The tenant engagement platform HqO recently released a data-driven report that reveals the noteworthy disconnect between an incoming generation of tenants who are tech-savvy and the landlords who own office buildings. The report, “The State of PropTech: Connected Tenants & Disconnected Landlords,” is derived from a survey of 300 professionals who work in office buildings in big U.S. major urban areas.

Tenants Don’t have enough Information about their Office Building

It was discovered in the survey that 69% of tenants had no interaction with their landlord, while 71% could not even name their office building’s landlord. In some office buildings, landlords are deliberately distant, letting the property manager serve as the facility’s face. However, interactions with property managers among tenants were at similar proportions, with 69% saying they had never interacted with their property manager, and 69% percent ignorant as to the property manager’s name.

Brand awareness has become a more significant concern for landlords who used to simply swap leases and keys for checks. This is connected to the rise of trendy coworking spaces with slick marketing campaigns.

Most active landlords can’t develop an engaged community due to outdated communication methods, with 36% of tenants using email, telephone and web forms in order to get in touch with property managers. Meanwhile, 62% never reach out at all. No tenants have contacted their property manager via a mobile app, uncovering an important missed opportunity for landlords to connect with tenants over a familiar medium.

Tenants Love Amenities But Aren’t Content With Current Offers

Data from the survey reveals that tenants are highly motivated by amenities, yet only 26% believed their office building offered enough, while 35% of tenants said there were no amenities at their building, and 6% did not know if their building offered any.

Survey data found that fitness and wellness along with food and beverage offerings were preferred among tenants. When asked to choose what was most important to them, the results were:

62% chose fitness & wellness offerings such as onsite gyms, visiting nutritionists, spin & yoga classes
62% chose food deals, such as discounts to local lunch spots
38% chose networking opportunities, such as events at their office building with expert panels or free classes and courses for professional development
38% chose convenience services, such as dry cleaning, pet care or childcare
21% chose beer and wine experiences, such as wine tastings or happy hours in the lobby of the office building
15% chose beauty experiences, such as monthly mani/pedis or hair blow-drys in the office building

Tenants Can’t Find Amenities In Their Office Building

Survey data found that landlords are devoting time, resources and capital to offer tenants premium amenities survey data shows that contemporary methods of spreading awareness of amenities is ineffective. When tenants were asked about which amenities were available, here is what was discovered.

32% replied that they don’t ever find out
30% learn from emails or newsletters
16% learn from word of mouth – other tenants or coworkers
11% learn from handouts or posters in the lobby
9% learn from flyers or digital screens in the elevators

Only 15% of tenants said they always read notifications such as flyers, posters, digital screens, while half (51%) sometimes read these, and 22% percent reported rarely reading them, 12% said they never read notifications from their landlord.

Phone use is becoming a key factor, as 74% of tenants answered they would indeed download an all-in-one mobile app that helped them navigate the workday at their office. For respondents, the top functionality features of such as mobile app would be:

Gain entrance to the building or parking garage without using a key card
Access exclusive discounts at local retailers in the vicinity of their office building
Learn about upcoming events in and near their office building
Read up to date information on local transportation and traffic alerts

“The results of this survey validate a lot of what our team knows about millennial professionals who are set to dominate the workforce in a few short years,” Chase Garbarino, CEO and co-founder of HqO said. “We refer to the members of this phenomenon as the “Connected Tenant” because they are tech-savvy, amenity-orientated, and community-driven, with baseline expectations for their workplace experience. The landlords that pay attention and implement tech-enabled amenities and experiences will develop a reputation for helping their high-growth businesses win the war for talent, ultimately creating loyal, long term customers.”

Download the survey here.