If there’s one thing that 2020 taught commercial real estate professionals, it’s that tenant relationships are important. There were moratoriums on evictions, an increased number of vacancies and higher stress levels for, well, everybody.
Even without the events of this past year, CRE pros know that strengthening connections with tenants is vital for accurate forecasting and portfolio stability. Let’s look at how you can do this virtually, in person and through a combination of the two.
1. Virtually
Whether for convenience or necessity, there are benefits to establishing or building relationships with tenants virtually. Since there appears to be an increased sense of urgency with CRE leases these days, the time savings of virtual interactions alone is crucial for landing those target tenants. Here are some ways to improve relationships with tenants virtually:
- Improve your skills at hosting virtual tours and prioritize them based on what your potential tenants would like to see
- Let potential tenants visualize their space by suite (a feature in CRE software)
- Post notes on maintenance, improvements, lease issues, equipment and other critical points in a virtual space the tenant can access
- Set up virtual maintenance tracking via CRE software
- Track critical dates related to existing leases and communicate with tenants about them
2. In Person
Face-to-face interactions in commercial real estate won’t go away, however. Some tenants still prefer this method and there are some tips you could use here as well. Here are some ways to improve relationships with tenants in person:
- When hosting an in-person tour, prioritize the showing based on the tenant’s needs
- For conversations, focus on the human element instead of the bottom line
- Follow up on any tours or communications with an email, thank-you letter or gift
- Host in-person events for tenants, purely for the sake of relationship building
3. Combination
You can also mix up your relationship building by using both physical and virtual means. For example, you can identify lease or maintenance issues in CRE software, then follow up with a physical visit to handle them. Or, you can let existing tenants visualize their space digitally and talk through the space with them to ensure they’re utilizing their space optimally. You can even try tactics like promoting virtual events in person. Use your creativity (and the right technology) and you’ll be in good shape for relationship building.
If you’d like to see how CRE software can help with tenant relationship improvement, request a demo of Quarem today.
