Yesterday, I addressed a recent inquiry I received from a self-storage manager whose market is becoming increasing competitive (whose isn't?). She had a legitimate concern because her income is based on weekly facility revenue. One solution? Some heavy-handed marketing that'll keep her business on prospects' radar.

 

The important thing for all operators to understand is marketing doesn't have to be limited to hum-drum tactics such as direct mail or advertising. In fact, I think better results can sometimes be garnered from more unconventional approaches.

 

Take NASCAR, for example. Probably most of you would be hard pressed to draw a marketing connection between high-speed combustible engines and storage, but there can be one if you make it so. This weekend at Martinsville Speedway in Virginia, Alpharetta Self-Storage will sponsor the Billy Ballew Motorsports Team in the NASCAR 2006 Craftsman Truck Series. Talk about exposure. What a fantastic outside-the-box approach to publicity.

 

Now this kind of sponsorship opportunity won't necessarily fall in your lap. You need to take a pro-active approach toward your community presence. Seek out local events of note and inquire about banners, t-shirts and other collaterals that can be distributed with your facility's name. It can be anything: a festival, carnival, art show, chamber of commerce mixer... Think about your customers and where they potentially gather. Then make yourself visible. Your relationship with tenants does NOT have to start with storage.

 

Speaking of NASCAR, Inside Self-Storage magazine recently ran a feature article about a vendor that is also using racing sponsorships to shine in the public eye. It sheds a little more light on the value of special-event marketing. Give it a read.

 

It isn't unusual for me to receive phonecalls and e-mails from people who are new to the self-storage industry or those seeking guidance in particular development/operational matters. I probably get an average of five to seven communications of this nature every day. While I'm happy to assist when I can, I'm not an industry consultant, and I don't always have access to the right resources. Furthermore, many of these inquiries overlap, so I thought it might be helpful to get them answered in a public space where more readers can benefit.

 

Now that we've got the blog going, I'll start posting some of these queries online. I'll provide whatever information I can, and then we'll see if members of the self-storage community can't help each other out with feedback through the blog. I realize this isn't the same as a web-based forum per se, but it still facilitates virtual conversation.

 

So, here's a message I received this week. Sharon E. wants to know:

 

I just read with great interest an article on your site by Pamela Alton titled "Managers' Wages: What Are Owners Paying?" I am curious as to your feedback on self-storage managers and the rate of pay if you're not on salary or hourly wage but paid in percentage of revenue collected for the week. Is this practiced elsewhere? And if so, how successfully? My husband and I are the resident managers at a fairly old facility, which just saw two new facilities from other companies open within a 10-mile radius. This has, of course, dampened our income potential and is of concern. Any thoughts or opinions would be appreciated.

 

I can't say how a majority of managers are being compensated these days. I imagine every owner and management company handles the issue of salary differently based on the market and structure of their business. With competition increasing nationwide, owners are seeking ways to keep managers invested and motivated. Tying your wages to facility performance is a smart strategy for keeping the fire under your feet; but it also means you're shouldering a large portion of the owner's risk.

 

In short, the pressure's on. You need to build a repertoire of marketing tactics that will keep your facility at the forefront of prospects' minds. And let's face it: Even if you are making the most of every possible avenueface-to-face meetings with local businesses, special events, networking, direct mail, e-mail newsletters, display advertising, signage, etc.your revenue could still suffer.

 

I understand Sharon's concern, and it seems to me she has only a few options:

 

1. Bolster her marketing efforts to battle the potential errosion of profit at her storage site.

2. Re-negotiate her compensation package with her owner.

3. Find a new position with a company that sets wages differently.

 

Does anyone have any other advice or insight to offer?

 

Today, a friend and co-worker shared an interesting tale: He was listening to Adam Carolla on the radio when a 62-year-old self-storage manager named Iris called into the show from Cocoa, Fla. Iris, a champion bodybuilder, had recently had the experience of chasing and tackling a criminal who had been involved in a high-speed freeway chase, crashed his vehicle in front of her storage office, and attempted to make a run for the woods on the other side of her fence. Her assistant manager tripped one of the culprit's partners. Unbelievable! The police apprehended the offenders shortly thereafter.

 

I managed to find several articles about the incident. Some include great photos and video. Here are a few:

 

Floridatoday.com

WKYC.com

NBC6.net

 

Surprisingly, none of these really mention her managing a storage facility (guess that's why it never turned up in my personal news searches). I also did a little web snoofing and found this link regarding a bodybuilding competition Iris was in just four years ago. Check it outI hope I enjoy just a fraction of her beautiful buffness after I hit 50!

 

Her Heroiness, Iris Davis, of Cocoa, Fla. Right on, Iris!

 

Just real quick: You may notice that many of the news clips refer to Iris' status as a grandmother, as if that's somehow significant to the story. Anything to sensationalize the issue, I suppose.

 

A wonderful surprise this morning as I sign on and sift through the weekend's e-mail: A budding storage operator in the Houston area read my post from a few days ago in which I urged professionals in the business to start their own blogs. Dario and Anna Vargas took my words to heart and launched their own blogventure! You can read what they're up to here. I urge you to visitand comment ontheir blog as often as possible. Then give another thought to starting your own.

 

This week, storage professionals head to Chicago for the Self Storage Association's spring conference and tradeshow. I was supposed to attend, but pressing deadlines have altered my travel plans. If anyone would like to share experiences, news bites or photos from that show, please e-mail them to me at [email protected], and I'll be happy to post them here.

 

Is it just me, or do Monday's come on like a freight train?

 

It was almost exactly two years ago that eight British-born Pakistani men were arrested in London suburbs on suspicion of plotting a terrorist bomb attack. They were apprehended after more than a half-ton of ammonium-nitrate fertilizer (a basic ingredient in home-made explosives) was discovered at a self-storage facility in Hanwell, U.K., near Heathrow Airport.

 

The trial, pending, is still revealing information about the accused's connections and training: They have alleged ties to Al-Qaeda and have admitted to being schooled in terrorist tactics in Pakistan.

 

But the part I want to emphasize is these men were uncovered only after the storage facility's owners became suspicious of their renters' activity and contacted Scotland Yard. These operators' vigilance makes them heroes of a sort, since it has been revealed through testimony that the perps drew up plans for bombing local pubs, shopping centers, trains and nightclubs.

 

Now, 9/11 may seem long ago to some of you and like yesterday to others. What's true is we'll feel the repercussions of that fateful day indefinitely, particularly in the self-storage industry. Our whole manner of conducting business has been irreversibly altered. "Watchful" is our watch word. We put more emphasis than ever on tenant screening. We have been necessarily solicited in the government's efforts toward Homeland Security. (This recent article from Inside Self-Storage mag explains in detail.)

 

Just remember, when reflecting on these tragic events, that you have real power to change history. You are not mere renters of space, saviors of stuff, custodians of customer excessyou are watchdogs for your community. Is that more responsibility than you're willing to accept? Then perhaps you're in the wrong business. Self-storage isn't just about breathing room anymore, it's about safeguarding. What goes on at your site IS your business.

 

How does it feel to be a defender of America?

 

 

What do you call it when the subject of a writing or conversation is the writing or conversation itself? I forget. At any rate, today's blog post is aboutta da!blogs. But not just any blogs, self-storage blogs, as one was highlighted in today's news.

 

A release that went out on PR Web this morning identifies Tron Jordheim's blog as a testament to the fact that blogs have real power in fueling niche-business communication. Now, I'm not entirely certain where this release initiated (and I wouldn't be entirely surprised to find its roots in PhoneSmart itself), but it just goes to prove an important point:

 

It isn't difficult to be noticed on the Internet!

 

All you self-storage operators out there should be harnessing the "power of cheese" (as I now like to call it) to publicize your businesses. Start your own blog and share information about your facilities with customers and the world at large. It's not difficult to doservices like Blogger.com, Myblogsite.com, Blogeasy.com, Livejournal.com and many more make it ridiculously simple to become a blogger.

 

These days, people increasingly turn to the web for their daily doses of news; and many subscribe to services like Bloglines to read what other people are saying about things that interest them. Take advantage of this new tool before your competitor does. If you think it doesn't matter, guess again. And you don't need to be computer savvy either.

 

Actually, it's kind of wild how it works. I did a blog search through Yahoo! today and stumbled across a great article I never would have found except some guy in Montreal put a link to it in his blog. While you're here, you should read this story of Turan Kalfa, the man behind the Depotium self-storage business of Canada. It's a real "pull yourself up by the bootstraps" kind of tale. I like that.