Selling Self Storage Online

Concepts of selling the product are the same Hard to create active dialogue with a customer online They may be deliberately avoiding engagement Hard to pick up on personal nuances online No body language or verbal cues to work with Online communication can be truncated Engage the customer Understand customers’ needs Propose solution to customer Overcome objections Close the sale Limited opportunity for questions and answers Customer can have incorrect pre-conceptions Information on websites is not always clear – Pricing? Has to be solid and based on customer’s need as limited opportunity for dialogue to amend Objections may never be communicated Customer dealing with multiple businesses at once Customer may not want to appear ignorant or stupid Ability to close the sale online Online payment Online reservation Full online booking Secure commitment

Online customer psychology Online customers like to feel they are in control of the process. They view their data and time as an investment into the process. If they give you data, they are making the first step in committing to your business so they expect something back. The more time they spend engaged with your business online the more likely they are to store with you.

Converting into phone enquiries Many operators try and convert web enquiries into phone calls Call the customer rather than email Require phone number to send email Phone customer back rather than email This is fine for some customers but others do not want to engage via phone, this is why they contacted you onlne

Make it easy The challenge for operators is to provide an online sales experience that is simple and easy but yet still gets the information and level of security required. There tends to be 4 main approaches within self storage No online reservation at all, must contact the store to book or get prices. Allow reservation online but no deposit taken, not allocated to availability Take deposit online, may or may not be tied into availability Complete entire process online including contract and payment Usually this also allows for ongoing payments and adjustments online

Who has their prices online? Shurgard only major with prices available to everyone 64% of customers surveyed said having prices online would have significantly assisted their decision to purchase self storage. Only 6% said it would not be of any benefit to them.

Online Pricing Operators putting their prices online is a contentious issue within the industry. The customer wants to see prices online. If you don’t, and your competitors do, then you could lose custom because of this. Customers do not really understand the product so could end up commoditising it and buying purely on price. Aggregators can trawl your website and pull prices off it.

Is there a compromise? Don’t list your prices online where anyone can see them. Give your prices out, or a specific price for a customer, after they have given you something first, such as an email or phone number. Don’t ask for too much information as this will drive the customer away. Make sure you use that information to contact them quickly even if they do not complete the process online. Put all the questions you want to know on one screen, don’t tease them one question at a time.

Who has the facility to book or reserve a unit online? Shurgard only major with prices available to everyone

Online Bookings The easiest way to convert an online enquiry is to give them an means to complete the transaction online. EASY

Online Bookings Completing the transaction does not necessarily mean going through the whole sign up process. It means getting to the point where the customer has committed to you. Reserve a unit Place a deposit on a unit (Refundable?) Generally, once a person has made a payment, even if refundable, they have at mentally committed to the sale

Online Bookings The technology is available to complete the entire booking process online. Make the payment online Book a unit based on availability Change price based on availability / time / other factors Check ID Complete the contract We still recommend checking the ID in person when the person first moves in You can offer this service to people after they have reserved their unit online

Complete the contract online Customers can complete the contract online using digital signatures and acknowledgment of contract It is best to walk them through the key points of the contract step by step You may choose to get them to sign a paper contract when they move in

Validate their ID There are numerous systems online that validate a customers ID credentials against various databases Contego is one of the most powerful online ID verification systems and is available in Sweden www.contego.com

Contego Contego checks document numbers against government lists of fraudulent documents. It also checks the address and name provided match other listings for this address in a huge range of databases. There are other simpler and cheaper options also available.

Payment www.paysafe.com When taking payments online make sure you are PCI compliant This means no storing of CVV numbers for future payments There are many online payment systems that can take future payments from cards using payment gateways They can even take future payments and change monthly amounts www.paysafe.com

Online Bookings Your website should have a means of a customer securing a unit online Ideally also paying a deposit to do so While not all customers who enquire online will use the service, it will greatly improve your conversion rate and opens up more options to engage the customer

The Millennials are coming! Millennials are starting to have families. They are moving into the demographic that needs storage. They are the online generation. They don’t talk to people on the phone!