Office Marketing – the virtual and the vital « all news

Office Marketing – the virtual and the vital « all news

23rd February 2021

On 11 February 2021 Profile held it’s Q&A Webinar on Marketing Office Space with speakers: Simon Tann from Levy Real Estate, Matt Nimmo from Siren Design and Zoe Ellis-Moore from Spaces to Places.

Simon Tann discussed how last year was the worst on record during Covid – 70% down on what would be expected in a normal year. Marketing of commercial property has never been so important – it’s a competitive environment and occupiers are becoming more choosy. Office agents in the past have tended to not be that creative or technologically advanced and many were still doing some of the things they were doing 20 years ago. However, Covid has forced people to do things differently and there has been more change in the last year than over the last 20 years.

Rather than using just office agency sites, such as CoStar, agents are promoting more to the end user. Occupiers today expect to get info at the touch of a button (a bit like looking at a hotel room). In the commercial market there is becoming more traction in sites such as Zoopla and Rightmove and agents have started to endorse these.

Social media in the commercial property world has sky rocketed in the last twelve months with LinkedIn and Instagram being the most popular. QR codes on boards are beginning to become popular with people understanding them more now – signs are important and it’s worth time on getting them right. Websites are now more focused on the properties they are marketing rather than themselves as an agent and more enquiries are being seen through websites. Emailing is still popular – direct emails are powerful and the database needs to be well segmented. Using HTML you can see who is clicking on which properties and target them directly. However, people are reading mass marketed emails less.

Matt Nimmo spoke about new digital technology and the advancement which Covid brought about. A year on and everyone is far more comfortable with digital and the changes are here to stay. The tech is now much more cost effective and the software is amazing – agents are embracing these new tools.

Watch these impressive videos from Siren View Cast on what can be achieved with tech:

VIEW / CAST

Animated HTML Emailer

Digital Tool edited run through

Schemes can be spoken about before the floorplans are even done.

Food for thought: The power of influence e.g. architects are passionate about their buildings, but rarely used in the advertising..

Zoe Ellis-Moore, from Spaces to Places, spoke about how the commercial sector are preparing for new consumer reality. There has been a shift to changing work spaces easily – hot desking – hot offices. There has been a growth in remote marketing with visitors being able to access space using CCTV cameras and their phones. They can even sign contracts instantly via mobile phones and get it sent for approval before printing their key card. Microchips are used and people are just working from a tablet.

Brand positioning – the unique way that you stand out in your market. Your office space has to represent you. Different styles: Convenience – ease of access, value, on-demand team space, community and reliability, change of scenery for the user, smaller. On the other side of the spectrum – Hub – occupiers want status and an iconic location as their HQ, people commute there, wow factor, have an experience, restaurants and leisure facilities, may just go once a month. Middle ground – Club – 30-40 minutes travel and may go twice a week.

There is a revolution in the way we work with working spaces providing different lifestyles. The ‘officisation’ of our High Street and shopping centers with trends towards mixed use developments. There is a massive reform to planning and local government are supporting these new workspaces in local neighbourhoods and communities.

Read Zoe’s links:

Brand Positioning In The Flexible Office Market (spacestoplaces.co.uk)

Digital Marketing In The Flexible Office Sector (spacestoplaces.co.uk)

Turning shops into offices (spacestoplaces.co.uk)

Location Strategy In The Flexible Office Market (spacestoplaces.co.uk)

If you would like anymore information on any of the above, please contact ali@profile-network

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