So, you understand the power of digital marketing to help you scale your multifamily syndication business. The question is, where do you start? What are the first steps to building an email list and attracting investors online?

Amy Porterfield is the award-winning digital marketing expert behind Online Marketing Made Easy and the creator of the Digital Course Academy. After seven years serving as the Director of Content Development for Tony Robbins, Amy became an entrepreneur herself and built a multimillion-dollar business teaching other people how to grow their own platform online. An authority in the realm of social media marketing, growing an email list and promoting and selling courses online, Amy is also the coauthor of Facebook Marketing All-in-One for Dummies.

On this episode of Apartment Building Investing, Amy joins me to explain why you need to build an email list, even if you have a strong social media following. She shares the simple steps you can take to attract investors with content and capture their email addresses with the right lead magnet. Listen in for Amy’s insight on using Facebook advertising to grow your audience and learn how to leverage digital marketing to scale your syndication business!

Key Takeaways

How Amy got into online marketing

• Started career in corporate marketing (Harley Davidson, Tony Robbins)
• Became own boss 11 years ago teaching how to grow online business

The mistakes Amy made early on as an online entrepreneur

• Didn’t have expertise in niche
• Didn’t have email list

How Amy decided what to create and who to serve

• Got clear on expertise (social media, Facebook marketing)
• Created very specific client avatar

Why an email list is better than social media followers

• Algorithms change, you don’t own social platforms
• You own email list + can use to build relationships

How to start building an email list from scratch

1. Create content on consistent basis
2. Create irresistible lead magnet (freebie in exchange for email)

How to choose your lead magnet

• Must serve as INVISIBLE BRIDGE for audience
• What avatar needs to know, understand or believe

How to get people to sign up for your email list

• Use content upgrade strategy (if you loved…)
• Make CTA on social posts, bios, podcasts and blogs

What to do if you don’t consider yourself a writer

• Commit to one medium (e.g.: podcast or video)
• Don’t try to be perfect, just show up consistently

The benefits of podcasting as a medium

• Easier than writing or video, keep attention longer
• Podcast platforms promote content for you

Amy’s advice on Facebook advertising

• Keep it simple, start with boosting post
• Upload email list to target ‘lookalike audience’
• Do it yourself before you hire someone else

Amy’s top tips for online marketing

• Start with mindset (i.e.: set small goal of 250 on list)
• Simplicity is your friend

Connect with Amy Porterfield

Amy’s Website

Amy’s Free Masterclass: How to Start and Grow an Email List (Without the Stress, Tech Confusion,…

So, you want to connect with potential investors online. But how do you go about building a thought leadership platform? What kind of content should you create? And how do you best serve your audience so that they are ready to invest when a deal comes up?

Pat Flynn is the creator of Smart Passive Income, the premiere learning and development platform for online entrepreneurs. He got into online marketing out of necessity in 2008 when he was laid off from his dream job as an architect. Since then, Pat has built several successful online businesses and impacted millions of people around the world. He credits his success to serving others first, and then building systems to lean into that service even more.

On this episode of Apartment Building Investing, Pat joins me to explain how he got into the online marketing space and why he thinks EVERYONE should build a thought leadership platform. He offers insight into the power of podcasting, sharing how YOU can start a podcast of your own for under $100. Listen in for Pat’s insight on what to consider as you create an online platform and get his top tips for producing consistent content that serves your audience!

Key Takeaways

How Pat got into the online marketing space

• Let go from dream job as architect in 2008 with no Plan B
• Inspired by podcast to build website on LEED exam
• Published study guide, made nearly $8K in single month
• Started Smart Passive Income to help others start businesses

Pat’s response to the Why Me? objection

• Don’t have to be expert, just few steps ahead of audience
• Show up as person and connect to build superfans

How Pat defines smart passive income

• Not get rich quick, have to put in work
• Mechanisms in place to pay back later

The business model for an online venture

1. Pick target market, research needs
2. Create platform to demo authority
3. Monetize (sponsorships, ads, products, affiliate marketing or pledge)

Why Pat thinks EVERYONE should build a platform online

• Place to connect (nobody’s like you)
• Build relationships and authority

What to consider in building a platform

• Choose 1 format to start (e.g.: blog, podcast, YouTube channel)
• Commit to producing content consistently

Pat’s tips for producing regular content

• Planning session every quarter
• Focus on questions people ask

What Pat loves about podcasting

• Ease of creation (after initial setup)
• Build amazing relationships with listeners
• Evergreen content

How to start a podcast

• Decide on topic and how helps people
• Establish name, artwork and branding
• Get mic + hosting service (
  

Beyond the risks it poses to our health, the Coronavirus is causing chaos in our economic system as well. Businesses have closed their doors and many Americans have lost their jobs or had their hours cut. And the stock market is on its way down. But what does it all mean for us as multifamily investors? Is the sky falling? Or are there things we can do to protect ourselves and serve our tenants in this challenging time?  

On this episode of Apartment Building Investing, I’m sitting down with an expert panel of multifamily operators that includes Drew Kniffin, Brian Burke, John Cohen, Reed Goossens, Andrew Cushman and Ellie Perlman to discuss what we are doing to protect our investments and our investors through the Coronavirus pandemic. We share our strategies for income preservation and expense reduction, explaining how we are supporting tenants through the crisis and what programs we are leveraging to keep our employees on payroll.

We go on to address how COVID-19 is likely to impact passive investors and offer insight on what they can do to take advantage of the shift to a buyer’s market. Finally, we explore the short-, medium- and long-term implications of the economic fallout from the Coronavirus and describe the incredible wealth-building opportunity available to savvy real estate investors in the months to come. Listen in to understand what defines a good deal in the current environment and learn how to use this time to prepare for the next up cycle!

Key Takeaways

What Andrew is doing as an owner to protect his investments

• Put together resources for tenants
• Negotiate with service providers to cut costs
• Apply for Paycheck Protection Program
• Flexible with tenants, reward early payment
• No increase in rent on lease renewals

How John’s team is navigating the Coronavirus crisis

• Reach out to tenants with message ‘here for you’
• Focus on tenant retention, mitigating expenses

Ellie’s insight on tenants who can’t pay vs. tenants who won’t

• CARES Act prohibits evection whether lost job or not
• Depends on prior relationship with tenants, location

The additional things Ellie’s team is doing to navigate COVID-19

• Offer furnished model units to traveling nurses
• Security deposits to pay rent, replace with insurance

The additional things Brian’s team is doing to navigate COVID-19

• Refer tenants to Project Porchlight financial counseling
• Postpone rent or amortize over next several months
• $50 grocery gift card if reach out to explain situation

Brian’s insight into the Paycheck Protection Program

• SBA loan to cover 2.5X payroll if keep employees
• May not apply to third-party property manager

Reed’s…

Once you’ve exhausted your sphere of influence, where can you go to raise capital for multifamily deals? You might be surprised to learn that LinkedIn is one of the best places to connect with high-net-worth individuals (HNWI) and introduce them to the benefits of apartment building investing.

Yakov Smart is the creator of LinkedIn Lead Enterprises, a platform designed to help business owners find clients on LinkedIn. An internationally recognized LinkedIn expert, Yakov teaches top CEOs, bestselling authors and real estate syndicators how to transform their LinkedIn profiles into priceless, relationship-building assets. Yakov is also the author of Disrupting LinkedIn: The Definitive Guide to Generating Leads, Receiving Referrals and Attracting High-End Clients Through Marketing on LinkedIn.

On this episode of Apartment Building Investing, Yakov joins me to explain why LinkedIn is the best social platform for finding investors and raising capital for multifamily. He shares the biggest mistakes syndicators make on LinkedIn and walks us through his SPOT formula for finding leads through the professional networking platform. Listen in for Yakov’s insight on the tools available for building lists and learn how YOU can connect with the right people, send the right message, and scale your marketing efforts with LinkedIn.

Key Takeaways

Yakov’s take on the availability of capital for real estate

• HNWI not on traditional social media channels
• Use LinkedIn to find + educate right people

Why LinkedIn is the best platform for finding investors

• Average household income = $115K
• Use to expand professionally and build wealth
• 40M direct decision-makers, 100M influencers

Why LinkedIn works well for raising capital

• More interactive since bought by Microsoft
• Make connections and learn on own time

How Yakov discovered LinkedIn as a lead source

• Used to generate new business (software sales)
• Market to hard-to-reach individuals

The biggest mistakes people make on LinkedIn

1. Being unintentional
2. Profile not up-to-date, all about you
3. Pitch everyone with same message
4. Focus too much on content creation

Yakov’s SPOT formula for finding leads on LinkedIn

• Start with your list
• Position self as authority
• Optimize for what THEY want
• Transition relationship offline

The four ways to build lists on LinkedIn

1. Free search
2. Search by groups
3. Sales navigator search
4. Paid traffic

How to scale your marketing efforts on LinkedIn

• Use AI to automate custom follow-up
• Respond manually only when raise hand

How to convert investors from stocks to real estate

• Use information-based marketing
• Build LinkedIn groups

Connect with Yakov Smart

LinkedIn Lead Enterprises

Yakov on LinkedIn

Resources

Michael & Yakov’s LinkedIn Webinar

Disrupting LinkedIn: The Definitive Guide to Generating Leads, Receiving Referrals and Attracting High-End Clients Through Marketing on LinkedIn by Yakov Savitskiy

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If you’re looking to scale your efforts at raising capital with an online platform, you may be curious what you can and cannot do to market your business. What exemptions do you need to file in order to legally advertise a multifamily offering? How do you build the ‘preexisting and substantive’ relationship with investors the SEC requires for the 506(b) when you’re connecting online?

Gene Trowbridge is the managing partner of Trowbridge Sidoti LLP, a California law firm that specializes in real estate syndications and crowdfunding. Gene has extensive experience in commercial real estate investment, and in the last six years, his firm has authorized securities offering documents for more than $1.5B of equity raised. He is also the author of It’s a Whole New Business, the definitive book on securities for multifamily investors.

On this episode of Apartment Building Investing, Gene joins me to discuss the two methods for legally advertising a real estate syndication (online or otherwise), the Reg A and 506(c). He explains why the 506(b) is more popular than the 506(c) and offers advice on proving a preexisting and substantive relationship with investors per the rules of the 506(b). Listen in for Gene’s insight on doing a 1031 Exchange in a syndication and learn how to leverage the tenant in common agreement to bring on new investors.

Key Takeaways

The two ways to legally advertise a real estate syndication

• Regulation A+
• Regulation D 506(c)

What syndicators need to know about the Reg A

• Costs $50K to $100K and takes 4 to 6 months
• Works for syndicators with huge social network

Why more investors don’t do a 506(c)

• Most sophisticated sponsors have enough investors
• Requires third-party verification of accredited investors

The SEC rules around the 506(b)

• Not allowed to advertise offering
• Must show substantive + preexisting relationship

What it means to have a substantive + preexisting relationship

• More than just collecting email address
• More interactions = easier to prove

Gene’s advice on proving a preexisting relationship

• Develop record-keeping system to track interactions
• Use introductory questionnaire (sign and date)

How to work with an investor with 1031 Exchange money

• Cannot invest in LLC (must be deed to deed)
• Make them tenant in common in new ownership structure

What to do when some of your LPs want their money from a sale

• Interview investors prior to sale re: potential for 1031
• Open two separate escrow accounts (one for holdouts)

How to bring on new investors in a 1031 Exchange project

1. Operating agreement may allow for new investors in LLC
2. Two separate LLCs as tenants in common (= partnership)

Connect with Gene Trowbridge

Trowbridge Sidoti LLP

It’s a Whole New Business by Gene Trowbridge, Esq. CCIM

Resources

Regulation A

Regulation D

No Action Letters

1031 Exchange

…