Beating the Competition | Gabfocus | Self Storage Virtual Workshop

Gabfocus Sessions

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 more tools for your managers? Join us on Gabfocus weekly on Thursdays.

Top Questions Answered in this session

How do I determine my biggest competitor?
What’s a way to open up a market I want to gain traction in or just some attention?
Do I have to knock my competition when I’m trying to build a reputation with potential customers?
How do I differentiate my business from the competition?
Should I adjust my prices based on what my competition is charging?
How do we compensate to motivate our team both at the store level and regional levels?
What are some ways to measure sales effort? What’s a good sales model?

These are just a few of the questions answered during this session! Get your pen and paper ready!

Bob Vamvas

Partner at HansRoberts and Operator at Amy’s Attic Self Storage

Website: https://hansroberts.com/
Email: bob@hansroberts.com

2018-08-07_tommy-nguyen-portrait-square

Tommy Pug

COO StoragePug

Website: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tommynguyen865/
Email: tommy@storagepug.com

Resources from this session

Awesome Quotes

“The biggest challenge we have in this industry is trying to keep up with the other person. The challenge with that is you are basing your value proposition on what you see down the road, instead of your own values.” - Bob Vamvas

“Jump on digital marketing and hit it hard. Really consider a direct mail campaign, targeted and focused.” -Bob Vamvas

“Just be the best. Can you just be the best at what you can do? No one is asking you to take on a REIT, but you can be the best version of yourself.” - Bob Vamvas

“You’ve gotta follow what your customers want and are doing, not what the REITs are doing.” - Tommy Pug

"We didn’t stop and think: ‘Well what are the REITs doing’. The way to think is: ‘How do we enhance the customer experience.'" - Bob Vamvas

“The more reviews you get and the more positive reviews you get, the greater the likelihood people will rent with you.” - Bob Vamvas

"People will go to Chick-fil-A for the service, they’ll go to McDonald's for the product." - Bob Vamvas

“Public Storage spent 58% more on their marketing budget in Q1 of 2020 than they did in Q1 2019.” - Tommy Pug

Resources Mentioned

Question of the Week

We asked our panelists: What area of my business should I adjust the most in relation to my competition?

“Appearance. So many of our rentals still come from drive by.” - Bob Vamvas

“How you appear online is critical.” - Tommy Pug

Gabfocus Takeaway

Beating your competition starts internally. Before you start worrying about the REITs and what they are doing, make sure you are doing everything you can to make your facility the best it can be. Even small things like regularly cleaning windows or having freshly cut grass, goes a long way. Many of your competitors miss out on the "Basics" and lose sight of the customer experience. Make sure you have bonuses and processes in place that reward your staff for going above and beyond. Value-based pricing is also critical. Make sure you have tiers in place for optimizing your rentals based on location, convenience, and demand.