It’s been a 5-star summer for Bel Air in San Ramon, California and Park Viridian in Anaheim, California. The Bay Area community achieved 14 five-star reviews in June, while Park Viridian hit 17 in July.

Back in April, Park Viridian had received just 1 five-star review, followed by 4 in May, and 6 in June--small numbers compared to their juggernaut July.  One can’t help but ask, what changed? “The (Yelp) cards,” says Tyler Gay, Maintenance Supervisor at Park Viridian, who a few months back began carrying a stack of Yelp cards with him wherever he went, “asking for reviews is integrated into our spiel now.” The maintenance team at Park Viridian was mentioned in a whopping eleven of the seventeen reviews!  And it is no surprise after learning the team’s five-star method.

After a new resident moves in, Tyler and his team receive a call from the leasing office, head on over to the property, introduce themselves, take the new resident on a tour of the entire property. On this tour they take the time to show them ins and outs like the quickest route from their new home to their move-in truck, from their parking spot to their new home, and from their new home to the trash disposal. Afterwards, they return to the apartment and go through all the appliances, make sure the keys work, demonstrate the water shut off, and test the thermostat, to name just a few things and if something is not up to the resident’s standard, Tyler heads to his cart (which he brings along) and tends to it right away. Once he’s done, Tyler thanks the resident, hands them a Yelp card, and asks if they could please review the community on Yelp. 

 “It feels amazing,” when asked what it felt like to receive 17 five-star reviews, “it sets a standard. We operate to that standard and constantly execute to that standard. Every day you want to make sure you are completing a work order and that no one is over 24 hours.” Park Viridian is certainly achieving that.

Bel Air’s biggest tip is to “Just ask,” says Larissa Lee, Assistant Manager at Bel Air. “It is mostly about connecting with the residents and being able to just ask them to provide us with a Yelp review. Making sure we each take advantage of every opportunity to have that conversation.” And what if they say no? “We have started a dialogue on why they prefer not to review us. One resident just didn’t know how to. In this particular situation one of our leasers sat down with the resident and helped her open a Yelp account.” Bel Air also notes resident events as the perfect platform to ask residents for reviews. Incorporating Yelp stickers on your event decorations doesn’t hurt either.

Will Bel Air and Park Viridian reach this mark again? “We’re shooting for 20,” says Tyler, “We are definitely striving every day for those reviews,” adds Larissa. 

Don’t have Yelp cards? They’re free! (Part of the marketing roll-up fee)
Order Yelp cards through Benson here.