» self storage competition

What makes you as a customer stop and decide to rent from a self storage company? Is it the location of the facility, their pricing, their security or something else? That is a question that has self storage companies going crazy trying to figure out what they need to do in order to get more business. Do they need to relocate their facility or add door alarms to every unit? Being an owner is not easy, but customers do not always make it easy on them.
Many times when customer decides to rent, the property manager will ask them what made them decide to rent there. Many customers will choose not to do the survey or just say, it was a random decision. Something made that customer wants to go there and rent from that facility. This kind of response will drive a self storage company crazy. If a customer rents online, they might actually skip the survey. So when the owners get the survey questions answered, they have to think their selves if there is enough of a sample to get a true measurement.

Self storage is a very competitive industry. No one getting involved in self storage thinks they can come in and make money right off the back. It is tough. So when customers are asked questions like what was listed above it helps the owners in their competitive endeavors. When a customer does not give accurate responses, the owners are left scratching their heads.

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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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