In the property management industry, there is a technology to solve almost every problem. From paying rent online to managing packages, the industry is bursting with solutions that tackle all the tedious aspects of being a property manager. But first, you have to find the vendor that’s right for your company, and that can be a tough task.
The best way to whittle down your choice of vendors is to determine if you want to use an all-in-one or a best-in-breed solution. You may not be sure which one is the best fit for your business, so we’re here to give you all the pros and cons.
First, let’s take a look at all-in-one solutions. All-in-one providers catering to the property management industry offer a combination of management, investment, marketing, leasing, and resident tools.
All-In-One Pros
An all-in-one solution can be an easy sell for some property management companies. The idea of a single platform being able to solve multiple challenges at once sounds very appealing, especially if you have limited internal resources. The IT requirements required to use an all-in-one provider may be reduced when a single vendor is used because there are fewer programs to maintain.
If your team is not particularly tech savvy, only having to learn one platform can help avoid confusion among users of the software and shorten the learning curve. Plus, users will only need a single login to manage each application.
Only having one technology vendor to juggle can be convenient, too. You’ll only have one vendor to make payments to, and call when problems arise.
All-In-One Cons
One suite, one purchase, one vendor to work with. It’s a powerful case, so what are the drawbacks?
The most widespread complaint property managers have about all-in-one solutions is that each product in the suite lacks in-depth functionality needed to do a particular job well. Essentially a Swiss Army knife for property managers, you’ll get several tools compiled into one offering, most of which have limited capabilities compared to a standalone version of that service.
If you’d like to enhance the functionality that’s offered, don’t count on being able to customize features with an all-in-one solution. All-in-one solutions tend to be more rigid in the functionality, and therefore offer little to no ability for customization. If you have specific requirements, you are probably better off with a best-in-breed solution.
You’ll likely also have access to tools you don’t need or don’t want, and in most cases, this makes all-in-one providers more expensive. Software to manage your business shouldn’t always come down to price. But when you compare dollar for dollar what you get out of an all-in-one solution and the adaptability it has, some find it hard to justify the cost for what you get back.
You may also find that components of an all-in-one solution don’t integrate as seamlessly as you’d expect. That’s because all-in-one providers often fill gaps in their product offerings by acquiring companies, then rebranding those products as their own. Getting the two components to “talk” to each other can be just as challenging as selecting software from different vendors.
Adding new products through acquisition also affects the support you receive. Support teams for all-in-one platforms won’t have as much in-depth knowledge about each specific part of their offering like best-of-breed providers have. The result of this is that it could in fact take more, not less time to identify and resolve the issue.
Now let’s take a look at best-in-breed providers for property management companies. They eat, live, and breathe their area of expertise and only focus on a handful of specialized services.
Best-in-Breed Pros
Companies opt for best-of-breed solutions because they offer power-packed systems that address a specific issue. The features offered are more extensive than what is offered through an all-in-one, but can also usually be tailored to the client’s needs. While assembling a best-of-breed technology stack means dealing with several providers, it also means upgrades are much easier, and the company has a unique system that is at the top of its industry.
If your goal is to reduce costs, choosing best-of-breed solutions will be the way to go. Because you can pick and choose which solutions your company needs, you are able to save by opting for best-of-breed software versus unified solutions.
Another advantage of using a best-of-breed over an all-in-one, is that it prevents companies from “putting all their eggs in one basket.” Using numerous products from a single vendor tightly locks you into their system. Breaking away from a unified solution can be a painful transition, something most all-in-one providers count on. If you become unsatisfied with a best-of-breed platform, there’s more leverage to negotiate a solution to the problem. And if you choose to move to another vendor, the transition will be less complicated without several aspects of your business tied to one provider.
Best-of-breed vendors usually deliver a shorter implementation time, particularly if you are using a web-based solution. With faster implementation and ease of adoption, you can achieve a quicker ROI by selecting a best-in-breed solution.
Best-In-Breed Cons
As you’d expect, picking best-of-breed solutions means you have more vendor relationships to manage.
While best-of-breed vendors work tirelessly to strengthen their integrations, some may not provide a flawless experience. If you choose vendors who do not have strong partnerships with one another, integration with your property management software may not always be the best.
Best-of-breed solutions are not a one-size-fits-all technology. Therefore, you will need to have a good idea about the kinds of features you want, and be vocal about your needs. The end result will be a solution that is tailored to your business’ specific needs.
At the end of the day, implementing any kind of technology is meant to help you streamline your processes, better run daily operations and make your team’s job easier. All-in-one and best-in-breed solutions each have their own unique value propositions so it’s important to evaluate your company’s needs, not only today, but as you will grow in the future.
Written by Jennifer Stahlman and originally posted on PayLease