Last week, Geokey returned to Las Vegas, Nevada, and attended OpTech 2023! OpTech is an annual conference organized by the National Multifamily Housing Council that focuses on multifamily housing technology and operations, bringing together individuals and companies from across the industry to show off their innovations and network with one another. On top of that, the event offers a plethora of panels, educational sessions, and other events meant to give attendees unique insights into the industry and its inner workings.
Unlike other events we’ve attended these past few weeks, Geokey did not operate a booth at OpTech this year. One of the benefits of this was that it gave our team time to take advantage of the entire event, attend sessions, see other booths, and be able to talk with plenty of other convention attendees. With this freedom, our team could explore and bring back a lot of takeaways from the event, from industry insights to meeting with new people who hadn’t heard about Geokey’s solution.
The Opening Pitch
On Day One of the Event, Geokey CEO Brandon Peterson got to talk about Geokey during the Opening Pitch. The Opening Pitch is a platform allowing qualifying startup technology companies to give a short pitch about what services they bring to the table. With solutions ranging from software to help automate tasks around the property to resident engagement, there were a lot of companies vying for the attention of a room filled with over 100 interested parties and had only 4 minutes to present their pitch.
During Geokey’s presentation, Brandon got to highlight the solutions Geokey uniquely brought to the table as a mobile-based access control system while specifically highlighting how we were mobile-first, had wireless lock integrations, and required no WIFI to operate. Brandon would note that judging from the crowd’s reaction, there was interest from the assembled crowd. He was even approached afterward by a few of them, leading to more conversations about Geokey’s growth and impact on access control and the multifamily sphere.
Networking
Conversations extended beyond that of the Pitch: our team, consisting of Gavin Iversen and Christian Benes, got to travel to other booths and attend events hosted by OpTech and different companies. It was a great way to get reacquainted with familiar faces and lay the groundwork for future relationships.
It might be easy to overlook, but the opportunity to talk with and form these relationships with other people in the industry is so important. Across the United States and the world, there is a massive community focused on access control, security, and multifamily. It’s why attending these events and having the space to interact is crucial: it lets the community share their solutions, learn industry knowledge, and, most importantly, come together.
Insights and Takeaways
On top of networking, our team was able to sit in on and attend many of the sessions and educational panels that were occurring throughout the event. We learned a lot at the event and wanted to share some of our biggest takeaways.
One insight our team took away was how much the event focused on property centralization. Companies want less overhead over properties, and with the progression of technology, the need for large onsite teams is diminishing. As the industry continues moving to a more remote environment, the rise of self-guided touring programs, AI, smart access, and automation is the future of multi-family and student housing.
There was also emphasis placed on how these technologies can’t all be separate from one another. During the student housing conference, we noted that one of the major issues plaguing property managers and residents was app fatigue. In other words, people don’t want to go through a hundred different apps to manage all the aspects of their property. Having the property technologies and functions integrated into a single property management software is critical. Being able to offer multiple solutions that best fit the property contained within a centralized platform is crucial to accomplishing this task.
Another insight our team took away was how rapidly the industry was changing. With certain technologies, particularly smart tech, becoming more widely available, property managers have a real opportunity to automate their property. This automation will serve to not only cut down on expenses long-term, saving team time and money, but also bring in additional revenue as this sort of automation benefits the resident. As we enter 2024, managers and developers must invest in fully autonomous properties to stay caught up.
These insights have served to empower and affirm that Geokey is headed in the right direction. As we continue to grow and integrate more with the other facets of smart technology, we are seeing just how well our solution fits into the future of property management. The future is bright for property technology, and we are excited to see where it goes as we near the end of the year and approach 2024.
Special thanks to Gavin Iversen, Christian Benes, and Brandon Peterson for providing their biggest takeaways and insights! We also want to thank the NMHC for hosting OpTech 2023!