Combine post-Christmas blues with the rising cost of living, and you have a recipe for a rather dismal January!
Taking inspiration from our clients, we’ve come up with some ideas that can be used to encourage a not-so-blue January and bring more positivity into your developments.
1. Establish Online Wellness Clubs and Forums
Across our client base, we’ve seen online meditation clubs, forums encouraging gratitude and positivity, to general social clubs, enabling residents to build real-life support networks right on their doorsteps. What’s more, research by Apartment Life found that the more friends a resident has within their building, the more likely they are to renew their tenancy.
By utilising our award-winning resident engagement portal, Spike Living, property managers can provide a secure and safe place online that is only accessible by genuine residents, ensuring that residents are not at risk from scammers and strangers.
2. Digitally Bookable Fitness Classes
According to Mind UK, there are numerous studies that reveal how physical exercise can improve mental health, from lifting moods, to improving sleep and a great way to connect with others. It’s no surprise that fitness classes were the most popular events to take place across our client developments last year!
By utilising Spike Living, residents can view and book available fitness classes within a few taps, all from the comfort and convenience of their homes. Spike Living also allows events and fitness classes to be ticketed and chargeable, providing an additional revenue stream for property managers.
3. Hold Wellness Events and Workshops
Yoga and meditation workshops became the norm during the pandemic and have continued to grow in popularity ever since. One of our clients introduced ‘Meditate Mondays’, which had an attendance of over 1,000 residents in 2022 – yoga classes in total across our client base were attended by over 6,000 residents in the same year!
To combat loneliness and isolation, property managers could hold coffee mornings, Mindfulness Mondays, or provide in-person social networking opportunities to bring residents together.
Spread awareness of these events and workshops via our Spike Living portal to increase attendance!
4. Virtual or In-Person Mental Health Sessions
Often having someone to talk to in a professional setting can make it easier to discuss anxieties or concerns. In some of our client developments, on site counselling sessions were offered for free or at a discounted rate, and all bookable via the Spike Living portal.
Partner with local or established psychologists to connect residents to licenced professionals, whether via virtual consultations or in a dedicated on-site room.
We also worked with clients to implement a dedicated area within their Spike Living portal to provide residents with quick and easy access to a wide range of content from advice around mindfulness, managing emotional wellbeing, as well as providing a simple way for residents to ask for help, alerting on-site teams of anxiety attacks or residents needing immediate help.
5. Amenities Dedicated to Mental Wellness
Provide residents with a dedicated area within their building, such as meditation rooms or wellness studios, giving residents the opportunity to get away from everyday stresses and find peace within their own buildings.
To raise awareness and encourage use of these dedicated rooms, property management regularly promoted availability of these amenities on the Spike Living portal.
Summary
Turn January from a sombre period to a month of new beginnings and opportunities, ensuring that residents feel supported and cared for. With resident experience arguably the most important element of any property offering, and a key factor when it comes to retaining residents, many property managers are now looking at how to provide additional value to ensure their developments stand out within an increasingly competitive rental market.
