PMC Property Group — Riverwalk
End-to-end branding, design, and digital strategy for a luxury Philadelphia rental community
OVERVIEW
When an ultra-luxe new construction rental community called for a full-court press on thoughtful branding, design, and promotion, our team delivered. Here’s how.
Riverwalk is a trailblazing living destination that hit the Philadelphia rental scene in 2019, consisting of dual high-rise towers connecting the University City neighborhood and Schuylkill River Trail with the city’s western riverfront and bustling business district. This was not just an exceptionally significant property for our long-term client, East Coast real estate developer PMC Property Group, but also for the city itself.
Designed by esteemed architecture firm Gensler, Riverwalk occupies one of the last coveted parcels along Philadelphia’s Schuylkill River waterfront to the west of Logan Square. Claiming a unique niche within the uber-competitive mixed-use development rental market, the property offers not only luxury living spaces and modern micro-units, but also a flagship 65,000-square-foot Giant grocery store, and other exclusive amenities that include an infinity pool surrounded by an expansive sun terrace, yoga and Pilates machine classes, a field house, outdoor athletic courts, and much more.
Pain Points & Challenges
Create a branding strategy that elevates this property to a level that was worthy of its offerings and status in the community.
Position the property and surrounding area as a new neighborhood unto itself — one that is so far undefined, but which has the potential to take on the “Riverwalk” name through combined promotional efforts and strategic community partnerships.
Attract high-net-worth renters in a competitive rental market.
Nationwide, the number of renters earning more than $150K+ per year grew 82% between 2015 and 2020. These well-to-do renters are committed to city living — and convenience and security lead them to want to live in mid-rise or high-rise buildings with concierge services located near amenities.
Sources: Bloomberg/RentCafe
Solutions: Strategy Meets Creativity
Brand Strategy
Drawing on a long-standing relationship with PMC, our intimate knowledge of their brand, and our deep experience in the rapidly evolving luxury real estate rental market, we pitched a bespoke brand strategy to their executive team covering wide-ranging possible initiatives. Our goal was to help them lean into the concept of true luxury in order to stand out against a sea of other firms who promote — but don’t always deliver — high-end apartments in the city.
We drew inspiration from imagery, messaging, and collateral normally reserved for luxury brands, like the Rolex Watch catalog and Louis Vuitton city guides.
Brand Identity
A new identity system and compelling new tagline — Urban Oasis — reflected the property’s unparalleled indoor and outdoor spaces, connections to the river and Schuylkill River Trail, and more.
Web Design
A marketing landing page served as a temporary lead collector while we worked on a turnkey microsite, which integrated with their third-party property management and CRM software vendor, Yardi. The site conveys the property’s upscale offerings and interactive floorplans through impactful visuals and copy, and offers viewers an exciting peek at local attractions. An interactive map of nearby points of interest includes dining, shopping, cultural, and nightlife destinations, as well as colleges, universities, and major city employers.
More than just an online brochure, the site was designed to be a valuable resource reflecting this prospective new neighborhood, including its array of local businesses and public amenities. The content marketing approach we created was designed to capture traffic from related user journeys in order to make a growing audience aware of life at Riverwalk. Throughout, the pages were infused with calls to action that encourage visitors to learn more, schedule a tour, or join the property’s original waitlist.
During the months of November-December 2020, while the first Riverwalk tower was still under construction, PMC signed 33 leases for the property — an impressive feat under normal circumstances, but virtually unheard of during the COVID-19 pandemic, which was marked by urban exodus.
We couldn’t do it without the work you’ve done for us and the quality of content available on the new site.
PMC Executive Team Member
Promotions & Collateral
We pulled the design concepts through to a collection of collateral materials, sourcing both existing and commissioned custom imagery and video to support a cohesive high-end look and feel across all initiatives and social media outlets.
As the client prepared for a robust lease-up period, we supported ongoing promotional initiatives including targeted email and digital marketing campaigns, and customized landing pages for audiences like pet owners and “eds and meds” (aka renters with careers in academia and healthcare) in order to create buzz, drive word of mouth, and reach select prospects for this hot new property and overarching destination.
