When occupancy starts slipping, the first reaction is often: We need more leads.

But what if lead volume isn’t actually the problem?

In the first episode of our six-part multifamily marketing series, Rory Anderson sits down with marketing strategist Derek Miller to break down the multifamily marketing funnel—and why throwing more money at advertising may not solve your leasing challenges.

Derek explains how prospects move from lead to scheduled tour, show, application, approval, and ultimately move-in—and why understanding conversion at every stage is critical. If prospects are entering the funnel but disappearing somewhere along the way, generating even more traffic may simply mean spending more money to create the same result.

Rory and Derek also discuss how marketing, operations, revenue management, and onsite teams need to work together. A struggling property could have a marketing problem—but it could just as easily have a pricing issue, staffing challenge, weak follow-up process, competitive disadvantage, or breakdown in the leasing experience. The data helps teams identify where the real problem lives before deciding how to fix it.

And in a world increasingly driven by AI, automation, email, and text messaging, Derek makes the case for something remarkably simple: pick up the phone. Technology can help nurture prospects, but a real human connection can still be the difference between someone scheduling a tour and actually showing up.

In this episode, you'll learn:

• How the multifamily marketing and leasing funnel actually works
• Why more leads don't necessarily produce more leases
• Where prospects commonly fall out of the leasing process
• Which metrics property teams should examine before increasing marketing spend
• How marketing and operations can work together to diagnose property performance
• Why the human element still matters in an increasingly automated leasing experience

The big takeaway: Before you spend more money generating leads, understand what's happening to the leads you already have.

If you work in multifamily marketing, property management, leasing,

🎧 Listen now and subscribe to The Property Playbook so you don't miss Part 2 of our Multifamily Marketing Series: Traffic Quality vs. Traffic Quantity.

TO CONTACT OUR GUEST

DEREK MILLER

Keywords: Multifamily marketing, apartment marketing, multifamily marketing strategy, multifamily marketing funnel, leasing funnel, apartment leasing, lead-to-lease conversion, property management marketing, multifamily lead generation, leasing performance