First Contact: Aliens Decide to Invade Community

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 By: Shad Bookout from CORT  – Secretary, Product Service Council

I love Sci-Fi movies.  I have always been fascinated by the magic of movie storylines such as "man’s search into the unknown," "humanity versus technology" and "man’s triumph over hostile aliens."  One of my favorite storylines is the event known as "First Contact," the point in Sci-Fi movies when aliens and humans have their first face-to-face encounter.  Inevitably, there is an unfortunate circumstance that causes the aliens to try to destroy all of humanity.  Usually, it involves a mistake made by one of Earth’s representatives.

Property Management has the same issues.  We spend countless hours and finances in order to convince aliens (non-residents) to visit our world (our Community), hoping that they may decide they want to live there.  Once we finally achieve First Contact, we all too often create an unfortunate circumstance that convinces them that our world is not as great as advertised.  Or, maybe, the community representatives have made some unknown mistake that makes the potential resident reject the experience.

Here are a few tips that can help you maximize the experience of First Contact and will be useful as you send your advertising into the universe:

1)  Greet your aliens warmly – Once the aliens (non-residents) arrive at your world, make sure to stand up and approach them slowly.  Have a warm, friendly environment for them to walk into.  Offer them refreshments to ease the troubles of their travels.  Spend time learning about their needs, rather than immediately showing them all of the wonders of your world.  Once a level of comfort has been reached, spend as much time with them as you can.  The longer they stay and visit, the sooner they will want to come back again.

2)  Make eye contact – One of the strongest impressions you can make about yourself and your world is to make and maintain eye contact.  It not only shows confidence, but it also conveys honesty.  The more eye contact you make, the more comfortable your alien visitors will be.  This is a challenging skill, so practice as much as you can.

3)  Remove barriers – During your time with your visiting aliens, do not have barriers blocking you from them.  Items such as desks, reception chairs and other furniture pieces offer barriers that reduce the quality of First Contact.  These are often perceived as items to "hide behind."  By eliminating these barriers and having unobstructed contact with your aliens, you increase the likelihood that they will have a dynamic and positive experience.

Once you have managed to create a positive First Contact experience you will increase the likelihood that your aliens will decide to live peacefully with you, rather than seeking another world to visit and discover.  Cherish the event and make great use out of it because, if you have an unfortunate experience with the aliens that visit your world, they may develop a negative impression and share it with other aliens that could visit your world tomorrow.