December, 2008

Mark-Taylor Scores Touchdown With College Football-Themed Promotion

If apartment marketing had a national championship, Mark-Taylor Residential would be playing in a bowl game.

This fall, the Scottsdale, Ariz.-based management company decided to build enthusiasm for its fall campaign by tying its promotion into an activity near and dear to many Phoenix-area residents: football.

To accomplish this, Mark-Taylor became the title sponsor of "Scouting the Nation," a sports talk radio show focusing on college football. The sponsorship included several radio spots each week as well as an on-site live broadcast from a different Mark-Taylor community each week. Mark-Taylor became a sponsor of Arizona State University (ASU) athletics, which provided the apartment company with ASU photography and artwork for the Mark-Taylor Web site. Finally, the campaign included print and online ads as well as direct mail postcards to local businesses.

For Mark-Taylor, the live radio-show broadcast represented an undeniable opportunity to showcase the resort-style lifestyle offered by its properties, and the company did just that. Mark-Taylor staff organized tailgate parties, complete with food, beverages, and door prizes such as flat-screen TVs, at the community hosting the broadcast.

The effort provided added exposure for Mark-Taylor properties. "The radio hosts did an excellent job describing the setting, the people, and the atmosphere, and really painted a picture for listeners who might be in the market for an apartment," said Kim Atkinson, Mark-Taylor's director of marketing and PR. She also built her database of prospects by asking people to register online for the weekly tailgate parties.

The promotion had a significant and positive impact on business during what is normally a slower time of year for leasing. According to Atkinson, Mark-Taylor generated more than 13,000 leads from the college football themed campaign, which translated into nearly 1,100 leases between Sept. 1 and Nov. 30.