Look good, get found: Apartment media tips for today’s marketers

Rich, high-quality media doesn’t just impress renters. It influences how and where your communities get found.

Put differently, media is impacting search in new ways, and it’s up to you to stay ahead.

Fortunately, this article is your guide! We’re covering the basics of visual media, how it intersects with search and apartment media tips you should try now.

Ready to show up and stand out to more renters?  

Your intro to visual media

Most apartment marketers are familiar with visual media. It describes communication that is — you guessed it — visual. It can be photos, virtual tours, 3D renderings or anything else that visually depicts your communities.

And renters expect visual media, whether it’s on your apartment website, listings or social channels. According to a RentCafe.com survey of 10,000 renters, 73% said interior apartment photos influence their decision most. 83% said virtual tours of floor plans are either important or very important.

The data doesn’t just point to expectations, either. It tells us that visual media actually converts renters. A case study by LCP Media shows that virtual tours drive 40% more leads and 72% more net leases.

Understanding 3 important search channels

So, renters expect visual media when searching for apartments … but how does it affect the actual search journey? There are three important channels to think about.

• Traditional search
• AI-driven search
• Social media search

See below for the breakdown, including why media matters for each channel and relevant tips to consider.

Traditional search

If you’ve been a digital marketer for some time, you’re no stranger to traditional search. It’s the standard way search engines retrieve and display information.

But let’s walk through how it works: A renter might start with a high-level search, like, “best apartments in Dallas.” Search engines match those words to webpages in its index, then ranks results based on relevance, backlinks and SEO signals, like keywords and authority.

Links then show up in list form on the search engines results page (SERP), and the renter can click through to find the information they’re seeking.

Wondering where media fits in? Well, search engines like Google also reward websites with well-structured media, since it fuels results for the image search tab and Google Lens.

Well-structured media also:

• Gives search engines more context
• Encourages backlinks and shares
• Boosts positive engagement signals

To structure your media for traditional search, we recommend a few strategies:

1. Optimize for eyes and algorithms. Use high-quality photos and videos with keyword-rich file names. This helps your media appeal to both renters and search engines.
2. Prioritize alt text on all images. This is important for discoverability. Alt text helps search engines understand your images, while improving accessibility for all users searching. 
3. Add media to your Google Business Profile. Make sure you include photos and videos beyond your website and listings, including on your GBP. This can make your community stand out in local searches.

AI search

We know, we know … AI is everywhere! In the apartment marketing world, it’s changing how renters search for and find information.

Here’s an idea of how AI-driven search works, specifically on Google: With conversational or question-style queries (think searches like, “What’s the safest neighborhood in San Diego?”), Google generates AI overviews. These are concise summaries that draw from multiple sources, often appearing at the top of search results.

To produce these AI overviews, Google prioritizes sources with clarity, relevance and content formatted for conversational search. Also, media! AI algorithms — for Google’s AI overviews and tools like ChatGPT — leverage visual content to index, interpret and retrieve information.

And just like with traditional search, AI favors well-structured media. It’s a multimodal source of information that provides more context and engagement signals. (Computer vision is what allows AI engines to interpret media, essentially teaching AI to “see” and make decisions based on its observations.)

With AI search in mind, your media should follow these guidelines:

1. Label your media clearly. This goes beyond alt text. Make sure your media includes accurate and keyword-rich titles, descriptions and even file names. Avoid complicated, unnatural language (again, AI engines like conversational text).
2. Keep things updated. Refresh your media regularly. Relevant, up-to-date photos, videos and virtual tours appeal to AI algorithms most. In fact: Recent data shows that AI really does cite fresher content.
3. Publish across multiple platforms. Put visual media on your website, ILS listings, social channels and GBP. This helps AI tools connect the content across sources and builds trust with generative engines.

Social search

Did you know social media is now a search channel? This is a newer concept in the search world, and it’s important for every apartment marketer to understand.

Let’s dive into how it works: Think back to renters conducting an online apartment search. To generate relevant results, search engines like Google now index some — not all — public social media content. This means they crawl and store posts, profiles and more.  

Google analyzes keywords, engagement and recency to decide if social content is relevant and worth showing. Just like with traditional search, renters can click through social results on the SERP to find the information they’re looking for. (You can learn more in our social media indexing article.)

But where does visual media come into play? With social indexing, more media can appear in search results. And search engines reward social content that includes well-structured media, just like they reward media-rich websites.

Here are some media tips to consider for social search: 

1. Optimize your profiles. A visually consistent social profile goes a long way. Be sure to include optimized (and well-branded) visuals, thumbnails and more. Bonus tip: Your bio is a great place to add keywords.
2. Treat posts as searchable content. Think of social posts like mini webpages. Use photos, videos and even GIFs that keep renters engaged. Don’t forget to add strategic keywords in media titles and alt text, in addition to your captions.
3. Focus on user intent. Publish social content with media that instantly answers renter questions. Do you offer multiple floor plans? Is your community close to a vibrant downtown area? Get creative but stay informative.

P.S. Here’s a quick list of what isn’t indexed on social, as of now:

• Private and personal accounts
• Instagram stories and highlights
• Older content (predating 2020)

Let’s talk media

If there’s one thing you take from this article, let it be that media isn’t just decoration. It should be a cornerstone of your search strategy.

If you’re looking for more guidance, we offer media audits that are completely free. It’s a great chance to see how media can work for you and get tips for winning the search game.  

Reach out anytime to get something scheduled.

Happy (media) marketing!