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September 2017 — Office Properties Quarterly — Page 25
F or years, most commercial
buildings ran off the same
old processes with similar
methods. You plan a build-
ing, hire a broker, find a
property manager and use simi-
lar systems. But today, things are
changing. Creativity and innova-
tion are at the forefront for many
of the new successful projects.
These days disruptive behavior
has entrenched itself in our cul-
ture. Cooperative office spaces,
creative rehabs, digital wayfind-
ing and property websites are all
changing the game. The average
person is closing in on 11 hours of
screen time per day. Whether it’s a
desktop computer, a smartphone
on the go or a tablet at home,
users are looking at their screens
in record numbers and for record
amounts of time. Commercial real
estate professionals need to under-
stand these changing behaviors
and use them to their advantage,
whether it’s the best way to show-
case a building, get discovered by
a potential user or provide a plat-
form for an out-of-state decision
maker who many never step foot
in the building.
Cooperative office spaces are
accounting for much of the new
square footage built in Denver.
Creative rehabs from Union Sta-
tion to Industry and Central Market
are all drawing attention. A build-
ing’s digital wayfinding is common
place for visitors to interact with
in today’s office building. Property
websites act as an online lobby
with potentially more people visit-
ing the website than the property
itself. The website
allows the prop-
erty more oppor-
tunity to be seen,
allows people to
discover the prop-
erty on search
engines, and
provides a refer-
ral link through
brokers and other
marketing. Often
the website serves
as the property’s
curb appeal and is
the first impression many people
have with the space. It operates as
a way to attract users and defines
how you differentiate from your
competition.
Years ago, we had the opportuni-
ty to create an online presence for
The SugarCube Building by Urban
Villages in downtown Denver. This
was early on in building website
adoption and at the forefront of
mixed-use building marketing. We
created a web campaign that show-
cased world-class architecture, pro-
vided interactive maps and floor
plans, and told a story that con-
nected with the past, present and
future of downtown Denver.
Another example is View 57,
which was an older building pur-
chased by Element Properties
located in Flatiron Business Park
in Boulder. A new website helped
rebrand this property and show off
a new level of design, attracting
many of today’s user. The website
also helped bring the office prop-
erty into the forefront for more
people to discover, even though it
was located in the back of its busi-
ness park.
One final example is the Wheeler
Block, which is a beautiful large
brick office building built in 1892
located in the Potter Highlands.
With the growth of this neighbor-
hood in recent years, many people
drive or walk by the building every
day. But few individuals recognized
what a historically prized prop-
erty this was architecturally and
to the neighborhood. Then came a
new rebrand with signage and web
presence that was able to draw
attention, tell the building’s story
and point out the highlights of the
property.
We know that certain processes of
the commercial real estate landscape
will always be necessary to conduct
business. But change is inevitable.
Sitting idly by while other property
owners use new ideas and better
technology is similar to Blockbuster
sticking with VHS tapes against Net-
flix or Yellow Cab using the same old
systems to compete with Uber. Build-
ing owners should know we are in a
rapidly changing environment where
you can connect your building oppor-
tunity in more ways than ever.s
Management
Doug Backman
Managing director,
DB Marketing,
Denver
DB Marketing
A building’s website is the first impression many will have with the property.