In this episode of the Digible Dudes podcast, Reid Wicoff sits down with Shellie Greer, Director of Ovation Lifestyle, to talk about something multifamily often talks about but rarely executes well – community.
Most properties invest heavily in amenities. Pools, gyms, coworking spaces, and dog parks look great in renderings. The problem is they often sit empty once the novelty wears off. Ovation, a Las Vegas based real estate development and property management company that focuses on quality and care, decided to approach the problem differently by building a lifestyle program designed to activate those spaces and turn buildings into real communities.
Shellie’s background makes her uniquely qualified for the job. Before entering multifamily, she worked in branding, event production, fitness programming, and content development. That mix of experiences helped her build Ovation Lifestyle from the ground up.
Why Community Is the Real Competitive Advantage in Multifamily
Amenities alone do not create community. People do. Experiences do. Consistency does.
Shellie believes the biggest misconception in multifamily is that community can be created quickly. It cannot.
She says, “Community does not just happen overnight. It is a series of experiences and events that slowly build a feeling of home.”
That philosophy became the foundation of the Ovation Lifestyle program. Instead of relying on occasional resident events, the company developed an ongoing experience strategy across multiple communities. The goal is simple. Make residents feel connected to where they live.
How Ovation Built a Lifestyle Brand
Ovation is not a typical property management company. The organization develops, builds, and manages its own communities, giving the team more control over the resident experience.
Four years ago, the company launched Ovation Lifestyle across several Aspire luxury communities. The program focuses on creating meaningful interactions through wellness programming, events, and shared experiences.
Some of the program’s core elements include:
- Wellness focused events and experiences
- Consistent branding across properties
- A resident lifestyle app for communication and feedback
- Professionally produced content from events
- Programming designed around resident interests
Rather than creating random activities, every event is designed to reinforce the Ovation brand and lifestyle.
Events That Double as Marketing Content
One of the more interesting parts of Ovation’s strategy is how events serve two purposes. They create experiences for residents and also generate marketing content.
Shellie works closely with the marketing team to capture professional photography and video during lifestyle events. Those visuals then become part of Ovation’s marketing engine.
Shellie explains, “Content is key. We want prospects to see what life here actually looks like.”
The result is authentic lifestyle content that shows real residents enjoying the community. That kind of content tends to outperform staged marketing assets because it reflects actual experiences.
When Residents Become Influencers
Another interesting outcome of Ovation’s lifestyle strategy is the rise of organic influencer content.
Some residents are content creators who naturally share events and experiences on platforms like TikTok and Instagram. Because the events are designed to be visually appealing, residents often post about them without being asked.
Shellie says, “The events look so good that residents want to post about them.”
This type of organic promotion has become a powerful marketing channel. Instead of relying only on paid advertising, the community generates its own buzz through resident content.
Programming That Changes With the Audience
Not every community wants the same experience. A luxury mid rise building attracts a different demographic than an active adult community. Ovation operates both market rate luxury communities and active adult properties, and the programming reflects those differences.
Luxury communities tend to gravitate toward wellness programming, social events, and experiential activities.
Active adult communities prefer:
- Bingo and trivia nights
- Chair yoga and mobility classes
- Social coffee gatherings
- Community driven events
The goal in both cases is the same. Encourage residents to spend time in shared spaces and build relationships with their neighbors.
Measuring the Success of Community Programs
Lifestyle programming can be difficult to measure with traditional marketing metrics.
Resident retention depends on many factors such as maintenance experience, pricing, life events, and relocation. That makes it hard to tie retention directly to events or lifestyle programming.
Instead, Ovation measures success through engagement and feedback collected through its resident lifestyle app.
The long term objective is brand loyalty and resident satisfaction rather than short term metrics.
The Long Game of Community Building
At its core, Ovation’s strategy is about playing the long game.
Lifestyle programming is not a quick win. It takes time, consistency, and leadership buy-in to build a real sense of community inside an apartment building.
“Community is a feeling. You cannot force it, but you can create the experiences that allow it to grow,” Shellie says.
For Ovation, that long term investment in experience may end up being one of the most valuable differentiators in a crowded multifamily market.
Want to Watch the Full Episode?
This article only covers part of the conversation. To hear Reid and Shellie dive deeper into lifestyle programming, resident engagement, and how events can fuel marketing content, watch the full Digible Dudes episode on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or YouTube.
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