You’re getting into the storage biz - congratulations! Maybe you’ve picked out a piece of land; maybe you’re opening your doors in the next couple months; and maybe you’re still deciding if you want to commit to this exciting industry.
No matter where you’re at in your “pre-opening” stage, you’ve probably got a lot of questions. You’ve probably got questions about what questions you’re supposed to have. No worries - we’ve got you!
If you want potential tenants to be able to find you online, you’re going to need a website. You may have already learned that there are a lot of different options available. The choices can be overwhelming!
In this article, we’ll break down some of the big questions you should be asking as you research the website vendor that will be the best fit for you and your business. Let’s dive in!
- What do I want my website to be able to do?
This first question isn’t actually for vendors at all - this question is directed at you! Before you start investigating different options, think about what things are important to you in a self storage website. Here are some prompts:
- Do you want tenants to be able to complete a full move-in (sign a lease, make a payment, upload a driver’s license, and get a gate code) on the website? If your answer is yes, then you’re looking for what we call automation. And if you’re looking for automation, your website is super critical! Think of it like your “virtual manager.” Someone’s got to be selling your product if there’s no one on-site to do it, right? If this is you, make sure you’re prepared to ask vendors how they support automation and full move-ins.
- Do you want tenants to be able to reserve a unit? Would you be more comfortable if every person you rented to was required to come in and shake hands with you or your manager before you gave them the green light? If so, think about what information you want to capture from your potential tenants in that reservation form - and what information you want to be able to give to them. Be sure to ask any vendors what this looks like so that it aligns with your vision.
- Do you want tenants to be directed to a phone number and/or email address and complete rentals that way? If so, you’re not going to need a website with a whole lot of bells and whistles! You can keep things pretty basic if this is your ideal.
- How much work will I have to do on my end to get this website up? How much work will I have to do on a day-to-day basis?
- Everyone has different expectations and goals when it comes to their website design. If it’s important to you to have full access to your website design at all times - be sure to ask about this! Some vendors will allow you to make edits on your own; others will ask for more creative control.
- A website doesn’t just appear from nowhere - someone has to build it! Ask about the onboarding/website-building process. How long does it take? How involved will you need to be? What work will you (the owner) be doing, and what work will they (the website company) be doing for you?
- If you’re just starting in storage, chances are you’re going to have questions crop up throughout your journey. These won’t just be related to your website, of course, but about the industry, best practices, and any challenges you may be facing in your market. Be sure to ask what ongoing support and training your website vendor will be able to provide for you.
- This is an important one - if you need something, how long will it take for you to reach someone? Do they accept phone calls, emails, texts? Can you hop on Zoom with someone if you need a walkthrough? Maybe these things are important to you, and maybe not. But if you’ll feel better knowing that you can easily reach someone at any time, be sure to ask what client support looks like.
- What’s the cost breakdown?
- You probably didn’t need us to tell you that cost is important. But in the world of self-storage, most website vendors are going to charge 1) an upfront fee and 2) a monthly subscription fee. If you’ve built a website yourself before or have worked with a custom developer for a previous business, this may be a new model to you!
- Another key consideration will not just be the payment schedule, but the payment structure–what, exactly, are you paying for? You want to make sure to ask what is included in your package. Some vendors will offer the same thing to everyone - others will itemize different features and offer more of an “a la carte” offering. Be sure you know what you’re actually going to be paying month-to-month so you don’t get any ugly surprises once your website goes live.
This can really be broken down into three key categories of questions:
- Functionality - What will the website do?
- Support - What does it look like to work with you?
- Product + Cost - What am I paying for?
If you don’t know quite where to begin as you begin the process of researching your storage website, these questions are a great jumping-off point!
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At StoragePug, we build self storage websites that make it easy for new customers to find you and easy for them to rent from you.
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