One More Reason to Dump the Landline

This one isn't meant to be profound... just more evidence of growing consumer trends that affect our industry.

We already know that the landline telephone is dying a slow death in apartment buildings across the country. Many people have found digital phone and VoIP to be much cheaper and just as reliable. Then there are the millions of people who have dropped their landline entirely in favor of using their cell phone exclusively.

Well, one of my colleagues came across something in the electronics store this week that should make that move to cell-only even easier:

Although this might look like your regular cordless phone, this new device from Panasonic uses the box pictured to connect to any Bluetooth-enabled cell phone.

From the Panasonic website: "...there's a better way to make and receive calls at home with ultimate comfort and convenience. Panasonic Link-to-Cell uses Bluetooth® technology to connect your cell calls to your home handset. No more running for your cell, walking around for good reception, or cradling that little phone on your shoulder."

Supposedly, once you successfully link the system to your cell phone, from then foward, the handsets will automatically connect to your cell phone as long as it's within 30' of the base unit. You can link up to two cell phones to the system, and your cell phone(s) can charge while using the handset. Caller ID and custom ring tones let you tell who is calling, and on which phone.

Fixed-mobile convergence is making its way into many businesses, and there's a case to be made for it in the home (which potentially flips the landline argument on its side). But at least for now, the trend in the home is more bad news for the landline. Personally, I know I haven't used a landline since 1999 -- now with a device like this, it makes it even easier to avoid the landline and still get the phone service I expect.

(One question I need to think about more is, does multifamily need to think more about interesting uses for Bluetooth throughout our communities? Any thoughts on this? I may have to explore it further in a future post...)

Think Mobile... Your Residents Do

Hewlett-Packard has quietly introduced a free service called Cloudprint, which should make it possible for anyone to share, store and print their documents on any printer almost anywhere in the world, using only their mobile phone. (New York Times)

Here's how it works:
The user stores their documents to H-P Web servers, which can then be retrieved as PDFs and printed later at any Windows-connected printer, using a simple text messaging system (a Mac version is in the works). The service will include a directory service that will show the location of publicly available printers on Google Maps.

The idea is to unhook data from a user’s computer, making it simple for travelers to take their documents with them and use them with no more than a cellphone and access to a local printer. If you've ever spent time on the road hunting for the closest Kinko's, you can probably see the value in a service like this.

The Cloudprint service is the first of a wave of applications that will surely be developed as a direct response to the hugely-popular iPhone. Expect more services like this from H-P and a host of others that will increasingly "unhook" data and specific functions like printing from a user's computer. An H-P exec was quoted, saying this service will help the company "ride the wave of the Web.”

Sounds great, but what does it have to do with apartments?

Well... there's a broader strategy here that multifamily owners should note:
Create a valuable service that will reinforce the company's brand and foster the sale of other products. In this case, it's H-P ink and supplies.

For apartment owners, it's unclear what that valuable service might be... but I'm sure that there are a few good ones out there, and it's time we start thinking about them.

It could be free or discounted data storage or website hosting. How about exclusive deals from local retailers straight to residents' cell phones? Free printing (and maybe shipping) to any community within your portfolio? There are lots of ways for owners to deliver value, reinforce their brand and drive retention & referrals.

Apartment residents are mobile and connected, and they value convenience. Basically, they're the perfect candidates for these types of services.

So the question becomes: What can you do to offer more mobility, more utility, and more value to your residents?

Cell Phone Service: Amenity or Expectation?

As more residents gravitate to cell phones as their primary (or only) phone line, this trend has trickled down to affect a whole host of systems that are regularly deployed at multifamily properties: telephone entry systems, intercoms, security alarms, and even satellite TV systems, to name a few.

All of these are important considerations for property owners that need to be examined, but I recently had an interesting debate with a colleague about the central driver of this issue - the cell phone service itself. I say that cell phones are ubiquitous, and consumers - your residents - now expect to be able to use their mobile at their leisure, no matter where they are. Therefore, property owners need to provide quality cellular coverage in the same way that they now provide high-speed Internet to their residents.

Conversely, she says that cell phone amplifiers are an amenity that can be marketed by forward-thinking property owners... while that may be true, I think cell service is now like plumbing or air conditioning - the properties that don't have it will be at a serious disadvantage. From personal experience, I know that it can be very frustrating if I'm sitting in an airport that has lousy cell coverage... I'd be really frustrated if that happened in my kitchen.

Because many residents now forego the traditional landline in exchange for their mobile phone, I'm going to make the assumption that these folks will want to use that cell with some reasonable level of service. We've been doing cell network amplifiers in buildings for over two years, with noticeable improvement in in-building coverage in almost every instance... there are even a number of other companies that focus solely on in-building wireless.

As you're considering the wireless communications that complement wired services for your property, take a three-pronged approach: look at how you will offer high-speed wireless Internet, two-way radio service for emergency responders, and quality in-building coverage for the major cellular carriers. Answer these three questions, and your residents truly will be able to enjoy unwired convenience in their wired world.