Effectively Marketing Self Storage Unit Facilities in the New Year

As the New Year approaches we
all make resolutions on things we intend to do better. One area should be the performance
of your active marketing. With shrinking budgets, making sure your marketing
dollars are actually working should be at the top of your list.

Marketing can require huge
investments and two areas we need to increase focus on are lead source tracking
and converting those leads to rentals. Many people deviate very little from the
marketing efforts they have done in the past because it’s easy and they assume
it works. With today’s economy and competitive environment, now is the time to
go beyond assumptions and know without a doubt whether your marketing is
working or not. Being able to do that really comes down to a few simple
techniques. One of the most accurate tracking methods that I want to focus on
is the use of unique call tracking numbers.

Call tracking numbers allow you to:

• tab-stops:list .5in">Track scientifically how many calls each of
  your advertising sources is bringing you (eliminating your need to rely on
  managers or customers for this crucial data)
• tab-stops:list .5in">Track the average length of your calls
• tab-stops:list .5in">See how many and at what times of the day
  calls are being missed
• tab-stops:list .5in">Capture caller information such as name,
  call-back number, and zip code
• tab-stops:list .5in">Listen to recordings of calls for live mystery
  shopping, training, and quality improvement
• tab-stops:list .5in">Determine how many of your calls are converting
  to rentals
• tab-stops:list .5in">And
  most importantly…determine your cost per phone call and cost per rental
  for each advertising method

These tracking numbers are
extremely affordable and a fool proof way to ensure your marketing is putting
money back in your pocket!

The second step to making your
marketing work harder is converting more prospects to paying tenants! You are
paying some dollar amount for each caller, walk-in, and visitor to your
website.

Do all you can to convert prospects
to tenants through these channels. Give managers tools to increase their
conversion rates such as phone scripts and email templates. They don’t
necessarily need to be used verbatim, but if available can give managers a
quick reference to the key elements necessary for every call; such as a warm
greeting, qualifying questions to ask each prospect to take control of the call,
key features of your facility that set you apart from the competition, easy to
find directions to your property, and a strong close that encourages the
prospect to commit to your facility whether it be by reserving the unit over
the phone with a credit card or making an appointment to visit the facility.

Set follow up timelines for
managers to follow up with leads that did not rent on the first call or walk-in
such as a secondary call and/or email.

With call tracking numbers, you
can monitor the success of your marketing campaigns and the efficiency of your
employees. You can use the call recordings for training opportunities to
improve customer service and sales skills and most importantly increase your
number of rentals each month. Don’t forget to incorporate incentives and bonus
structures to help keep managers motivated and on track to achieve the results
you want.

By tracking and converting more
prospects; a good return on your marketing investment is one resolution you can
keep in 2010.