Modern Message

Founded in 2012 by John Hinckley and Mike Ivey, Modern Message established a specific niche within the multifamily real estate industry by creating a loyalty and rewards platform to foster resident engagement. The idea originated when Hinckley observed a points-based program for sports fans and envisioned a similar concept for the apartment sector. The company's core offering is "Community Rewards," a cloud-based, white-label software platform designed for apartment and student housing communities. This service operates on a gamified, points-based system, incentivizing residents to complete tasks such as paying rent online, renewing a lease, providing feedback through surveys, referring friends, and promoting the property on social media. These accumulated points can be redeemed for gift cards and other rewards.

The business model is subscription-based, where property management companies pay to use the software and are also billed for the gift cards that residents redeem. Modern Message primarily serves large apartment management firms and property operators. Before its acquisition, the company had secured clients among more than half of the top 50 property management companies as ranked by the National Multifamily Housing Council (NMHC). The platform provides property managers with a dashboard to monitor engagement, track referrals, and analyze social media reach, offering data-driven insights into resident behavior. A significant milestone for the company occurred on January 22, 2020, when it was acquired by RealPage, Inc., a major provider of software and data analytics for the real estate sector. This acquisition was intended to integrate the Community Rewards platform with RealPage's ActiveBuilding resident portal, creating a more comprehensive renter engagement solution that includes payments, communication, and loyalty services. Following the acquisition, the Modern Message team was relocated to RealPage's headquarters to streamline operations, with the co-founders continuing in pivotal roles.

Keywords: resident engagement, multifamily real estate, loyalty rewards program, property management software, resident retention, Community Rewards, tenant advocacy, social media marketing, apartment marketing, student housing engagement, RealPage, John Hinckley, Mike Ivey, proptech, resident experience, digital incentives, referral marketing, online reputation management, gamification, resident portal