THE DIGIBLE DUDE

Welcome back to the Digible Dudes podcast. This week, we’re back with some fascinating findings of another case study conducted at Digible. It’s a widely accepted concept that a multi-platform approach can significantly improve conversions and ROI. However, the Digible team wanted to get some solid numbers to measure this impact. So the team conducted a study using more than 500 properties. David Staley, Reid Wicoff, Adam Walters, and Nicole Staley are in the studio today to talk about how a multi-platform marketing approach can improve ROI in real estate marketing.

We start the conversation with what influenced the team to conduct this case study and what they hoped to find out from it. Adam shares some of the most important results of the study and performance metrics that demonstrated how big of an impact a multi-platform approach can generate. Here are some if the things found in the study:

· In properties that ran SEO along with Paid search, their paid search conversion rates increased by 32.09%, and website conversion rates in Google Analytics increased by 371.42%.

· By adding a Display campaign to paid search and social efforts, Total Media Cost Per Website Lead in Google Analytics decreased by 75.79%, and Website Conversion Rates in Google Analytics increased by 158.09%.

In the next part of the episode, we talk about how the industry typically behaves. Nicole shares some of the reasons why many marketers typically start with a search campaign, add more platforms but, at some point, and the role attribution plays in this. Another area we focus on today is programmatic advertising. We talk about how it works and the performance metrics that show its impact.

It’s important for a savvy marketer to know when to go for a multi-platform approach. Reid shares his thoughts on what to consider when deciding that. Towards the end of the episode, we explore How reputation, reviews, and ratings make an impact on the decision-making process of potential customers, ultimately impacting the conversions.

[01:42] Background – Nicole shares the motive behind this case study and the questions they were trying to answer with this case study.

[03:23] Findings – Adam shares the key findings of the study related to performance metrics and behaviors of website visitors.

[06:30] SEO – Reid shares his thoughts on how SEO optimizations on a website can dramatically affect the performance of conversions.

[10:16] Industry Behavior – Nicole talks about why many clients typically start their campaigns with search campaigns, later add more platforms, and eventually defaults to search.

[11:36] Programmatic Advertising – David and Nicole talk about programmatic advertising and how the numbers stack up in terms of performance and cost savings by utilizing programmatic advertising.

[16:31] When to Switch – Reid talks about some of the things marketers should consider when deciding whether taking a multi-platform approach is the right choice.

[20:19] Working with Clients – Nicole shares her thoughts on how they’re collaborating with clients to get started on multi-platform marketing approaches.

[24:48] What’s Next – David talks about some of the studies his team has been doing and what questions their research may answer in the future.

[27:29] Reputation – Reid and David talk about how reputation and ratings come into play when it comes to conversions and building trust about the brand.

Resources:

The Impacts of a Multi-Platform Marketing Approach:

Entrata has a long history in the property management industry. And it’s also been an inspiring company. David and Reid dive into the conversation by talking about their history and why Entrata is one of the companies they look up to. Although they’ve been under the radar for almost two decades, Entrata has been performing extremely well. We talk about the performance metrics of Entrata and how their performance data may have contributed to securing this huge investment.

After receiving this huge investment, Entrata will have great potential to grow bigger and push its boundaries. This may include entering into a whole different arena with bigger competitors and new markets. David shares his thoughts on what it might look like when they have to compete against a new set of businesses and how the company may change its direction.

Another area we cover today is the possibility of Entrata going international. Making software solutions available to new markets is always a complex process that calls for more resources and careful planning and oversight. We talk about possible steps Entrata might have to take and possible acquisitions it may have to make in order to go international, and how they’ll have to manage investor expectations while going through a major transformation. Toward the end of the episode, Reid and David share their thoughts on what it’ll be like when Digible becomes two decades old and some shocking but fascinating statistics on what happens o most major acquisitions.

[01:08] Entrata’s Way – David & Reid talk about their experience with Entrata and why Entrata has been one of the self-funded companies that they look up to.

[04:38] What the Numbers Say – Entrata has been in business for almost two decades and growing significantly. David breaks down the numbers of how they’ve been performing and what probably helped them secure this huge investment.

[07:09] New Weight Class – Now that Entrata has secured a half-a-billion investment, they’ll be entering a different environment. David shares his take on who Entrata will be competing against and the direction the company may be heading in the near future.

[12:01] Going International – The possibility of Entrata entering new markets across the globe and possible steps they’ll have to take and acquisitions they might have to make.

[17:31] Human Resources – David shares his take on Entrata’s way of staffing and how it may change now that they have this huge investment.

[22:00] Investor Expectations – What Entrata may have to consider in the future in terms of maintaining expectations of investors if they’re going international, which may be a long business venture.

[26:46] Digible at 18 Years – Reid shares his take on what he thinks it’ll be like when Digible is as old as Entrata is right now.

[32:43] Success in Acquisitions – According to Harvard Business Review, typically 70-90% of acquisitions are abysmal failures. David & Reid talk about the shocking nature of this finding and how it would influence Entrata’s potential acquisitions in the future.

[36:37] Predictions – David shares his thoughts on how Entrata might be doing things differently in the near future.

Resources:

Entrata Raises $507 Million After 18 Years Bootstrapped, Making It Utah’s Newest Software Unicorn: forbes.com/sites/alexkonrad/2021/07/07/utah-unicorn-entrata-raises-507-million-after-18-years-bootstrapped

Welcome back to the Dible Dudes podcast. This week, we have David, Reid, and Nicole, the three co-founders of Digible to dive deep into a conversation that every company should focus on at some point in the lifetime of the business; the vision. In this episode, we talk about what inspired the start of Digible, how the vision evolved over the years, the framework used to develop Digible’s vision, and some of the out-of-the-box strategies Digible uses to build a better work culture and make the world a better place.

Whether in life, or a business venture, it’s a crucial step to figure out the purpose, core values, and what your goals are. We start today’s conversation with a brief review of how the Digible team made their purpose and core values clear and some of the things that inspired the whole business venture. In several of our previous episodes, we’ve talked about some of the books written by Jim Collins. The Vision Framework by Jom Collins is a great resource that helps entrepreneurs get their vision made clear. We dive deep into the technicalities of the framework and how it paved the path to creating and developing Digible’s vision.

If you search for #digibledogs on LinkedIn or Instagram, you’re going to some of the little friends we have at Digible. And that is just one of the many out-of-the-box things we do at Digible to create a work environment that makes the typical day of work more exciting than ever. We talk about why Digible is dedicated to creating a better work culture, some of the strategies Digible utilizes to make it happen, such as introducing a four-day workweek, and how these efforts have improved the culture of Digible.

Another area we explore in this episode is the BHAG, aka the big hairy audacious goal. We talk about Digible’s BHAG, the process of defining the BHAG and its key components, Digible’s long-term and short-term goals to expand the business, make its technology available for more users, and ultimately make the world a better place.

[01:37] Purpose, Vision, and Mission – We talk about the journey of finding purpose, core values, and the ultimate goal for the company, and what inspired the business venture.

[07:11] Vision Framework – Reid dives into the nuts and bolts of the framework used at Digible to develop the vision of the company.

[12:40] Focus & Niches – David & Nicole discuss how they took into account the long-term expectation of the company and the short-term niches when determining the mission statements.

[17:21] Employee Culture – Digible’s plans of doing things differently in order to create a better culture in which employees can thrive and how Digible is dedicated to adopting the four-day workweek.

[21:27] Progressive Change – Reid talks about some of the work DIgible is doing in order to be a catalyst for progressive change.

[24:46] Future Plans for Technology – How Digible will be updating its technology to expand the business and make Digible’s technology available for a wider range of users.

[26:49] The BHAG – We talk about where the term B-HAG came from and what’s behind the big hairy audacious goal of Digible.

[32:56] Road to the BHAG – We talk about the importance and the process of breaking down the big hairy audacious goals into a set of key components.

[37:40] Beyond Revenue – Why Digible is geared toward building a better, more collaborative work environment and making the world a better place rather than being a typical revenue-focused company.

Resources:

Vision Framework by Jim Collins:

Welcome back to another episode of the Digible Dudes podcast. In the past episodes, we’ve been covering extensively about fair housing and equal treatment to everybody when it comes to housing. The LGBTQ community has been experiencing issues related to equal opportunities in housing. Joining us today is Michael Crews, the policy director for Once Colorado, a pioneer organization in advocacy for policies related to the LGBTQ community. Throughout the episode, we talk about One Colorado’s mission, where we stand with regards to policies, fair housing challenges, overcoming discrimination, and more.

Michael started his career in the government policy advocacy space as a summer intern at the office of the Lieutenant Governor of Colorado. Over the years, Michael has worked in many different roles related to government policy advocacy. We talk about his career journey and how he came to be a director at One Colorado. One Colorado is dedicated to promoting and advocating equality to the LGBTQ community. Michael shares with us the history of the organization and some of the areas of focus for One Colorado.

In their line of work, Once Colorado collects data via surveys and other methods to assess the issues that the LGBTQ community is facing. We dive deep into the strategies they use for data collection and processing and to ensure the data represents the community effectively. Furthermore, Michaels weighs in on the data they’ve gathered that indicates how wide the LGBTQ community is.

Moving into fair housing, we talk about some of the issues the LGBTQ community faces when it comes to housing. Michael dives deep into some of these issues, possible causes, and how more policies could be put in place to ensure more fair treatment to the LGBT community in the housing market. Wrapping up the episode, Michael shares his thoughts on how modern technology has influenced the LGBTQ community and how to overcome divisiveness in a community.

[09:10] Michael’s Journey – We start the conversation with Michael’s background and the path to working in LGBTQ advocacy.

[12:31] One Colorado – The story of how One Colorado was started, a brief review of its history, and the focus of the organization.

[17:36] Colorado and the Rest of the Country – Michael talks about where Colorado stands in comparison with other states in terms of policies related to the LGBTQ community.

[21:31] Data Collection – Once Colorado conducts a significant amount of surveys to assess the needs of the community. We talk about One Colorado’s data collection processes and how they’re optimized to reach the LGBTQ community effectively.

[27:40] Population – Michael breaks down the numbers of how broad the LGBTQ community is.

[30:00] Fair Housing – Michael shares his thoughts on where we are at in terms of fair housing and housing equality for the LGBTQ community and some of the legislations related to fair housing.

[37:03] Housing Challenges – Some of the housing-related challenging situations people in the LGBTQ community have to face.

[45:14] Impact of Technology – Michael shares his take on the positive and negative ways technology has influenced and impacted the LGBTQ community.

[51:00] National Level Support – Michael’s thoughts on the level of support the LGBTQ community gets in terms of policies and legislation.

[56:47] Overcoming Divisiveness – Some of the factors that contribute to divisiveness in a community and how One Colorado inspires the community to stick together and stay strong.

[1:04:29] Final Thoughts – Michael shares his thoughts on what business organizations can do to increase the support for their customers and employees in the LGBTQ community and how people can get involved with One Colorado and other similar organizations.

At Digible, we always try to innovate and create a work culture in which the team can thrive and develop their careers, and lately, we have been receiving recognition for our efforts. Last month, the Denver Post named Digible as the #1 Top Workplace of 2021 in Colorado for Small Businesses. Among many other innovative steps we’re taking to improve the work culture at Digible, starting from July, Digible will be moving into a 4-day workweek. In today’s episode, David, Reid, and Nicole, the three founders, are talking about why Digible is moving to a 4-day workweek and how it’s going to improve the performance and culture at Digible.

It was way back, even before Digible was started when Reid had the idea of a 4-day workweek in his mind. Reid starts the conversation, talking about how he heard about the concept and some of the early research done by prominent tech companies on how a 4-day workweek may improve the performance of an organization. Since we’re so much used to the traditional 5-day workweek, taking an extra day may feel somewhat strange. Nicole talks about how it felt when it was first introduced at Digible and how the process of moving into the new workweek will start in the next month.

Moving into the performance and productivity aspect, Reid dives deep into why a 4-day workweek will improve the productivity of a team and how the happiness and state of mind of employees affect the performance of the whole team. Moving into a 4-day workweek has a huge impact on the relationships and communications with clients. Nicole shares her thoughts on how the clients responded to the announcement and some of the measures Digible is going to take in order to ensure that operations continue to run smoothly, despite the change in the work schedule. Wrapping up the episode, we talk about some of the responses we’ve been receiving about the work culture at Digible and some tips and tricks on preparing for a 4- day workweek.

[01:08] The Origin Story – Reid starts the conversation with the story of how the idea was in his mind even before starting Digible and some of the research that’s been carried out by some of the tech giants on the concept of a 4-day workweek.

[04:45] Embracing the 4-day Work Week – We talk about the plans for the first 4-day workweek at Digible and how this new concept felt like when it was first introduced.

[07:00] Why 4-day Work Week? – Reid dives deep into the results of some of the studies that suggest that a 4-day work week can be more productive compared to a traditional workweek.

[11:40] Productivity – How the 4-day workweek will improve the efficiency and productivity of operations at Digible.

[17:13] Happiness and Work – Reid explains why the performance of a team increases when the team is happy and comfortable.

[22:52] The Announcement – Reid announced the news that Digible is going for a 4-day workweek with an April fools prank. He reflects back on the announcement and how the team responded.

[26:39] Working with Clients – Nicole shares her thoughts on how the clients were responding to this change.

[30:00] Recruitment – We talk about how the recruitment process is going to be adjusted to match the 4-day work week and some of the positive responses Digible has been receiving about its work culture and hiring practices.

[36:25] Preparations – How to prepare for a 4-day workweek in a way that keeps business operations smoothly.

Apple’s new iOS 14 update has been creating new all over the tech community, and its new privacy-related features created widespread debate as Facebook informed its users about the possible loss of features for advertisers. Adam Walters, Director of Paid Media at Digible, has a theory about the real reason why Apple’s rolling out these new updates that heavily affect the advertisers. In this episode, we dive deep into the untold story of iOS 14.

Adam dives into the conversation with a review of what Apple brings to customers in its iOS 14 update and how the new privacy-related features give consumers more choice to control what personal info they share with potential advertisers and 3rd party apps that monetize user data. He further talks about how Apple uses ads on their own platforms on a small scale and how they might expand their ad system in the future.

Companies that manufacture hardware devices have some authority over their users, and Apple is a good example of this. Adam talks about why there’s a powerplay associated with hardware. Diving into Apple’s intentions, Adam talks about some of Apple’s business practices and strategies outside the Unites States that don’t fit into the way they advocate privacy in the United States. David adds his perspective on what these strategies mean for the average consumer and advertisers.

Towards the end of the episode, we talk in-depth about awareness related to privacy. Reid shares his thoughts on the level of education the average consumer has on how their data is shared with advertisers and their options to control what data they share with apps that share user data with advertisers. Wrapping up the episode, we talk about how tech companies could improve the level of choice they can give consumers to have more control over their data and how the power struggles between tech giants may evolve in the near future.

[04:00] The New Update – What advertisers should know about the new features of the iOS 14 update and how it affects other paid media platforms.

[07:21] Apple Ads – How Apple currently uses advertisements, where they’re displayed, and the potential for Apple to expand their ads.

[08:42] Hardware and Powerplay – How the power dynamics of what tech companies can control depends on the hardware made by them.

[10:19] Contradictions – While Apple seems to advocate for privacy, their business strategies outside the United States, especially in China, seem to contradict their philosophy. David talks about the effect of this on consumers and advertisers.

[15:04] Competition – Adam shares his thoughts on the possibility of Apple launching new services to compete with existing tech giants.

[21:25] Privacy & Awareness – Reid shares his take on how educated the average citizen about their privacy and how apps use the information gathered from users.

[26:27] Improving Options – What Apple and other tech companies to give their consumers more choices with regard to what they share with apps.

[36:26] Shifting Power – Companies such as Apple and Google have a lot of power in their respective markets. When one of these companies try to a space that’s almost monopolized by another, it brings up anti-trust issues and other legal concerns. We talk about how these factors might come into play in the future.

The paid media world and search engines are constantly evolving. The trends and patterns that existed in 2019 are quite different from the year 2020. At Digible, we utilize data-driven tactics to analyze how the performance of marketing strategies is going to be affected by numerous conditions in the markets. In today’s snack episode, we talk about how the search trends in 2019 and 2020 compare against each other and what they can tell us about the next year.

Joining us today are Adam Walters, Director of Paid Media, and Megan Haase, Digital Strategy Lead at Digible, along with our host, David Staley, President & Co-Founder of Digible Inc. We start the discussion with Megan’s brief review of the methodology of data collection and analysis. She talks about the key observations they saw in the analysis. Furthermore, we talk about how the behaviors of key performance metrics differed between the two years, possible reasons for these changes, and how the pandemic-related factors affected the performance. Wrapping up the episode, we talk about some of the area-specific changes we may see and what the search trends can tell us about the near future.

[01:00] The Methodology – Megan starts the conversation with a brief review of how the data was gathered for the analysis.

[04:02] Findings – A comparison of major observations from the data with regard to the events of the two years.

[05:31] Performance – How the performance of key metrics compare in the two years and possible reasons for these behaviors.

[07:23] Impact of COVID – Adam shares his thoughts on how the pandemic has affected search trends and what we can expect in the near future.

[12:58] Market Specific Changes – Megan shares her thoughts on some of the changes we may see based on the conditions of specific areas within the United States.

Fair housing is one of the most important aspects of the housing industry with regard to compliance. The concept of fair housing brings consumers the right to choose housing free from unlawful discrimination. There are numerous fair housing legislations at federal and state levels that protect people from discrimination in housing transactions such as rentals, sales, lending, and insurance, and this is an area marketer in the real estate arena should pay constant attention to.

In today’s episode, we have a fair housing expert as our guest. Doug Chasick, aka That Fair Housing Guy™, is Digible’s resident fair housing consultant. Throughout today’s episode, we talk about how fair housing has evolved in the last few decades, the current status of fair-housing-related policies, how the policies may change in the future, optimizing marketing campaigns to comply with fair housing requirements, and more.

Doug started his career in the retail industry, and he gradually shifted his career path to fair housing. We start the conversation talking about his earlier business venture, The Apartment Doctor™, and how he became That Fair Housing Guy™. Doug entered into the industry in the 70s, which was the time the fair housing concepts were being introduced to the industry after The Fair Housing Act of 1968 prohibited discrimination concerning the sale, rental, and financing of housing based on race, religion, national origin or sex. Doug shares his thoughts on how the industry was different back then and how it has evolved through the next few decades.

Moving on to policies, we talk about how the current policies related to fair housing are structures. Doug shares his take on how the current federal administration has been focusing on improving fair housing legislation and possible changes that may occur in the near future. Another area we cover today is how marketers can optimize their strategies to comply with fair housing policies. Doug talks in-depth about targeting the right audiences, how to strategically implement fair housing concepts in marketing, how to analyze the risk associated with marketing, and some tips for getting the job done while maintaining compliance.

Toward the end of the episode, we talk about the most common violations reported regarding fair housing policies, some of the trends Doug sees, and possible reasons for them. Furthermore, Doug shares his take on the accountability and possible penalties associated with policy violations. We wrap up the conversation with a few entertaining stories from Doug’s decades-long career.

[06:53] Doug’s Background – How Doug started his career in retail and moved into the apartment industry and his fair housing work.

[14:03] Evolution of Fair Housing – Doug dives into how the industry was like in the 70s when he first got into the industry and how it has evolved throughout the decades.

[18:44] Policies – Doug shares his take on how the current policies related to fair housing are set up and how the current federal government may intervene to improve these policies.

[24:29] Marketing and Fair Housing – How the concept of fair housing alters the traditional way of marketing and how marketers should prepare to implement fair housing compliant marketing strategies.

[33:42] Targeting the Right Audience – Doug shares his thoughts on how to optimize marketing efforts in a way that reaches the right audience while complying with fair housing concepts.

[46:26] Most Common Violations – Doug talks about the most common fair housing violation claims he has been observing and some of the patterns he sees around complaints and possible causes for these trends.

[53:55] Consequences – Penalties, fines, and other consequences an operator might have to face in case of a complaint or a federal lawsuit related to fair housing.

On Digible Snack episode, we’re always focused on informing you about new innovative ways to improve marketing efforts. In Today’s episode, we’re going to take a quick look at Google’s discovery ads. Discovery ads are a set of visually rich, mobile-first ads that appear in multiple Google feed environments on combine stunning visuals with sophisticated audience targeting features.

Adam dives into the conversation by talking about how discovery ads were introduced, the basic concept behind them, how they’re different from traditional ads. Megan joins the conversation sharing her take on how Gmail ads can be run alongside a discovery ads campaign and what they’ve observed about discovery ads in terms of CPC, conversions, CPL, and other parameters that define the performance of a campaign.

In the next section, we talk about how discovery ads can be used for the purpose of retargeting and how discovery ads allow marketers to create more visually appealing ads. Wrapping up the conversation, David talks about some of the patterns he sees when paid marketing platforms introduce new ad features.

[01:50] Getting to Know Discovery Ads – Adam covers what discovery ads are, where they’re placed and how they’re different from traditional ads.

[04:38] Breaking Down Data – Megan shares with us what they observed when comparing discovery ads against standard non-brand ad campaigns.

[06:00] Retargeting – Adam talks about how discovery ads can be used for retargeting.

[08:29] Ad Creatives – How discovery ads allow marketers to use better ad creatives.

We’re back with another fascinating episode of the DIgible Dudes Podcast. Our guest today is a pioneer in introducing new technologies to the multi-family industry. Jennifer Cyphers, Founder & CEO of Pynwheel, joins us today to talk about their new solution, Self Guided Tours. Throughout the episode, we dive into the story of Pynwheel, their innovative solutions, industry trends, and more.

We dive into the conversation with a retrospect of Jennifer’s career journey. Jennifer had plans to go to medical school at the beginning of her career. We talk about how her career shifted to a totally different path, in which she thrived later on. Jennifer shares with us what she learned from working in several different roles in the multi-family industry and how her experience inspired her to start Pynwheel.

Pynwheel is a company that focuses on providing innovative technology solutions to modernize the on-site tour. Jennifer dives into what Pynwheel offers to its customers and how its solutions help their clients improve their business. We also talk about the process of setting up Pynwheel’s self-guided tours and the philosophy she and her team follow at Pynwheel to take feedback from stakeholders and use it to continuously improve their products.

In the next section, Jennifer shares her thoughts on the way the industry has changed over the years, the impact of COVID, and how new technologies are pushing the industry toward significant changes in the workforce. We also talk about some of the partnerships Pynwheel has created to offer more innovative solutions to its customers. In recent months, both Pynwheel and DIgible have tried four-day workweeks. Wrapping up the conversation, David, Reid, and Jennifer share their thoughts on how it influenced the workflow of the business.

[12:00] Jennifer’s Story – We talk about how Jennifer got started in the multi-family industry and how it paved the way to starting her brainchild, Pynwheel.

[21:03] Pynwheel – Jennifer dives into why she wanted to start Pynwheel, the unique value proposition of Pynwheel, and how they have evolved over the years.

[33:45] Introducing New Products – When starting a new product or service, you can either create a new company for that or deliver it under your existing brand. Jennifer dives into the pros and cons of each of these tactics.

[37:35] Product Feedback – Jennifer shares with us how they approached taking feedback from consumers and using them to improve their work.

[41:00] Self-guided Tours – Jennifer talks about what they offer to their clients at Pyhwheel and the process of getting started and setting up the self-guided tours.

[51:45] Incorporating Technology – New trends Jennifer sees emerging in the multi-family industry in terms of implementing new technologies.

[59:00] Partnerships – Jennifer talks about some of the partnerships they’ve built with other smart technology providers to offer more innovative solutions to customers.

[1:06:25] Workforce in the Industry – Jennifer shares her take on how the implementation of new automated technologies may change the workforce dynamics in the coming years.

[1:14:48] Future Vision – We talk about how Pynwheel’s trajectory may look like in the next decade and Jennifer’s goals for the company.

[1:20:34] Work Week – Both Digible and Pynwheel have experimented with four-day workweeks. We talk about how it changed the workflow and the mindset of the staff.