Creating renter personas: 3 easy steps & free template for apartment marketers

Have you created renter personas as part of your marketing strategy? If not, you might want to give it a try. It’s a smart way to target more qualified leads, connect with prospective residents and speed up your leasing cycle.  

But let’s rewind: What are renter personas, and how do you go about creating them?

Keep reading to find the answers, including three easy steps to get started. (Bonus: We’re also sharing a free renter persona template.)

What are renter personas?

Sometimes called buyer personas, customer personas or marketing personas, renter personas are detailed representations of your ideal residents.

Think of it like a fictional profile, but one that’s created based on market research and real renter data (from your existing leads and residents).

Personas generally include demographics, behaviors, interests, goals and pain points. You want to be as thorough as possible. How old are they? What are their apartment must-haves? What types of marketing catches their attention?

You can create however many personas make sense for your business, but we recommend starting with three to five. You also should create different personas for each of your communities.  

One more thing: You can also build exclusionary personas. These are the opposite of your ideal customer, like a website visitor who wants tips from your blog, not a renter looking for their next home. Creating these might help you narrow down who you’re targeting.  

Top benefits for apartment marketers

Creating personas helps you determine, target and convert your ideal renter. It’s a way to turn data into empathy, then empathy into action.

Put differently: If you have a data-backed, real-life understanding of your renters — and what they’re looking for — you can create relevant marketing to drive new leads and leases.

Here’s what that relevant marketing can look like:

• Sharper website and social copy that speaks to renter must-haves
• Powerful visual media showing amenities your renters really care about
• Personalized follow-ups based on renter preferences and behaviors
• Optimized advertising to target the right type of leads (and reduce spend)

For example, using renter personas can help you create focused PPC ads that are more likely to convert.

3 easy steps to create your personas

If you’re a regular blog visitor, you know we love giving quick, easy tips to help you apply what you’ve learned.  

Check out three simple steps to create renter personas for one of your communities:

1. Pull some data. Don’t make assumptions. Use things like rental inquiry forms, applications and resident surveys to identify basic details and trends from your existing customers. You should also talk to your onsite teams at your properties, since they are the ones interacting with your residents. (You can do general market research too, to get a pulse on today’s average renter.)   
2. Move to surveys. Once you know the basics like age and household size, it’s time to dig deeper. Consider running a short survey on social media to find out what your renters want and expect. Think questions like: What type of content motivates you? What’s an apartment feature you can’t live without?
3. Test and evolve. Don’t stop after one survey. Stay in touch with what your renters are looking for, and what they like about your community. Preferences evolve, so your research should too. And don’t be afraid to test other ways to reach and survey renters.

Get the free template

Hooray for free templates! See below for a simple guide to help you craft renter personas, once you’ve done your market and renter research.

Persona snapshot

• Name
• Age range
• Occupation
• Preferred location

Mindset & motivations

• Goals for moving (e.g., needs more space)
• Top three apartment must-haves (e.g., pet-friendly)
• Pain points with past rentals (e.g., slow maintenance)
• Deal breakers in a community (e.g., no covered parking)

Behaviors & channels

• Search habits (e.g., when and where they search)
• Online activity and devices (e.g., desktop vs. mobile)
• Preferred communication (e.g., email vs. text)
• Content that resonates (e.g., virtual tours)
• Logic for making decisions (e.g., trusts reviews)

Download your copy

Want a version you can take with you? Here’s the renter personas template in pdf form:

Sample persona

Charlie, who’s 28 years old and living solo, is looking for a rental that caters to busy professionals. The move was inspired by a brand-new marketing job located in downtown Dallas. Charlie wants to be close to work, but still enjoy some peace and quiet.

Top must-haves for an apartment and surrounding area are in-unit laundry, an on-site fitness center and walkability to public transportation. (Charlie has long work hours and doesn’t want to commute to a public gym or laundromat.)

To work around a busy schedule, Charlie wants to see in-unit photos — or better yet, virtual tours — and apply online. Searching for an apartment usually takes place in the evening, primarily on Google and ILSs, from a mobile phone.

Charlie hopes to find renter testimonials online, but it’s not a deal breaker if there aren’t any. The biggest draw to sign a lease would be fast, clear communication via email from the leasing office, once Charlie applies. It’s a time crunch … the new job starts next month!

Here’s the template with Charlie’s info, for inspiration:

Put your persona into action

Remember our “relevant marketing” examples? Now that you have a sample renter persona (Charlie), let’s outline a detailed action plan.  

• Sharper website and social copy: Publish copy that speaks to Charlie’s must-haves (like walkability to public transportation). Your website is a great place to start, including blog posts and FAQs. Social media is another smart place to call out what your community offers.  
• Powerful visual media: Make sure you have high-quality, in-unit content that highlights what Charlie is looking for. Photos and virtual tours of in-unit laundry, for instance, will go a long way. Bonus tip … add interactive maps to show more of your property and the surrounding area.
• Personalized follow-ups: Have your leasing agents contact Charlie via email, in the evenings (scheduling tools are your best friend). Messaging should be personalized, mentioning Charlie’s apartment wants and needs, along with a relevant call to action.  
• Optimized advertising: Create an advertising strategy based on Charlie’s interests, search habits and priorities. PPC ads are highly targeted and a fantastic way to convert rent-ready leads. Not sure you have the time to build PPC campaigns? Think about working with an experienced marketing agency, like REACH.    

Want more help? 

If you’re looking for extra insights on creating renter personas, or building other strategies, reach out to us. Our team of experts is second to none when it comes to marketing that drives leases.

New to our blog? Here’s a batch of recent articles with more tips for winning renters:

5 ways to convert more renters on your website 

New multifamily trends: Apartment marketing ideas to try next

Marketing to renters: Data shows you need apartment media

Disclaimer: Be mindful of how your renter personas are translated into public messaging, ads or targeting criteria. Always review with fair housing compliance in mind.