SEO 101: How to Rent More Units Online | Self Storage Virtual Workshop

Gabfocus Episode 68 | SEO 101: How to Rent More Units Online

Google sends you half or more of your customers - but it's always changing. With AI search engines and constantly changing algorithms added in, SEO can get messy quick! Join us as we sit down with our own SEO expert as he shares the tips, tricks, and traps of self storage SEO.

Featured Speaker: David Austin
Moderators: Tommy Nguyen & Melissa Huff

Category: Marketing
Focus: Owners, Operators, & Managers
Aired: January 23, 2025
Duration: 1:08:54

Overview

If you don't have time to watch the whole session, here are some of our favorite parts:

At 4:36, our expert discussed what SEO actually is, including what it means in our industry.
6:38, David talked about how SEO affects self storage businesses and why it matters.
Starting at 8:20, he discussed how SEO strategy should shift when you're in a very small, local market.
At 12:40, our guest highlighted some of the latest SEO updates, including AI search overviews and a more prominent map pack.
17:10, our expert shared the details behind organic search results, including why Google tends to rank REITs higher in this section.
Around 20:50, the guest answered questions about ranking higher in the map pack, and he gave tips to optimize your ranking.
At 23:30, our guest covered the best way to get more reviews if a simple ask isn't initially working.
30:50, the expert touched on sources you can use to stay up-to-date with new SEO best practices.
At 32:30, our expert discussed how you should measure SEO success and the top metric to pay attention to.
35:40, David talked about how to perform keyword research and if it's worth your time.
Starting at 43:40, he discussed ways to leave reviews if your customer doesn't have a Google account.
At 49:00, our guest highlighted how to optimize your content for voice search.
54:15, our expert shared whether or not you should be paying an SEO company to handle the work for you.
1:03:50, David answered the question of the week!

Resources

Gabfocus Takeaway

With so many of your customers finding you through Google, it is more than worth your time to audit your SEO, and while all the changes that Google pushes may seem overwhelming, they don't all apply to our industry. Start with the basics like updating your Google Business Profile, getting more reviews, and identifying your target local market for keywords. Having accurate and consistent content on your website and simply talking about everything your business offers is often enough to improve your website's search ranking and get it in front of customers who are looking for your specific services.

What are Gabfocus Sessions?

Gabfocus Sessions are virtual workshops for self storage owners, managers, and operators. Brought to you by the team behind Gabfest: StoragePug and Lighthouse Storage Solutions.

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.

Questions Answered in this Session

What exactly is SEO?
Why does SEO matter to self storage businesses?
What are some of the latest changes or updates to SEO that affect self storage?
How is AI affecting self storage SEO?
What changes can we expect in 2025?
Are there any SEO strategies that aren't effective anymore?
When it comes to self storage SEO, what matters most?
When searching, what do people click on the most?
How do you use SEO to target renters in a 3-5 mile radius?
Which keywords are potential renters using to search for storage?
When looking to optimize your SEO, where should you start?
If you already have a solid SEO foundation, where could you try to optimize further?
How can you tell if your changes are working?
Which SEO pitfalls or traps should you avoid?
How can you use SEO to inform the rest of your marketing efforts?
What's the single most important SEO tip you'd give to any storage business?

Resources from this session

Awesome Quotes

“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

Highlights

Foundational marketing strategies to have in place - whether leasing up or stabilized:

Website
Set up listings (Yelp, Google My Business, Apple Maps)
Social Media
Establish Local Partnerships

Lease up marketing strategies:

Lead Generating Strategies (like digital ads)
Aggregators (Sparefoot, Storagefront, etc.)
Awareness Campaigns (like billboards, flyers, and sponsorships)

Your average customer value
Find the average stay length of all tenants. Next take your economic occupancy and divide by how many units you have. That will tell you what the average customer pays.

Multiply the average length of stay by what the average customer pays, and that's the average value of a customer.

For example, if a customer stays for 12 months and pays $100 per month, then their value is $1,200.

Your average lead value

Figure out your closing rate (or conversion rate) i.e. how many leads do you turn into tenants? Multiply that by your average customer lifetime value to figure out what your leads are worth.

Pro Tip: see which lead sources are converting the best. It may be that certain sources have a higher conversion rate, so those leads are worth more to you than a source that barely converts.

Typical Lease-up timeline

According to our panelists, it's typical to see a 3-4% increase each month, putting your facility at 36% after the first year, and 72% after the second.

Alternately, you can look at your lease up goals through the lens of your units, aiming for 20 units rented per month.

For Nick and StorageMax, they pro forma their economic occupancy at 85% with their sweet spot at 92%.