We partnered with leading coliving consultant Leah Ziliak for a 6-part monthly blog post series co-created by our very own Christian Schmitz and Caterina Maiolini.

For this latest edition, Leah sat down with Pedro Mota, director of marketing at Campus Perth to chat about the key to achieving a truly unique community experience. Read on to find out why Campus Perth has the answers and how they are put into practice.

This year, the Coliving Awards were held in Katowice, Poland. The first of its kind, the ceremony highlighted the 'best of the best' in the coliving industry. While the coliving industry is still relatively new, events such as the Coliving Awards are proof that the concept is rising to new heights. Coliving is more than a fleeting trend, it's a thriving real estate class, and it's here to stay. This is one of the reasons SALTO Systems served as a proud partner of the event, which celebrated the leading innovators across the shared living sector.

SALTO is a big advocate of going beyond the product and making lives around the world easier with their hardware and software solutions. Coliving is a great industry to practice what they preach. With their solutions, SALTO enables communities by optimising operations so the building and community manager(s) have more time to spend with their members instead of doing repetitive administrative tasks that can be automated.

As someone who's passionate about the coliving customer journey, there was one award category I was most excited to see on the ballot: Best User & Community Experience.

'User Experience' seems to be the trending topic in every industry these days, doesn't it? And, it's no wonder. 

If you truly understand your user, not only can you create a superior product or service, but you’re able to build lifelong fans of your brand. A great UX/CX is important to every customer-centric business, but it’s critical when it comes to coliving.

Why is that?

Well, to begin with, a strong focus on the user/community experience is a big part of what defines coliving, and sets it apart from traditional rental experiences. 

With a traditional rental model, the customer journey has always been quite basic (and quite lacking, to be honest.) Find a place. Sign a contract. Pay a deposit. Hope you get along with your housemates. Never speak to your landlord again unless there's a problem. Move out.

With coliving, the experience is much more immersive and tailored to the user. For successful coliving brands, it’s about more than simply keeping customers happy; it’s about building a mini-ecosystem of connected community members. And that is something altogether different. It’s one thing to give your members a pretty place to live; it’s another to create an experience that enables them to thrive.

There’s intention (and a bit of magic) built into the coliving customer experience that goes well beyond move-in day. The ‘sale’ is just the beginning of the journey.

The Coliving Awards celebrate those who are putting thought into the details and are creating unique experiences for their members. SALTO Systems served as an Exclusive Category Sponsor of the User & Community Experience award.

And, after much deliberation, the winner was…

Campus Perth

Located in Perth, Australia, Campus Perth is making waves in the student housing sector. With stylish rooms, a rooftop lounge and community events, it's the kind of place you wish existed when you were in college. And, with 24/7 CCTV, dedicated security team, live-in residential advisors and on-call doctors, it's the kind of place parents are happy to see their kids living.

The space itself is a student’s dream. With 726 beds, members can choose between four different room types to suit their needs. It also features 3,600 square metres of social areas, including a fitness studio, a coworking library, gaming areas, a communal kitchen, pool tables, and more. 

Community events are held on a regular basis and range from film screenings and cooking classes to resume writing sessions and weekend trips. Campus Perth is designed to be a place for students to not only be productive but also stay connected along the way.

I sat down with Pedro Mota, director of marketing at Campus Perth to chat about their recent win at the Coliving Awards, and learn more about the magic behind Campus Perth.

Winning the ‘User & Community Experience’ award is such a massive achievement. What do you think makes the User Experience at Campus Perth so unique?

We like to say that we provide more than just a bedroom to our guests. From the moment our residents walk inside of our building, we’re there for them no matter what. Campus Perth wants to become a remarkable part of our residents’ lives. I believe the best service we provide is facilitating connections within our community.

What does a typical 'First Day' look like for a new member?

All of our residents receive a ‘Welcome Pack,’ no matter what time or day of the week they arrive. These welcome packages will contain the basics of information about the city, the daily routine at Campus Perth, snacks, and how to download our internal app. It’s almost a survival kit. Within 24 hours, one of the Resident Advisors will reach out to the new arrivals and provide them with further information about our building, events, and operations in general. They will also offer some support and potentially introduce residents with similar interests.

What events or experiences at Campus Perth do members enjoy the most? 

In four years of operations, I can say that we tried a bit of everything in terms of events. We’ve developed good partnerships around the city that offer discounts on activities like bowling, go-karting, indoor rock climbing, basketball, etc. We also run quiz nights, escape rooms, and amazing races inside our building, all organised by our team. 

However, the yoga and cooking classes are definitely the special ones. They have been taking place since our first month of operations, and the attendance numbers have been great since then. Yoga classes take place once a week in our gym studio, and the cooking classes are once a month in our communal kitchen, which fits up to 40 people.

How does tech play a role in the User Experience at Campus Perth?

We try to make our residents' connection and communication as quick and straightforward as possible. The development of the Amigos app, which is the Campus Perth app, became a vital factor in this integration. Our residents can access all internal communication, events, reception hours and talk directly with our team. 

For example, through the app, they can speak about something that's not working with our maintenance team, raise a question to one of our Resident Advisors or discuss their payments with the front desk. On top of that, we also have a building covered in projectors, video games, TVs and more, all integrated and controlled from your phone or computer. 

You seem to have a lot of international students who choose Campus Perth. When it comes to onboarding, does your User Experience differ for international students Vs local students?

Luckily, we have a very international team. It’s easy for us to understand different cultures, languages and backgrounds. Our local students might have parents who visit on the weekends; they already have friends in the city, so it’s a bit easier. 

But, when you talk about international students, many of them are away from their families for the first time. They’re looking to make new friends, they’re attending more events. But, it really depends on the person. We have to adapt and change and see what’s needed.

When I first moved to Australia, I was an international student, and I had to experience all of the traumas that go along with that. And sometimes you definitely need a hand to succeed and to get somewhere. And I missed that hand a few times. So, I try to do as much as I can in terms of like, ‘Okay, you’re not alone. Let’s do this together. I’ve been in your place. It’s a bright future ahead, so let’s go.’

It’s not just about giving someone a room, and saying ‘good luck’, it’s about following up, making them understand that we’re here for them.

In conclusion, it’s easy to see that Campus Perth is doing something incredibly special within their community. (And, the waitlist on their site suggests that the demand is certainly there for this type of elevated student accommodation.)

Innovative shared living brands like Campus Perth are raising the bar for what a coliving experience can look like. And, in doing so, they are raising customer expectations. As the industry continues to grow, those who have a thoughtful, connected UX/CX will continue to thrive, and those who don’t will be left behind. 

The future of shared living is in the hands of those who want to create a modern, connected, wellness-driven experience and provide a more social way of living. And, if you ask me, the future of coliving is looking bright.

The Coliving Awards

The Coliving Awards recognised innovators across the coliving industry in 15 different categories including interior design, proptech, branding, content/media and more. To see a full list, and many more info of winners and finalists, download the latest version of Coliving Insights.