» renting self storage

It sometimes drive me crazy to hear when people who help self storage customer not sound like the have the best solution for the customer. I hear in their voice that they are not as confident as they should be and that the customer is just going to give some excuse and get off of the phone. That should not be the train of thought. You should have the mind frame that the customer is calling to talk to you and will eventually rent from you. Of course that is not the thought that every one has. Why? That is not understood in my thought process. Why would you answer the phone or say hello to the customer walking in to your store with any thought besides they are going to rent from me?

In the self storage industry it is tough to get the customer to decide to rent with them, because of all the competition. The competition can not be a thought in your brain as you are talking to the customer. What I mean by that is it is good to be conscious of the competition, but they should not make you feel inferior with that they have. You have to realize that they do not have what you have. You have the best solution for that customer. The customer just does not know that yet. How will they know that? You have to be the one to tell them. You have to be the one to wow them so they stay to rent with you. How do you do that?

One of the first things you can do to wow your customer is to be confident. Speak clearly, have you head up and speak to the customer as if everything is gold. Everything that comes out of your mouth should be something that draws the customer more and more into what your store can offer them. When you are listening to the customer, you should be also thinking what do you have to offer them that will take care of their needs. I guarantee if you are able to take care of their needs, they will rent from you. It does not help that you have great prices and you are in close proximity to their home.

What you have to realize is that your competition does not have you. They do not have someone at their location that is not willing to help the customer like you are nor are they able to satisfy the needs of the customer. There are many self storage facilities that will try to throw prices at the customer in hopes that they will rent based on that. Many owners have racked their brains trying to get the price just right for people to rent. Eventually many will realize that it is not about the price really. It is about the customer service and the confident mentality that they will rent from you. Don’t push the customer into something that is not going to work. Guide the customer to a solution. Have the thoughts in your head that the person will rent from you and trust me that everything else will follow.

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While on the phone the other day, I helped give a young woman some advice on looking for the best storage facility.  She claimed that she had been looking for quite some time but she would always get confused because everyone had something different to offer or someone had the same features to offer her. I advised her on the following things to look for when looking for a top notch facility.

Make sure the facility has the space or unit you are looking for. If you are looking for a parking space, then you should not attempt to go with a facility who does not offer a parking space for your needs. If you are looking for a space for your two bedroom apartment, ensure they are going to have a space that can fit everything inside without being too big. You do not want to pay for more space than you need. When looking for the right facility for you, make sure they have the space you are looking for because otherwise renting there is pointless.

Do not always shop for the lowest price because you will be disappointed. Most of the time a facility that has the lowest price tends to be lacking in other areas. If they are able to give you pricing that is far below the pricing of everyone else that you are looking at then they are not as nice of a property. Typically what you will find from a very low cost facility is that they are lacking in security, convenient features and also sometimes customer service. When you are storing your belongings, you want to ensure those belongings are safe. The more things in between the general public and your belongings, the better. Look for a gated community, door alarms, surveillance cameras and sometimes even inside storage. The more questions you ask about the facility, the better.

Is the facility close to you? You do not want to go too far to get to your belongings. If you are the kind of person that will need to visit their  facility a couple of times a week or in a two week period, then you most likely want a space that is close to you. There are some local self storage facilities in your area that are close to your home or your work. Seek them out and you can save some time, money and also gas.

Is the facility honest, and seem to be who they say they are? No one likes to be lied to. If you feel that the place you are attempting to store is being dishonest, then you should not store there. The manager at the store should be very truthful to you and help you out to their best ability. If they quote you a price over the phone then give a different price when you come in, you should turn around and leave. Do not rent from a dishonest facility.

Finally, I told her to make sure to always remember that during the summer months, storage is in its highest demand.  If a facility has a lot of available units, or a very cheap rate, it is usually because they are left trying to fill their facilities. When storage facilities have many vacancies they become desperate to rent them. Ensure that you are not fooled by a facility that is not up to your standards.

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