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Our amazing hosts, Tommy Nguyen and Melissa Huff, have been guiding us through Gabfocus Sessions all year, so we thought it's time we hear from them! We brought in special guest hosts, Chad Lundberg and Alonna Ross, to turn the tables and make Tommy and Melissa share their expertise on Marketing, Operations, and all things storage.
Featured Speakers: Melissa Huff & Tommy Nguyen
Moderators: Alonna Ross & Chad Lundberg
Category: Marketing & Operations
Focus: Owners and Managers
Aired: November 19, 2020
Duration: 1:12:26
If you don't have time to watch the whole Session, here are some of our favorite parts:
We asked Tommy and Melissa: What’s one of the biggest lessons you’ve learned about self storage?
“First, if you're new to self storage, go do a feasibility study. Don't do your own! Just because you own a shopping mall or apartments doesn't mean you understand self storage demand. Secondly, learn about the seasonality of self storage. If you did launch your first facility in 2020, unfortunately you had a wild year. But, you need to know there are slow seasons with storage. Thirdly, we aren't as much of a 'set-it-and-forget-it industry as everyone thinks we are at first. To really grow and thrive as a business, you have to put in the hard work to get it done." - Tommy Nguyen
"This industry changes constantly. Stay up on your education. Don't ever get the mentality that you know everything. If you go looking for it, you'll always be able to find new things to learn and new ways to grow your business. Another thing I'd say, if you're new, don't be afraid when someone moves out. It's all part of the process!" - Melissa Huff
It doesn't take an expert to realize that there's a lot going on in self storage. We love Tommy and Melissa's closing advice, to put in the hard work and never stop growing. From raising rates to updating your Google My Business profile, from improving your operations to keeping up with the latest lien laws, this session taught us a lot and reminded us that the best way to tackle it all is little by little. Connect with colleagues, reach out to experts, and stay a student of self storage, because this isn't a "set-it-and-forget-it" industry.
Gabfocus Sessions are virtual workshops for self storage owners, managers, and operators. Brought to you by the team behind Gabfest: StoragePug and MR Management.
Each session features hand-picked industry pros who will dive deep into relevant topics surrounding our industry, share best practices, and explore trends in the market. It's our hope that these sessions help you navigate your self storage business better during these uncertain times.
Want to learn more about self storage? Join us on select Thursdays for Gabfocus.
These are just a few of the questions answered during this session! Get your pen and paper ready!
Our panelists will be happy to answer any questions you have. We hope you enjoyed this Gabfest Session. Talk soon!
“Once your operation is in place, you can become more dynamic with your pricing, but that requires data. You need some method of being able to record the data that you need to know whether your price is in the right place - whether you need to move it up or start giving some concessions.” - Warren Lieberman
“I never want to downplay to what someone else is doing. I'm better than they are, then I'm going to be worth a higher price. That's what value is. If you go out to a restaurant and get really good service, would you go back? Yes! What if it was pricier? You'd still go back because you got better service and a better product.” - Jim Mooney
"It's good to be informed on your competition. I don't want to ignore them, but I don't want to respond too strongly to them either." - Warren Lieberman
"We did a survey of 10,000 facilities on their pricing. We found out that two-thirds of those operators didn't change the price of a single unit of the course of a month." - Warren Lieberman
“Rate increases and value pricing are the number one ways to grow your revenue.” - Jim Mooney
"Tenants in more convenient units tend to be less price sensitive." - Warren Lieberman
"The size of the unit is only one aspect of what people are willing to pay for." - Warren Lieberman
We asked our panelists: What’s the biggest hurdle to introducing value pricing to my facility?
““Manager buy-in is going to be the biggest hurdle to overcome. ” - Jim Mooney
“Embracing the concepts and believing that this can really work. If you don't, you're going to find all sorts of reasons not to do it. After that, the next biggest hurdle is just ranking the units. You don't want to do it alone. Divide it amongst your team, and get help.” - Warren Lieberman
Traditional pricing for storage units has centered around size. A smaller unit costs less than a bigger unit. Right? In this Session, we learn how pricing can be dynamic and really depends on what matters most to a customer. Borrowing insights from other industries, Warren and Jim discuss how significant convenience and availability can be when pricing your units, as well as a whole host of other features and amenities. In short, the value of your units isn't static. Introducing dynamic value pricing to your facility, can not only help you get more out of your units, but it lets your customers prioritize and choose the qualities about your units that matter to them most.