The 5 Key Steps to Increasing Sales Conversions Today!

Shortly after being awarded a new management contract, one of the first things Storage Asset Management completes is a competition survey in the area surrounding the facility that will be managed.  The reasons in which Storage Asset Management  completes a competition survey is as follows; to identify the quality of the competition in the market, qualify price points for the market and also to understand the demographics that make up the market being served.  More often than not, we walk away from our competition survey feeling less than impressed with the competitors in the market but hopeful about the positive impact we can make once sales training with our staff has been completed and once marketing programs have been put into motion.  As an owner/operator do you feel confident that your staff is making a positive and lasting impression on the market that your facility serves?  Is your staff capturing every lead and effectively following up with each person that inquires about a storage rental?  If you need to think about this question for more than a few seconds you may want to read a little further.

The 5 Key Steps to Increasing Sales Conversions Today

• One Shot at a First Impression:  Is your manager standing to greet customers when they walk through the door, introducing themselves, greeting the visitor warmly and asking for the visitors name?  Too many times we walk into our competitors facilities and the person behind the counter never stands up, never greets us, and simply hands us a price list.  Upon receiving the price list we walk out the door never to be heard from again.
• Phone Sales Professional: Many times we call facilities to inquire about prices and the person on the other end gives us a few size options, prices on each unit size and within 30 seconds the call is over.  Your staff needs to understand the importance of getting the caller’s name, asking for a phone number and e-mail address for follow-up, engaging the caller by asking open ended questions, making recommendations to help in the moving process, and by asking for the sale or reservation.
• Lead Organization System:  As an owner you spend a lot of money to generate leads for your facility but your staff may not be following up effectively if a lead doesn’t rent immediately.  As a result of ineffective lead follow-up, your throwing money out the window every time a caller or visitor to the site doesn’t rent.  Many of today’s site management programs have built in lead capture and follow-up systems in place to make a manager’s lead follow-up process much easier.  Are you taking time to review the leads that have been put into your management system?  Are the managers even using this lead management tool?  If your management staff is using the lead management tool to input contact information, are they using it to follow-up and are they making notes after each call?
• Take a Tour:  Making a great first impression is the first step to a successful sales process but it may not always be enough.  Are your managers asking each visitor if they would like to look at a unit or if they would like a “Free Tour”?  Managers should use this opportunity to brag about the property by showing the potential renter how the automated gate system works, discussing security features, hours of access, call center features, retail supplies offered and ask your manager take a new lock along on the tour so that the unit can be secured once the ideal unit is selected to rent.  Last but not least, is the manager asking for the sale once they’ve selected the ideal unit.
• Implement a Call Center:  The self-storage industry has many call center options in today’s market and they all have a variety of capabilities.  Consider investing in a call center for your facility for many reasons including; they take payments, help with emergency calls, rent units, sales call over flow, reduce payroll, and many times they can resolve after hours customer issues.  Call centers are there when you need them and they become an extension of your business when your staff is busy or when the office is closed.  Potential renters want immediate help in today’s market and they may not call back again if they need to wait 24 hours to speak with you.

Improving the sales process at a storage facility is never easy but if you follow The 5 Key Steps To Increasing Sales Conversions you will begin to see a change at your facility.  The changes you will see will result in monetary gains that are currently being missed, happier customers renting today, and raving fans of your facility and management staff!