With all of the property-management software on the market today, how does a self-storage operator choose the program thats right for his business? Should you use Web-based or PC-based? What can the cloud do for you? What features will help you make decisions and maximize revenue? Do you need specific applications or reporting abilities? When choosing a management software, facility owners and managers must consider the specific needs of their operation as well as staff, budget and long-term business goals. It can be difficult to compare programs and narrow the list of choices, particularly if youre not clear about your needs or the options available.

During this free, educational webinar, attendees will get insider advice from four of the self-storage industrys most respected software providers. You will learn: 

• Insight to todays facility-management software programs, including popular platforms and must-have features
• Important things to consider when beginning your software search
• What to look for when evaluating multiple programs
• Pitfalls to avoid

If youre launching a new self-storage business or looking to make a change to your existing management software, take advantage of this informative, live event. Time will be allotted for questions from the audience, so dont miss your chance to get answers!

Speakers:

Tom Garden, Owner and President, Syrasoft Management Software LLC

Tom has owned self-storage properties and frequently speaks at industry events. Prior to launching Syracuse, N.Y.-based Syrasoft, he worked in information technology for Pan Am Airlines and Hartz Mountain Industries.

  
Markus Hecker, Chief Operating Officer, SMD Software Inc.

Markus has worked for SMD since the company's inception in 1996. He has served on the board of directors of the North Carolina Self Storage Association and contributes regularly to industry publications and conferences. He holds degrees from North Carolina State University.

 
Tom Smith, President, Empower Software Technologies Inc.

Tom has worked in the computer and data-processing industries for more than 40 years and has been involved in the self-storage industry for the past 14 years. He has authored several technology articles for the industry and attends national tradeshows.

John Bilton, Vice President of Business Development & Marketing, Centershift Inc.

John works to grow sales and relationships with key customer groups and industry partners. He also oversees company marketing activities and administrates relationships with marketing-communications vendors, self-storage vendors, solution partners, resellers and state self-storage associations.

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 *Content and speakers are subject to change

• How to Evaluate and Choose Self-Storage Management Software Slides

When choosing a third-party management company to handle the day-to-day operation of your self-storage facility, there are several critical factors to consider. You have to ask yourself: Should you use a large national company or a local one? Will the management company care about the property as much as you do? Can you negotiate the management contract and what should it include? What questions should you ask during the screening process? This webinar will explain the differences between management-company styles and services and provide criteria for evaluating your candidates. You'll learn how to determine if a company can adequately manage your facility's revenue, marketing, technology, staff and more. If you want to ensure you choose the best management company for your self-storage business, you don't want to miss this free, live webinar!

About the Speakers

Noah Springer (left) is Extra Space Storage's director of strategic partnerships. In addition to the company's 3Plus Management Program, Noah handles acquisition efforts, having completed approximately $200 million in self-storage acquisitions from managed owners and joint-venture partners. In 2007, he helped create the Extra Space joint-venture program, in which the company joined forces with local developers to build self-storage across the country.

Jim Stevens (right) joined Extra Space Storage in January 2001 as the divisional vice president responsible for the company's West Coast activity. He became the senior vice president of acquisitions and business development in November 2006. Since that time, he has overseen more than $465 million in self-storage acquisitions.

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Since the recent court decision in the case of Public Storage v. Dubey, the self-storage industry has been put on notice that courts are not tolerant of facility operators' mistakes in wrongful sales. In light of this case, there are changes you should make to your sale procedures and rental agreement. Your business insurance coverage may also need to be upgraded to provide protection against wrongful-sale claims. When it comes to conducting your self-storage lien sales, you need to clearly understand and follow a plan in accordance with your state self-storage statute. During this webinar, you'll learn what that plan should include and common mistakes to avoid.

Possibilities for building self-storage in Canada abound, but a starting project there is not the same as in the States. What you build, where you build, and how you build it all may vary when tapping this market. During this webinar, youll learn the key to successfully navigating Canadian facility development, with topics such as market demographics, understanding code regulations, and current building practices. Everyone is invited to participate in this FREE, live webinar!

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Today's market is competitive enough for existing self-storage operators without them having to keep up with the "Joneses," the modern facilities opening in the neighborhood. While advertising and marketing are important in attracting new renters, appearance can account for the decisions of as many as 80 percent of your renters. This reality needn't be daunting for owners and managers of older facilities. Join us for this informative webinar, where you'll learn:

• Why your competitor down the street may be attracting more renters than you
• The true cost of lowering rental rates to gain renters
• How you can increase your curb appeal without increasing your budget
• Step-by-step measures to safely replace older doors, even while units are occupied
• How reworking your unit mix can pay for itself in increased rentals of new sizes
• How upgrading your appearance can upgrade your profit
• How renovating your facility can lessen workers'-compensation claims and injuries
• A lender's and appraiser's perspective on the value of renovation

If you own or manage a self-storage facility, you don't want to miss this free, live webinar!

Our Presenters

Jim Ponti is the central-region sales manager for Janus International, a manufacturer of commercial and industrial doors and building components for self-storage and other industries. Jim provides product sales, feasibility, design and operational consulting to self-storage owners and developers in 13 states. He previously worked for Safeguard Self Storage, where he started as a regional operations manager and was promoted to national operations manager, overseeing 33 facilities. Jim started his career in the banking industry, working as a commercial mortgage lender, asset manager and real estate appraiser. He maintains his license as a state-certified general real estate appraiser and environmental auditor.

Chip Cordes is the co-founder of Summit Construction Management Group, a Clearwater, Fla.-based firm offering self-storage construction, management and consulting services to industry owners and investors. A self-storage professional since 1989, Chip was the co-founder and vice president of U.S. Door & Building Components until 2009, when he served as consulting vice president to National Constructors Inc. There he operated four Sunshine Self-Storage facilities in Florida. He has more than 20 years of self-storage construction and operational experience.

In a struggling economy and competitive environment, it's critical that self-storage operators maximize every opportunity to generate revenue while minimizing the operational expenses that cut into the bottom line. Facility owners can boost their income and reduce operating costs by taking advantage of key strategies used by the industry's top operators. By adopting the same business strategies, facility owners can uncover new ways of bolstering their hard-earned profit. During this informative webinar, attendees will learn how to establish new profit centers as part of their self-storage business. They'll also learn about in-house marketing tools, many of which they can use for free, how to increase their buying power through the use of collaborative membership programs, and how to more effectively manage and train staff. If you own or operate a self-storage business, you don't want to miss this valuable information that will help you make more money!

By attending the free webinar, "Strategies to Boost Income and Cut Costs: Taking a Page From the Playbook of Top Self-Storage Operators," you will learn:

  How to establish new profit centers in your self-storage business
  Do-it-yourself marketing for little to no cost
  How to achieve bulk buying power through group memberships
  Strategies for building and maintaining a more effective management staff
  How to make more money through your self-storage operation

Speakers:

Tom Nicholson III is president of Norfolk, Va.-based AAAA Self Storage Management Group, a full-service management and development company incorporated in Virginia in May 1962. Nicholson joined his father in the business in 1979 after earning a four-way degree in business, English, biology and psychology from Roanoke College.  Since that time, he has continuously been involved in the development, design, construction and management of self-storage facilities. A Nicholson Cos. affiliate, AAAA provides management/consulting services to the owners of more than 50 facilities throughout 10 eastern states, containing more than 3 million square feet of space and representing more than $200 million in value. Most of the company's management accounts take advantage of the brand recognition offered by using its AAAA Self Storage trade name.

Scott Styer is a district manager of AAAA Self Storage Management Group, where he handles the company's marketing and affiliate programs and is a member of the operations department. He joined the company in 2009 after overseeing a top self-storage operator Northeast Florida for more than eight years.  Styer is a graduate of Lanier Technical College in Atlanta.

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• Strategies to Boost Income and Cut Costs:
  Taking a Page From the Playbook of Top Self-Storage Operators

Significant changes in the lives of your tenants can have a serious impact on the way you, as a self-storage operator, conduct your business. Some of the most notable life changes you encounter with customers are bankruptcy, divorce and death.

Tenant bankruptcy changes the way you handle delinquent accounts. If you don't know how to deal with a tenant who has filed bankruptcy, you face the risk of substantial legal penalties, including contempt of court. As a facility operator, you also need to understand how divorce between tenants affects your relationship with and duty toward them. Incorrect action can set you up for potential liability for constructive eviction, damages to property, lost property and more. Finally, if one of your tenants dies, who do you allow into his unit and what do you do next? This webinar provides important information and addresses action items of which you should be aware in dealing with these life-changing events.

The following webinar is part of a three-part Legal Learning Series for 2011. Registration for this event will be open after July 1. In the meantime, you can register for the first event in the series, which will take place on July 19. To access this event, please return to the Webinars page.

This final Legal Learning webinar of 2011 provides an overview of self-storage legislative campaigns taking place or completed during the year and their significance to the industry as a whole. Legal expert Jeffrey Greenberger will talk about self-storage laws, including lien-sale procedures and more, for the states of Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Nevada and Tennessee, where the state and national associations have worked very hard to achieve legislative improvement.

This special extended session will also include ample time for an open Q&A with Jeff. Get your lingering legal questions answered during this informative webinar! A dedicated thread will be created in advance at www.selfstoragetalk.com, allowing you to submit your questions throughout the first half of the month in addition to asking them live.

Bonus: All attendees to the Nov. 15 event will be entered to win a free standard education package for the Inside Self-Storage World Expo in Las Vegas, March 14-16, 2012!

Speaker:
 Jeffrey Greenberger is a partner in the Cincinnati law firm of Katz, Greenberger & Norton LLP, where he focuses his practice on commercial real estate, with a concentration in self-storage. Jeff assists operators around the country in the design and implementation of legal policies and procedures as well as other operational issues, with a focus on litigation avoidance and liability reduction. He is the legal advisor to several state self-storage associations and a featured speaker for national and state self-storage conferences. As part of the Inside Self-Storage Editorial Advisory Board, he contributes regularly to the magazine, and is also a member of the ISS Education Advisory Committee. He is the star presenter of the ISS Legal Learning webinar series, and plays key roles in other ISS ventures, serving as an instructor for the Self-Storage Training Institute and as a moderator for Self-Storage Talk, the industrys largest online community.

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They say good things come in small packages sometimes the best self-storage parcels are small, too! But if your site is so little that a single-story facility isn't economically feasible, you might need to consider building up. This webinar addresses the ins and outs of multi-story construction. You'll learn about site design and layout, the costs of this type of structure, related architectural-design issues and other special considerations. If you're interested in building a multi-level self-storage project or expanding an existing site to include more floors, you don't want to miss this free, live webinar!

Much has been said and written about the best way to secure a self-storage property, leaving facility operators to wonder, what's fact and what's hype? How much security is really necessary, and how much is just frills? During this webinar, you'll learn the correct way to protect your site, beginning with the essentials and delving into more complex options. You'll learn about proper site design for security and how to appropriately incorporate components such as video surveillance, door alarms, site graphics, gates and more. Our presenter will help you shorten the security learning curve and get your system right, whether you're building a new facility or renovating an existing one. He'll cover all of the nuts and bolts and expose the myths to help you maximize the return on your security investment. If self-storage security is a priority for your and your business, you don't want to miss this free, live webinar!

Presenter John Fogg is the general manager of Lakewood, Colo.-based Sentinel Systems Corp., which has been supplying security systems and software exclusively to the self-storage industry since 1975. Mr. Fogg has worked in self-storage since 1986, originally as the manager and operator of multiple self-storage properties. He writes frequently for Inside Self-Storage (ISS) magazine and presents security-related seminars at ISS Expos.

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