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Why Choose Storage Mart as Your Preferred Self Storage Provider

Sun, 09 Sep 2007 16:38:49 GMT

Why Choose Storage Mart as Your Preferred Self Storage Provider

Self storage is a rapidly growing and very competitive industry. You need only look into the yellow pages in any community to see how many people have taken self storage as an income venture. Driving through the smallest towns in the most out of the way places will uncover a huge small town mom and pop self storage industry. You will also notice a significant difference in the construction, security, amenities, maintenance, and overall desirability of these facilitates.

It takes just a few acres of land and a shell much like a farm machine shed to create a self storage facility. In some out of the way areas in fact, the overall appearance of self storage is very much like a rude farm building with a dirt driveway and parking lot, gravel floors in units divided by chain link fencing or simple chicken wire. No wonder that when StorageMart comes to the area people will choose StorageMart as a preferred self storage provider.

StorageMart has small town roots in the Midwestern community of Columbia, Missouri. Columbia is a central location in Missouri and home to a University and 2 small colleges. Gordon Burnam, member of the Self Storage Association Hall of Fame was a very successful businessman in this community. Real estate and rental properties are big business in this area that is temporary home to more than 35,0000 students during the academic year. The Burnam family takes pride in the properties they own and manage and are always improving the condition of buildings and landscape.

On a family vacation Gordon Burnam saw an astonishing thing, a building, like a motel, where people would store their belongings. He and his family have turned that astonishing idea into a nationwide corporation with assets of more than 400 million dollars and operating 52 storage facilities...

StorageMart may be a nationwide corporation but it is operated with the attention to detail, the standard of excellence, and the “small town” idealism that is grounded in sound customer service ideals and integrity. Starting in his home town Mr. Burnam created first the StorageTrust that later grew to StorageMart . A look around at the storage facilities in Columbia it is easy to see why college students and people on the move in this town choose StorageMart as their preferred self storage facility. Each StorageMart facility in town has had a recent facelift and, with managers living on each site, upkeep and maintenance are workable priorities. New facilities in many areas have carpeted floors and lighting in the individual units.

One yardstick measure that would determine the choice of StorageMart as the preferred self storage provider is cleanliness. This includes, of course, pest control, trash pickup, and tidy parking lots and offices. It only takes a quick tour of the area to assess the dedication to excellence that each self storage company exhibits. There are some that have a well painted façade but behind the gate the roofs are dented, there are holes in the exterior walls, broken glass and trash on the lot and, at one facility, piles of discarded scrap and trash on the very back of the lot. The competitor facility in question had a considerable stack of old tires which are ready breeding grounds for vermin and mosquitoes. StorageMart holds facility managers to a higher standard. The business offices are stocked with an extensive line of moving and storage supplies but they are tidy, well lighted and clean.

Another reason to choose StorageMart as your preferred self storage provider is our people. Training is an essential tool for a successful StorageMart facility manager. A manager must be a seasoned customer service professional and a skilled salesperson. It only takes a few calls to competitors, a few conversations with untrained, bored, under motivated personnel to appreciate the friendly, skilled, customer service professionals in any StorageMart office. Call a StorageMart office and you will find a knowledgeable professional who wants to help you with your storage experience. They want you to choose StorageMart as your preferred self storage facility.

When choosing a self storage facility a primary concern is security. This is a compelling reason to choose StorageMart as your self storage provider. Having a manager living on the site is not only an advantage for upkeep but also for security. StorageMart facilities in our town are surrounded by a high security fence with an access controlled gate. This means that only tenants with a gate code can enter the property area at the storage unit doors. The lots are well lighted with motion sensor lighting. In urban areas they are high rise buildings with all of the units inside and accessed by a pin code entry system. Security is a plus not only for the belongings being stored but for the safety of tenants visiting the facility.

StorageMart gives careful consideration to the convenience of locations for facilities. In the corporation’s home town facilities are located in each area of the town. When everything sold out near Memorial Day of this year the corporation found an excellent opportunity to open another facility in an area of town that brought added convenience to another consumer base. Many customers have stated that one of the primary reasons they chose StorageMart as their self storage provider was that the store was conveniently located. In this age of time poverty and costly transportation consumers need to give careful consideration to savings in time and costs. StorageMart gives careful consideration when expanding into new markets as to location. Backed by sound financial principles StorageMart is not forced to snatch up any old thing that comes available but is able to do feasibility studies and carefully considered planning so that consumers will have ample reason to consider StorageMart as their self storage provider.

To aid potential tenants in searching for a self storage facility StorageMart offers a web site with a zip code search function to find facilities in given locations. The web site not only displays address and telephone numbers but also pictures of the store with the familiar and prominent yellow and a black signage. Details of size and availability for storage units are easy to locate and understand to help newcomers and people on the move determine the best location and a size self storage unit that will best meet their needs. Existing tenants are able to quickly and easily make payments.

StorageMart offers truck rentals and UPS service, mailboxes, wine storage, as well as offering an extensive line of moving and storage supplies. Boxes are a hot item and there are many specialty boxes such as wardrobe boxes with a hanging rod and boxes for many sizes of lamps. Bubble wrap, tape and many other useful items to add benefit to the self storage needs of consumers.

StorageMart also offers the additional convenience of an off site sales force call center. After using the services of another call center it was decided to start their own. PhoneSmart was created based on the experiences and successes of StorageTrust. It was first utilized for StorageMart stores but soon expanded to taking after hours and overflow calls for other self storage companies in markets that stretch from Hawaii to the Atlantic Coast, from the Southern United States to Canada. The PhoneSmart Call Center located in the Corporate office complex in Columbia Missouri, with a redundant call center in place a ready if needed, began with 2 phone representatives and has grown to ******** reservations specialists, ******* administrative personnel, an outbound call department and secret shopping.

Under the direction of Tron Jordheim, Director of Operations, this highly skilled sales force is rapidly approaching the 400,000th call. Individual operators in the center take as many as 1,000 plus calls per month from existing self storage tenants and people seeking pricing and information about self storage. These professionals are there to assist callers with office and gate access hours, features and benefits, services offered, pricing information and to help callers determine what size storage unit would best meet the need. PhoneSmart reservations specialists receive excellent training to enable them to assist callers in choosing StorageMart as their self storage facility. They work just as diligently for the other self storage companies employing them. Questions in a given hour can be about anything and everything, “When does the gate /office close?” “Do you have a space for my RV/car/motorcycle/boat?”, “How much would it cost to store my whole household belongings?”, “How much to store my TV and futon?” “Can I pay my bill by phone/online?” “I am stuck inside the gate how can I get out?”

The PhoneSmart call center is now servicing ****** self storage facilities. It is a perplexing problem in the self storage industry for managers who are often working on the property showing storage units or on the phone already. While customers seeking a free quote on a local self storage facility are tracking down through the yellow pages. If the store does not answer or if the caller is directed to voice mail he or she will move on and probably not try again. This missed call is lost profit opportunity and missing that call can help fill a unit for a competitor. Most people will call first before coming to the store.

PhoneSmart, Storage Mart’s off site sales force call center turns these missed calls into profit for the storage facility by serving as a rollover call center. StorageMart has made a huge investment in the latest telephone technology to assist callers in choosing StorageMart as the self storage provider... Our system determines the exact location the caller dialed and brings the current information for that facility up on the computer screen in front of the sales person answering the phone at PhoneSmart.

The caller seeking a free local quote on from that self storage facility does not realize that the person who answered is not on location. The PhoneSmart sales professional can then walk the caller through a consultive selection process that is designed to answer all questions and can then even reserve a storage unit for the caller on a major credit card. In addition, if the caller is a current tenant that call can be forwarded to the manager’s voice mail so that the manager can retrieve the message or PhoneSmart’s trained personnel can also assist the current tenant with answers for basic question. While other call centers employ “operators” or “customer service reps” Phone Smart hires sales professionals and invests in their training. The purpose is not to clear calls but to send people to the store.

With PhoneSmart and the successful StorageMart have both made a commitment to be leaders in the self storage industry. Do we have the numbers to back up the verbiage? Yes we do. Storage Mart compared total occupancy rates in June of 2000 with total occupancy rates for their own mature stores. There was a 7 percent increase. The only operational difference was PhoneSmart. In 2002 PhoneSmart was credited with 16 percent of total rentals for 34 StorageMart store, totaling over 2500 rentals. If PhoneSmart can talk to people about your site we can rent units. This far seeing innovation is one more reason to choose StorageMart as you self storage provider.

For many first time self storage customers finding a self storage facility seems a complex and unsettling experience. First of all there is prospect of placing valued possessions in the hands of total strangers. There is the worry that they will be tampered with, damaged by water leaks though poorly maintained roofs or that they will be infested with vermin or other pests. A first timer may also worry that they are not getting a fair price or that there will be the same struggle to retrieve belongings and be no longer under obligation to the storage facility. Many facilities offer loss leader savings on a first month but require a long term lease obligation. As it is not always possible to forecast how long a tenant would need to be in storage a long term contract can become a considerable financial burden if the tenant is no longer in need of storage but locked into a long term lease and paying for self storage when they no longer need it. StorageMart is a month to month company. Put things in storage when you need to, stay as long as you need to, and leave when you are ready. These are more good reasons to choose StorageMart as your preferred self storage provider.

When you are looking for a self storage unit look first to the company that is setting the standard for excellence in the industry. Look for a professionally run corporation with a down home feel, a company working by the old fashioned principles of fair value and honesty. StorageMart, a family business, has grown to a position of prominence in the self storage industry guided by the business savvy of Gordon Burnam and his family. Check out all of the rest and then come to StorageMart . You will want StorageMart to be your preferred self storage provider .

Telephone Sales Fundamentals

Sat, 13 Oct 2007 21:50:24 GMT

Telephone Sales Fundamentals

From:

the PhoneSmart Off Site Sales Force

Being Properly Prepared, BEFORE your shift starts:

Clear Your Mind of any unrelated issues. Set aside personal concerns and issues.

Get Comfortable and adjustyour chair, keyboard, volume, etc. to suit your needs.

Organize your work area. Have pen, scrap paper, scripts, work materials, thoughts and a drink readily available.

Concentrate on the purpose of the situation at hand, whether it is training, role playing, monitoring or taking calls.

Telephone Sales Requires You to Always Be In Control

Techniques Used:

Pace Yourself to your caller. Are they following your lead?

Develop A Rhythm. A call will flow much smoother if you stick to the same guidelines for each and every call.

Voice Volume Level should be comfortable for the caller.

Direct and To the Point. Avoid conversations that are going nowhere.

Avoid Lengthy Conversations.

Be Accurate. Professionalism shows.

Be an Active Listener and take notes throughout the call, so you don’t have to ask the caller to repeat themselves.

Treat the Caller With Respect and Courtesy. Show genuine interest.

Paraphrase to Confirm what you thought you heard.

Get Personal and share a laugh. Find something in common. HAVE FUN

Always Keep The END In Mind. Get back to the reason for the call. (This stresses importance and urgency)

Get Agreement and Close often throughout the entire call (trial closes). Does the caller feel good about the interaction?

Follow Up with required information and confirmation of end results.

Thank the Caller for calling and let them know to please call if there are any other questions.

Control = leading the customer and direction them throughout the call.

Close= questions that you ask the customer that lead them to answer with “Ok” or “Yes”.

The “I Don’t Know Close”

Don’t be afraid to use the “I Don’t Know close” to answer a caller’s question when you do not have the answer to or are not 100% sure that you have the correct answer. It is always better to be honest and sincere with your callers.

Scenario:

Caller: “Do you have pallets that we can use to put our things on while storing with you?”

You: try something like: “You know, I’m not sure BUT I can certainly find out for you and have the manager get back with you on that. What’s your first name?”

*** This will let the caller know you were listening to them, that you are telling them the truth and that you are confirming with them that you think it is an important enough question that you will check with the manager and have the manager follow up with them. This also gets you a Hot Lead. (one step closer to the close)

You never want to leave it at that. After you get their name and number for a follow up, a good way to continue to the close would be something like:

You: “I know you are wanting to know if we have the pallets for you to use, and while you are waiting on that answer, what I can do for you is go ahead and put the unit on hold so no one else can grab it before the manager calls you back. Ok?”

***Remember, it is always a great idea to close as much as you can through the phone call until it leads you to the end close- “Which credit card would you like to use to reserve the unit?”

The more closes and yeses you get during the call, the more likely the caller will feel comfortable, as they have established trust that you will handle the final touches.

Questions to Help You

If you feel like you are losing the person on the phone, you can get the conversation back on track by asking:

ü“Are you moving or do you just need to get some things out of the way?

ü“How did you find out about us?”

ü“Do you know where we are located?” followed by “and is that a convenient location for you?

ü“Have you ever stored with us before?”

ü“Can you give me an idea of what you were planning on storing with us?”

All of these questions will allow the person to fill you in on his or her plans and state of mind. This will help you rent units.

Save all of the policy information until the end of the call. After you have agreed on a time for the person to come down to the store, decide how much info you need to give. Lock, insurance and admin fees can be a great way to wrap up a call and help the person figure out exactly what needs to be done to get into your facility.

Go For the Hold

If the caller doesn’t need it for a while or can’t decide now:

“I understand you may not be ready. Why don’t you come down to see our facility? When you get there, tell them you talked to (your name)…. And if you have any questions, don’t hesitate to call me.”

Close the Site Visit

“Is during the week a good time to come down or is the weekend better for you?

Quick Phrases:

It’s hard sometimes to make those oldies but goodies sound fresh. So try something new.

Here’s a few to get you started: (they will help you qualify your callers and build a rapport with them.)

“Have you ever rented with us before on Smith Street?”

“Have you ever rented storage before?”

“It sounds like you’ve rented storage before, have you?”

“Great, then you know how it all pretty much works.”

“As you know, a lot goes into storage. Here we have some great features like..”

“Will you need to rent a truck or do you already have transportation?”

“You know I’m not sure BUT I can find out and have the manager let you know.”

“Unfortunately, we don’t have any climate controlled units but if you can’t find any climate controlled units elsewhere, would you be willing to go with a standard unit?”

“Do you definitely need storage?”

“Do you think you may need storage in say a week or 2 weeks?”

“Have we ever had any break-ins? Not that I’m aware of. We do have excellent security to help prevent that from happening, but I can certainly double check with the store manager.”

“You need a 10x10? (yes) Well, a 10x10 stores the equivalent to the furnishings of a 1 bedroom apartment with major appliances. Does that sound like the 10x10 will work for you?”

“Most people tend to find that the 6am-9pm access is pretty flexible and works for them. Do you definitely need 24 hours access

Try some of these acknowledging phrases:

“No, unfortunately I do not but what I can do…”

“Oh, I’m sorry to hear about that.”

“It must be really hectic for you right now.”

“Let’s see if I can make this a little easier for you.”

Control the call: How soon, What size…

Let me ask you 2 questions so I can give you the best price…

“How soon do you need storage so I can see if it is available?”

and

“Do you know what size you need, or can I help you figure that out?”

(If they give you a size – give them a visualization of size) – cc or standard if applicable

(If they don’t know – then ask what they’re storing and give 2 choices).

Go For the Hold:

“The best way I can be of service to us is to go ahead and place this on hold, what’s your first name?”

“And what’s your phone number so I can let the manager know I offered you the xyz special…?”

Go For the Reservation:

“Typically, we take a $___prepayment….”

Or Go For the Site Visit If No Credit Card Rez:

“I would suggest to come stop by and visit our store so you can get a better idea of sizes. Can you come in today or tomorrow? Morning or afternoon?”

“Sure I can help you with that”

The best little phrase you could ever master!

If you have a difficult caller

Ask yourself this…Did the caller have a bad day already before calling you?

§ Listen to their concerns and try to help them to the best of your ability.

§ Don’t take it personally.

§ Remain professional and ask open ended questions.

§ Take notes during the call so you can re-iterate to them later, what you thought you heard.

§ Try to understand their needs or anger by telling them you’ll see what you can do.

§ Show them that the company they are calling cares.

§ Do not be combative. Be concerned.

§ Ask probing questions so they can vent it out and lessen their concerns or anger.

§ Re-confirm what you thought they said so they know you’re listening.

§ Try to answer all of their questions to the best of your ability without hesitation.

§ If there are questions you cannot answer refer them to the store manager for a call back.

§ Sincerely apologize for inconveniences even if it is not your fault.

Keep in mind:

§ It probably wasn’t you if they were already mad when they called.

§ You may be just the person that they need to vent it out to.

§ Let them vent and then try to help them.

If all else fails:

§ Ask them, “If I get your name and number, I’d be happy for someone to give you a call back to answer your questions.”

§ Let them know that you don’t want to give them the wrong information and can certainly have a manger call them back.

If the caller is persistent to keep you on the phone and you have tried absolutely everything:

§ Ask them this… CAREFULLY … SINCERELY …. and with the appropriate TONE INFLECITON…“What would you like me to do for you?”

If at any point they say they want to speak to your supervisor or manager (and you have tried all of the above):

§ Tell them… CAREFULLY … SINCERELY …. And with the appropriate TONE INFLECITON…“Absolutely…. If you can hold on a minute, I’d be more than happy to.”

Do’s:

vBe prepared

vKnow your product

vThink Positive

vDevelop a rhythm-stick to it

vHave your own style

vUse the callers name throughout the call.

vTake brief notes of caller’s info.

vBuild a rapport thru acknowledgement

vSmile, be friendly and share a laugh

vBe sincere

vLead your caller and keep control of call

vBe direct and to the point

vMaintain control of the call

vCover one area at a time

vGet agreement in each area

vHelp them decide what’s best for them

vOffer choices and follow through

vBe confident and stay focused

vSell, sell, and sell some more

vRe-confirm what you thought they said

vOpenly give info in a positive manner

vAsk if there are any other questions

vThank them for calling

vAttract more bees with honey.

Don’ts:

vTry to match the speed of your caller

vGive too much information

vLet the caller lead you

vRush your caller

vTalk in circles

vBe pushy.

vMulti-task while on the phone

vInterrupt your caller

vMake the decisions yourself

vHesitate, especially when asking for hold

vLet the caller get you off track

vIgnore a caller’s concern

vLeave room for dead air

vBe confrontational

vMake assumptions

vBe afraid to apologize to your caller

vLet the caller off the phone without asking for a hold on a unit.

vGive up.

PhoneSmart is an off site sales force that supports self storage companies through its call center, secret shopping and sales training services. PhoneSmart’s parent company is StorageMart. StorageMart operates more than 55 self storage facilities in North America in New York, New Jersey, Maryland, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Missouri, Illinois, Minnesota, Kansas, California and Alberta, Canada.