant to a keyword, they will rank you higher for that term. The process of ensuring your website is found and ranked highly in search engines is called Search Engine Optimisation (SEO).

Your website and its content should feature these keywords to signal to Google that you are relevant and ensure you are displayed when they are used. Consider that a direct search for block management businesses is not the only way your audience can find you. RMC directors can also find your website through the queries they search for. This means you should publish articles based on these questions and what they would want to read.

Some examples of what you could publish:

– How-to guides on Right To Manage and common repairs in flats

– Explanations of legislation changes such as new health and safety rules or the Building Safety Bill

– Articles about property management concerns such as Japanese knotweed

– Interviews with leaseholders who appreciate your services

Basing your content on what RMC directors are searching for can provide potentially hundreds of avenues for them to visit your website and make an enquiry. High-quality content can also help you to establish yourselves as experts. Demonstrating the knowledge you have of the profession will help you to build trust and present yourselves as a reliable brand.

PPC (Pay-Per-Click) Advertising

Some terms will be more challenging to rank highly for than others, particularly if there is a lot of competition for them. For example, a search for “block management London” will yield thousands of results. This is where PPC (pay-per-click) advertising comes in. 

PPC advertising ensures a place at the top of Google by ‘buying’ ad space. For each keyword, you set the maximum price (cost per click) you are willing to pay every time a user clicks on your advert. The more competition a term has, the higher you will need to set your cost per click so that you are visible. 

Every time a user performs a search, an auction takes place among yourselves and other advertisers. This auction determines if your advert will be displayed based on the cost per click you set. If your advert is displayed and a user clicks on it, you pay a fee.

PPC adverts are the first thing any user sees, so if they identify one that matches what they are looking for, they are far more likely to click it than they are to look at the rest of the search results. 

Like SEO, it works using keywords, so it’s vital to use the correct ones according to what your audience is looking for. What terms are people using to find block management companies? Which term is more popular, ‘managing agent’ or ‘block manager’? 

These are the sorts of questions you’ll need to answer to build an effective PPC strategy.

Google rewards high-quality, relevant adverts by featuring them more often and decreasing the required cost per click, so it’s important to only pay for the terms which match what your business does. Once your brand has some exposure online, you might also want to use your own brand name as a keyword – just in case competitors bid on your brand name and take your search exposure!

Learning More

These are just two basic components of the vast world of digital marketing. The best marketing strategies are unique and tailored to each business but will normally include a mix of SEO, PPC and other elements such as social media and email marketing. For more on PPC and search engine marketing, watch Block Management Masterclass: How to Beat the Competition Online, an on-demand webinar we run with the digital marketing experts behind Roar, a digital marketing agency with rich experience helping property businesses generate leads online.