CREATING AND CAPTURING AN AUDIENCE: BLVD & BOND:

Overview

BLVD & BOND, a new modern luxury apartment complex in the heart of Arsenal Yards, made its online debut. This industrial and hip complex was managed by Bozzuto, who approached Social Thrive about managing their digital presence. After reviewing BLVD & BOND’s three unique buildings, each with their own finishes and layouts, and learning more about the amenities, it was a no-brainer. We were happy and excited to take on this new marketing opportunity.

The Challenge:

While still in the midst of a global pandemic, marketing for any client proves challenging, much less residences that people would need to tour in person. With that, we were tasked with building an audience from scratch; with no previous social networks, we would have to gain the right target audience, raise brand awareness, gain followers, and drive engagement. On top of that, the demographic audience for BLVD & BOND was evolving, which brought the added challenge of marketing this trendy complex to a saturated Boston market. We began with targeting ages 25 to 40 year olds within a 20 mile radius of Watertown, with a goal of drawing them into the heart of Watertown and Arsenal Yards, and present BLVD & BOND as a convenient, yet action-packed local Boston community.

The Strategy:

PART 1: GAINING A FOLLOWING

With endless features to highlight in and around BLVD & BOND, we got to work right away. We created campaign ideas that showcased the uniqueness of BLVD & BOND, the convenient location of the building, the amazing retail in Arsenal Yards, and the beautiful neighborhood of Watertown. To draw attention and reach all desired audiences, we created campaigns featuring the following categories: 1. Live, 2. Eat + Drink, 3. Shop + Play. 

LIVE: 

With so much happening within Arsenal Yards, we were able to spotlight their green space and established events. We played up BLVD & BOND’s prime location next to the River Green, making it the perfect place to sit and eat lunch, join a workout class, or just relax. We also highlighted the Blue Bike station within Arsenal Yards, which makes it easy for residents to cruise along the community paths, or conveniently get to their destination outside of the neighborhood. We carefully considered potential residents’ concerns about their commute into the city if living in Watertown and spotlighted the many commuter options available right at BLVD & BOND, including the free shuttle to Harvard Square, the seven minute drive to Mass Pike, the nearby commuter rail to South Station, and the 70 bus that picks up residents right at BLVD & BOND.   We also played up the location and its proximity to numerous bike paths and walking paths, including the Charles River Bike Path and the Watertown-Cambridge Greenway.

We also featured the many established Arsenal Yards amenities and conveniences in our content to convince our target market that chores such as moving, finding a Christmas tree, or grocery shopping during a pandemic would be easy and streamlined.  Including the local grocery store, liquor store, Home Depot, nearby Target, and abundant parking in our content strategy helped to position BLVD & BOND as having all of the conveniences and energy of Boston-living, with even better benefits.

EAT + DRINK: 

With the city of Boston rife with dining options, including pandemic-friendly outdoor dining, we knew we had to be strategic in drawing the audience’s attention to life at BLVD & BOND. We made sure all of the comforts and amenities available at BLVD & BOND would be top of mind for our audience by featuring the complex’s built-in entertainment kitchen for all residents to enjoy, its deck with multiple grills, and stunning  rooftop terrace with relaxed seating for eating and drinking. We scheduled photoshoots with our team photographer to capture all of these features.  Shots included local takeout pizza in the entertainment kitchen, grilling outside, drinking with a view, and more. We shot all details and angles: from the Terrace Tuesday events bringing in local Arsenal Yards food, to enjoying a grilled meal with friends and popping Champagne on the deck. 

We also highlighted the various restaurants in and around Arsenal Yards. We incorporated them into our social storytelling, spotlighted their seasonal menu items, shared and re-shared their posts, and incorporated local food bloggers when sourcing content, to ensure we were reaching all potential residents and getting the word out about the amazing food options around BLVD & BOND. 

SHOP + PLAY: 

From Copley Square to the Prudential Center, Newbury Street, and everything in between, it is no secret that Boston has world-class shopping. To hone in on the factors that made shopping and playing around BLVD & BOND more enticing, we focused on the convenience of having Aresnal Yards retail right at BLVD & BOND’s doorstep. We factored in miles + steps that one would need to take to get to Home Depot, Marshalls, Roche Brothers, Pure Barre, etc. We played up the benefits and ease of having all key shops (food, liquor, clothing, etc.) just outside one’s new home. 

PART 2: ENGAGE

As we began to grow our following on the BLVD & BOND social media pages, we knew we would need to go the extra mile to make this brand into a community. We wanted BLVD & BOND to become a home and neighborhood within Arsenal Yards. In order to do this, we partnered with retailers within Arsenal Yards to cultivate a broader community.  

 

We created Instagram contests to raise awareness of both the BLVD & BOND page and the partnering retailers’ pages.. We set out for the end users to 1. Follow @blvdbond and the other brand 2. Like the Instagram contest image and 3. Comment with their friend’s handles to increase engagement. 

Examples:

Contests

For BLVD & BOND’s first Instagram contest, we collaborated with City Works, a local restaurant within Arsenal Yards that offers modern American cuisine with a twist. The contest reached 425 people and assisted in gaining ~50 new Instagram followers within the month. 

For our next contest, we collaborated with Garbanzo, a Mediterranean/fresh cuisine restaurant, and helped gain 33 new Instagram followers within one week of running the contest. 

For our third and final contest, we collaborated with the supermarket Roche Brothers, resulting in a total gain of ~500 Instagram followers during our contract with Bozzuto.

Interactive Stories

With the use of Instagram Stories, we were also able to add an additional creative touch to build and engage the audience. We did this through live posting at events, audience engagement (polls, questions, etc.) and community highlights. 

Every Tuesday during the summer, the BLVD & BOND management team would host a “Terrace Tuesday” event at the rooftop sun deck. We used Instagram Stories to show the team hosting, the energy of the crowd, and the local restaurants that catered each event. By showcasing this, we brought excitement and interest to the residence, and spotlighted the community feel of BLVD & BOND.

We engaged the audience by creating polls and posing questions to our Instagram following. By doing this, we were able to get an idea of what our audience enjoyed, and what they wanted to see more of. 

The Results:

Working with BLVD & BOND allowed us to consider all of the outside factors that go into making a residential building desirable. While the beautiful buildings and amenities were attractive on their own, we knew we had to draw attention to living in Watertown in a unique and enticing way, especially during a pandemic. Highlighting the surrounding benefits at BLVD & BOND helped us increase our marketing efforts, draw in digital traffic, and in turn, helped Bozzuto gain residents. We successfully positioned BLVD & BOND as an attractive alternative to Boston that meets the preferences of a city-dweller but with added convenience of assets like community living, parking, shopping, and green space.

We knew location and convenience would be massively important during challenging times such as during a pandemic, so we encouraged the client to think about virtual tours, as much as was safely possible, to show off the residences’ units and amenities.. Tours such as this would allow them to see everything you would gain… but from the comfort and safety of their current home.

Lastly, we realized that other companies are very open to collaborating for contests. These types of collaborations are great for both parties, and help increase audience engagement and digitally spread the word for each brand. Highlighting other brands to in turn spotlight yourself will help your online presence and increase your network connections while doing so.