Section 8 • Marketing
customers made initial communication via the company’s web- site while an additional 1 percent said they first contacted the self-storage store by email. In the other regions of the U.S., only 5 percent of customers reported first contacting the self-store through the facility’s website and between 2 and 4 percent of customers chose to get initial information about self-storage by emailing the storage facility. Examining customers’ first contact in Chart 8.8 by location
reveals some subtle communication preferences among the dif- ferent population demographics analyzed. Rural customers led the nation in calling the self-storage property to get initial in- formation about self-storage. In rural communities, 54 percent of tenants reported using the telephone to make a first contact with a self-storage property. By contrast, less than 40 percent
Chart 8.10 – How Facility Was Found
of urban and suburban renters chose to call the site as a first method of connecting with the self-storage store. Suburban customers were the most likely demographic
group to make an in-person visit as an initial means of contact- ing the self-storage property. Approximately 52 percent of cus- tomers from the suburbs reported making a trip to the site to learn about self-storage options. For other population groups, 46 percent of urban customers and 41 percent of rural tenants indicated that they initially communicated with the storage store via an on-site visit to self-storage facility. Customers from urban areas have a preference for connect-
ing with storage stores online. One in 10 urban renters indicated they initially contacted the storage business through the facil- ity’s website—a figure more than triple the rate of rural custom- ers and almost double the proportion of suburban tenants choosing to use the website to make a first connection. Urban customers also posted the category’s highest
Saw Facility While Driving 43% Word-of-Mouth 22% Internet/Web 18% Line Ad in Phonebook 10% Display Ad in Phonebook 1% Flyer or Brochure 1% Other 2%
Don't Know 2%
Source: 2013 SSA Self Storage Demand Study
Don't Know Chart 8.11 – How Facility Was Found by Region
Display Ad in Phonebook Flyer or Brochure Other
Line Ad in Phonebook
Saw Facility While Driving Word-of-Mouth Internet/Web
0 90 Self-Storage Almanac 2015 Percentage of Renters
1020304050 Source: SSA 2013 Self Storage Demand Study
South West
rates of initial contact via email with 4 percent of custom- ers from high population density areas choosing to send an email as a first contact with a self-storage facility, versus 2 percent of suburban and 1 percent of rural tenants using email as the preferred form of first communication with a self-storage property. Commercial tenants were most likely to initially reach
Midwest Northeast
out to their self-storage businesses by calling the facility or making an on-site visit to the property. (See Chart 8.9). Al- though almost equal, a slightly higher proportion of busi- ness renters—46 percent—said they first communicated with the storage store via an in-person visit to the site when compared with the 45 percent of commercial cus- tomers who chose to make first contact via the telephone. Only 5 percent of this tenant group utilized the facility’s website and about 4 percent reported emailing the self-storage store to gather initial information about the storage business. In addition to having a solid understand- ing of the methods customers prefer to utilize in communicating with storage companies, it is good business to know both the media and modes driving customers to a specific storage facility. An awareness of how potential tenants become educated about the existence of a spe- cific storage property gives the facility’s owners and operators an edge in crafting and commu- nicating their message to the community. When asked how they heard about their self-
storage stores, many customers said they sim- ply noticed the facility while passing through the area. As the most common response for the category, approximately 44 percent of tenants indicated that they became away of the busi- ness after driving by the storage store. Many owners/operators are well aware that
a storage building can often act as its own ad- vertisement and design the facility accordingly.
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92 |
Page 93 |
Page 94 |
Page 95 |
Page 96 |
Page 97 |
Page 98 |
Page 99 |
Page 100 |
Page 101 |
Page 102 |
Page 103 |
Page 104 |
Page 105 |
Page 106 |
Page 107 |
Page 108 |
Page 109 |
Page 110 |
Page 111 |
Page 112 |
Page 113 |
Page 114 |
Page 115 |
Page 116 |
Page 117 |
Page 118 |
Page 119 |
Page 120 |
Page 121 |
Page 122 |
Page 123 |
Page 124 |
Page 125 |
Page 126 |
Page 127 |
Page 128 |
Page 129 |
Page 130 |
Page 131 |
Page 132
