Inside Self-Storage (ISS) has launched an audience survey with the goal of improving the brand’s content and delivery formats. Participants will have a chance to win one of four $50 Amazon gift cards. The winners will be chosen at random following the close of the poll on Sept. 28.

The form includes nine questions about ISS content and offerings, including the brand website. It allows respondents to offer suggestions for improvement.

“We consistently seek to improve the ISS customer experience, and there’s no better way to map a plan for innovation than to listen to the needs and desires of our audience,” said ISS Vice President Teri Lanza, who’s been with the brand for more than 20 years. “We know people are bombarded with messages requesting reviews and feedback from various sources, but we hope our readers will spare a few moments to tell us what’s on their minds. We want to know: How can we better serve self-storage industry professionals in this competitive environment?”

The survey is accessible here. It’s open to all self-storage owners, managers, investors, developers and suppliers.

For more than 27 years, ISS has provided informational resources for the self-storage industry. Its educational offerings include ISS magazine, the annual ISS World Expo, an extensive website, the ISS Store, and Self-Storage Talk, the industry’s largest online community.

The Orange County, Fla., Board of Commissioners unanimously approved the preliminary plan for Hamlin Self Storage in Horizon West, a master-planned community that includes five mixed-use villages surrounded by greenbelts and a town center. The proposal includes the construction of a 147,637-square-foot facility on the 7.13-acre property, which is west of Hamlin Groves Trail and south of New Independence Parkway, according to the source.

The project is consistent with the “town-center area,” said Scott Gentry, a principal with Kelly, Collins & Gentry Inc. (KCG), the project applicant. “Town Center is the commercial area for Horizon West, so not only do we have residential uses in there—we have multi-family, we have single-family—but we have a multitude of commercial [uses],” Gentry said during the Aug. 21 commission meeting. “This is a low-traffic use. There’s not a lot of people here. There’s not a lot of noise. Obviously, people aren’t having parties or outdoor [events] like with restaurants.”

David Russell, a resident of The Cove at Hamlin, spoke against the project. “I’m speaking today to request the BCC [Board of County Commissioners] to please defer, delay or table this request until more data and information can be shared with local residents as to why this is the only location for such a facility,” he said.

Commissioner Betsy VanderLey noted that community meetings in which residents can learn about and comment on proposals have already passed. She added there’s little influence the public has at this phase of the development. “It is my policy not to do public hearings for the preliminary subdivision-plan phase of a development because there’s really very little the public can change at that point in time,” she said. The commission will work with the developer to determine the location of the buildings, road infrastructure and storm-water needs, she added.

Based in Orlando, Fla., KCG is an engineering and planning-consulting firm that provides land development, transportation, eminent domain and land planning.

Source:
Orange Observer, Orange County Commissioners Approved Storage Facility in Horizon West

 

Real estate development company Clayton Self Storage Group has opened Gatehouse Self Storage in Clayton, N.C. The newly constructed facility at 12984 U.S. 70 Hwy. W. is west of White Pine Drive and near the town center, which contains businesses, restaurants and retail shops, according to a press release.

The facility comprises 70,501 square feet of rentable storage space in 631 climate-controlled units. Property features include access-controlled entry, security cameras, and a retail center that sells moving and packing supplies. Customers have access to online billpay, and the facility staff will accept deliveries on their behalf.

A ribbon-cutting ceremony will be held in October. The event will be open to the public and include property tours.

The facility will be managed by Absolute Storage Management, which owns and manages self-storage properties. Founded in 2002, the company operates 105 properties in 15 states. In addition to its Memphis, Tenn., headquarters, it has regional offices in Atlanta; Charlotte, N.C.; Jackson, Miss.; and Nashville, Tenn.

While most self-storage facilities typically have a larger percentage of customers who rent a unit for personal use, more business owners are beginning to realize the value of the service. They’re leasing space to safely store excess equipment and product, keep their files and inventory organized, and even to help manage an office relocation. Facility operators reap great benefits from renting to commercial tenants, as these customers tend to stay longer and choose bigger, more expensive spaces.

In a recent thread on Self-Storage Talk, the industry’s largest online community, members are sharing their go-to marketing strategies to lure business customers. They’re also discussing the property amenities this demographic desires and how to better meet their needs. See what others have to say and add your own ideas.

Guardian Storage, which operates 22 self-storage facilities in Colorado and Pennsylvania, was named among the “2018 Top Workplaces” by “The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.” The list is based on employee feedback gathered through a third-party survey administered by Energage LLC (formerly WorkplaceDynamics), a provider of technology-based employee-engagement tools. The anonymous survey measures several aspects of workplace culture, including alignment, execution and connection, according to a press release.

“Top Workplaces is more than just recognition,” said Energage CEO Doug Claffey. “Our research shows organizations that earn the award attract better talent, experience lower turnover, and are better equipped to deliver bottom-line results. Their leaders prioritize and carefully craft a healthy workplace culture that supports employee engagement.”

“When I started this company over 30 years ago, it was important to me to build a team that felt like family and that tradition continues today,” said Steven Cohen, president and founder of Guardian Storage. “I’m honored to be surrounded by such a dedicated, professional team that truly loves coming to work every day. This award speaks volumes about the culture at Guardian Storage, and I’m humbled to be a part of a successful company driven by such an amazing group of individuals.”

Established in Pittsburgh in 1987, Guardian Storage operates 17 facilities in Pennsylvania and five in Colorado. It recently opened a new location in the Forest Hills suburb of Pittsburgh, and will open a new facility in Bethel Park, Pa., next year.

Compass Self Storage, a member of the Amsdell family of companies, has acquired Lake Warehouse & Storage in Tavares, Fla. The company now operates 16 locations in the state and 83 nationwide. The purchase was made by separate affiliates of Amsdell Group LLC and Compass Self Storage LLC. The facility will be branded under the Compass name, according to a press release.

The property at 2601 State Route 19 comprises more than 96,000 net rentable square feet of storage space. Compass plans to upgrade the facility with climate-controlled units and new access control. It’ll also offer moving and packing supplies, and truck rentals.

“The acquisition of this self-storage center broadens our footprint in the Central Florida market, where we have had a presence for several years. Our newest location will continue to offer our residential and commercial customers a one-stop shop for their moving, storing and packing needs,” said Todd Amsdell, president.           

Headquartered in Cleveland, the Amsdell Cos. draws its roots from the family-owned construction company founded in 1928. Since its inception, the company has been active in several billions of dollars of real estate ventures, with a primary focus on self-storage. It has owned and operated more than 500 storage centers under various trade names in more than 27 states. It currently owns and operates properties in Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Michigan, Mississippi, New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee and Texas.

Source:
PR Newswire, Compass Self Storage Acquires Storage Center in Central Florida

As a self-storage owner of more than 20 years, I understand what it’s like to compete with the real estate investment trusts and the other big guys in the industry. I’ve also learned what can set local owners apart from the competition. You don’t have to own hundreds of facilities to be successful if you’re willing to adopt technology.

Some operators may be hesitant to embrace new platforms and tools, but technology has expanded our reach and improved the way we do business. For example, if you’ve been in the storage industry a long time, you remember when our primary advertising method was the Yellow Pages. (No wonder so many facility names begin with the letter A!) Now that we have the Internet, marketing has expanded to include so much more. With Google and other search engines, users have almost limitless access to information. One simple search can yield thousands of results.

We don’t have to understand everything about how technology works to know that it produces results. Let’s explore a few key platforms that are positively impacting the industry today.

Revenue-Management Software

Revenue-management software can help you with dynamic pricing for your self-storage facilities, just like the hotels and airlines use. Having software that can automatically recognize when you’re low on specific unit sizes and types and charge the customer more for those spaces can mean thousands of additional dollars over the course of a year. If you’re not using dynamic pricing, you’re missing out on potential revenue that will go straight to your bottom line.

Responsive Websites

Another thing you must have to compete in the storage industry today is a responsive Web design. People search for self-storage on their mobile devices now more than ever. If your website isn’t optimized for this shift, you may lose business to a competitor who has adopted this technology.

Facebook

We’ve all heard the importance of having a business Facebook page, but let me tell you why an up-to-date page is important in self-storage. When I do staff interviews with Millennial candidates, I learn how they’re using social media. I was surprised to discover they use Facebook to get information about a company as often or more frequently than they use Google. They look to Facebook to find businesses in their area, hours of operation and phone numbers. If you don’t have a Facebook page for your facility, you may be losing the younger generations as customers.

Online Reviews

Many consumers are reading online reviews on Facebook, Yelp and other websites to make decisions about whether a business is trustworthy. Self-storage operators are sometimes scared of online reviews because these platforms feel out of their control. However, if you get someone who knows what they’re doing to manage your profiles and write a professional response to every review—positive or negative—you’ll be able to interact with customers in a way that protects your business. At my facilities, we’ve even had customers remove negative reviews after we professionally and kindly responded to their criticism because they were satisfied with our reply.

If you have more positive reviews than negative, you’ll always be a step ahead of your competition, no matter how large or small your facility. Also, don’t be afraid to ask your best customers to leave you a review! Often, they’ll gladly write one for you.

Online Auctions

Another technology making a difference in self-storage is the online auction platform. Instead of standing outside in the rain or summer heat hoping someone shows up to your live lien sales, you can list your sale online from the comfort of your office. Online platforms allow you to hold auctions more regularly, with any number of units, and achieve better recovery rates for your business. You can also market your events to a larger audience of bidders.

With online lien sales, there are no more chaotic auction days, no more crowds on your property with trailers filling your parking lot, no trash to clean up. Your success is no longer dependent on the weather. Bidders can come from farther away and only need to drive to your site if they’ve won a unit. They can also view unit photos and research items in advance of bidding. This gives them time to form an emotional attachment to a sale, which means they bid higher amounts and you can recover more revenue.

Whether we like it or not, technology is here to stay. We don’t have to understand everything about it to realize its potential. I don’t know how my iPhone takes better pictures than most cameras and is small enough to fit into my pocket, but I like that it does. Why not give various platforms and tools a try and see the results for yourself?

Lonnie Bickford has developed and owned five Appletree Storage facilities in Greater Baton Rouge, La., and is a board member of the Louisiana Self Storage Association, where he’s worked closely with the national Self Storage Association to make changes to the state’s lien law. He’s also the founder of StorageAuctions.com, a provider of online self-storage auction services. For more information, phone 866.944.8530; e-mail [email protected]; visit www.storageauctions.com. 

Getting the phone to ring at your self-storage facility is only half the battle. Knowing how to successfully sell your services once you have the customer on the line is the other half—the most important one.

With an increase in walk-in and online activity, many facility operators are finding their volume of phone calls is decreasing. You must make the most of each one of these valuable calls! The following simple guidelines will help you improve your phone sales.

General Phone-Sales Tips

For some self-storage managers, speaking on the phone comes naturally. Others need training on how to make the most of each sales call. Here are some tips to improve your skills, regardless of your current aptitude.

Be ready. Remove your gum, or swallow whatever food and drink is in your mouth. Then smile before you answer the phone. Customers can hear it in your voice! Take a split second to get focused on the call you’re about to receive; let everything else go. Stop everything else to focus on that call! Those other things will still be there when you’re finished.

Be an active and attentive listener. Answer the phone warmly and clearly, and do not mumble. Most important, pay attention to the customer. It’s easy to just regurgitate facts and information about your facility, but by asking your customer the right questions, you’ll get him to tell you about his situation. You’ll learn about his needs, so you can determine how to best help him. You might start by asking, “How can I improve your life today?”

Take notes. Notes are handy for providing a customized service experience, while you’re on the phone as well as during follow-up calls and appointments. Making the customer feel welcomed and presenting yourself as the local, friendly expert on all things storage will make him more comfortable and help build trust in your professional expertise. Always ask for his name and contact information and offer to e-mail him some information after the call. Once you get his name, use it throughout the conversation.

Here are some additional phone-sales tips:

• Know what you need to know, and which questions to ask. Don't just give out prices!
• Guide and control the conversation. Customers want an expert, not an order-taker. Be the one in charge.
• Discuss all your facility’s features and discuss benefits, even if a customer doesn’t appear to have an immediate need for some of them. You never know when he may refer a co-worker, friend or family member.
• Ask for the business. Don't allow the customer to hang up without asking for the sale and getting a means to follow up. Ask, “What will it take for you to become my customer today?” You might try, “If I could ______, would you rent with me today?” (Offer you a special, offer you a free lock, waive the admin fee, etc.)
• Don’t forget about add-on sales such as locks, boxes, tenant insurance, etc. This is critical to improve income.
• Understand that until you’ve developed comfort and trust with customers, you can’t sell them.

Five Magic Questions

There are five questions that’ll help you determine how to sell your various offerings to your self-storage customer. Never start quoting prices and offering discounts as your first line of response. Instead, follow a single-sheet script with each caller. Take extensive notes from his responses and use them to outline your property’s benefits in a way that relates to each comment. Here are the questions to ask:

1. Have you ever rented self-storage before? In some markets, as much as 50 percent of the population hasn’t rented a storage unit and doesn’t know all the ins and outs. Most prospects will focus on price when they don't know what else is important to ask. By asking if they’ve rented storage before, you’ll know how much information to provide.

2. What will you be storing? You need to make sure the use is qualified. That means no old tires or batteries, fish or other livestock, or food. If the unit will be used for commercial purposes such as storing inventory or business records, you’ll handle the prospect differently than you would a residential customer. Similarly, if the person plans to store a boat, RV or other vehicle, there’ll be additional information to collect.

3. When do you need to move in? This will help you create urgency no matter if the customer says, “this week” or “a month from now.” It’ll also help you advise the customer on how your facility is the solution to his problem.

For example, let’s say a customer needs to move his entire household. You might respond with something like, “Since your movers won’t be coming until the first of the month, you have a unique opportunity to make this the easiest move of your lifetime! Just bring a few treasured items to your storage unit each weekend, things you don’t want the movers dealing with like your antique China. By the time they arrive on moving day, all your most treasured possessions will be out of the way, and the movers can pack and move more quickly. You’ll be so glad you too advantage of this extra time! Let’s look at which unit size will suit your needs.” From here, you can make recommendations and close the deal.

4. How long will you need storage? This question allows you to limit the term of the discount, if you need one to close the sale. For example, let’s say a customer asks you to match prices with a competitor. You might say, “If I match the rate for the two months you think you’ll need storage, and then raise it to regular price thereafter, will you move in with me today?” This is much better than an open-ended discount that robs your property of value.

5. What’s the dollar value you’d put on your belongings? Make a note and write up a contract for the correct amount of tenant-insurance coverage. No other discussion is necessary.

Asking these questions shows prospects you’re customer-focused. Not asking means you’re not selling, you’re just quoting prices. Don't fall into the trap of price-selling; you can’t win this game.

Using What You Know

The more questions you ask your customers on the phone, the better you’re able to determine what they need. It also clues you into special programs you might extend to each caller, such as free use of the company’s moving truck, key release for package delivery or business-center services. Once you learn what brings your customers through the door, you can emphasize the benefits of your products or services and how you can exceed their expectations. This might include packing materials for residential customers or extended business hours for commercial tenants.

As the call winds down, ask your caller if he’d like to make a reservation or an appointment to tour the facility. Promise shopping assistance via your competition-survey book, accompanied by coffee and cookies. The goal is to get the customer to the next step in the rental process. If you’re just quoting prices, you’re only giving the caller a tiny percentage of the information he needs to make an informed decision.

Hopefully, this article has provided you with a few ideas on how to improve your phone-sales skills. Remember to always track your closing rate. This should include how many calls you receive as well as your conversion ratios. This simple task can do wonders to improve your ability to convert leads to leases.

M. Anne Ballard is president of training, marketing and developmental services for Universal Storage Group and the founder of Universal Management Co. She’s past president of the Georgia Self Storage Association and has served on the national Self Storage Association’s board of directors. She’s also participated in the planning, design and operation of numerous storage facilities. For more information, call 770.801.1888; visit www.universalstoragegroup.com. 

Update 8/31/18 – GMF Ventures received zoning approval this week to build a three-story self-storage facility in Mooresville despite opposition from several residents. About a dozen community members attended Tuesday’s town-board meeting to speak against the project. They voiced concerns about the building height, whether the area needed more storage, and their preference for a different business type for the 2-acre parcel, according to a source.

Resident Doug Foland said the storage facility would be “massively out of place,” and he other homeowners “paid a premium to escape three-story eyesores.” Resident Fred Becker suggested a Costco warehouse would be more appropriate for the site. “In this case, there’s no need for a storage facility. I called the ones that were within five miles and they all have vacancies,” he added.

GMF Ventures representative Bill Haymore said he has spoken with neighbors about their concerns and the current site plan reflects several changes, including the building color, reduced lighting and more landscaping for natural screening. Access to the facility will be from the shopping center.

Prior to the vote, commissioner Lisa Qualls noted the property’s zoning allows for multiple uses that could be three stories, and the town doesn’t “have a lot of leeway” on zoning permits. The project must only be consistent with the comprehensive land-use plan. “There's no option. Either it meets the land-use plan or it doesn't,” she said.

Town attorney Stephen Gambill agreed, adding board officials can’t simply turn down the request because they don’t support it. The board must issue a “statement of reasonableness,” highlighting why a rezoning request does or doesn’t fit with the comprehensive land-use plan.

The board approved the zoning request 5-1, with Qualls voting against it.

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4/10/18 – GMF Ventures, an affiliate of nonprofit Goodwill Industries International Inc., intends to develop a self-storage facility in the Food Lion shopping center in Mooresville, N.C., but it will have to convince citizens and town commissioners that storage is the best use for the site. Residents were particularly vocal in opposition to the project during a public hearing held by the board of commissioners on April 2. If approved, the two-story, indoor facility would be built on the western edge of the retail center near Brawley School and Stutts Roads, according to the source.

Though town staff and the planning board have recommended that commissioners approve the rezoning necessary for the project to move forward, residents objected to the proposed structure’s height and appearance in proximity to a 55-and-older community that’s nearing completion just 235 feet to the southeast. The community’s first residents are expected to move in to The Courtyards at Blume Pointe in the next few months, the source reported.

Public comments criticized the design as prison-like and ugly. One man told commissioners the building would block views of the sunset, while another argued the project would endanger the Peninsula Conservation area watershed.

Shopping-center owners Pat Crosby and Tim Dockery argued the storage facility would be eight feet taller than the plaza’s Walgreens and not block sunsets. They also noted that EPCON, the developer building The Courtyards community, removed a 300-foot wooded buffer between the properties, knowing the allowable zoning uses in the center. The self-storage project was determined to be a low-impact use and would likely block noise from a nearby convenience store currently under construction, Dockery said.

The board scheduled a second public hearing for May 7. It also directed GMF Ventures to update conceptual drawings to include trees and fencing promised by the developer to serve as a buffer between residences and the retail property.

Goodwill Industries is known primarily for its network of thrift stores, but the organization also provides employment-placement and job-training services as well as other community-based programs.

Sources:
Mooresville Tribune, Mooresville Self-Storage Project Delayed by Public Pushback
Mooresville Tribune, Mooresville Town Board: Rezoning Clears Way for Storage Facility