In the self storage industry, as in all industries, improving aspects of your business are essential. This allows your business to grow in the right direction and most importantly attract new customers. Seminars held by experts in the self storage industry are a great resource. However, they might be out of travelling distance and too expensive to get to. Thus comes the webinar. A perfect blending of getting expert advice in an easily accessible way through Internet broadcasts. And for the most part, they’re free!
Now SkilCheck Services, Inc., based in Lodi, Calif., and focused on the self storage industry, is offering a weekly series of ongoing webinars. They will focus on various topics crucial to succeeding in your business. Today marks the first one at 11 a.m. called “Handle ANY Customer Objection.” The free webinar lasts 30 minutes and will focus on being ready to handle any customer objection in a professional manner and help close the sale. Jan. 19, 2011, at 2 p.m. is a beginners’ webinar on crafting rental agreements. It is one hour long at a cost of $19. The webinar will focus on getting a handle on the self storage rental agreement from a 25 year veteran of the industry. It aims to teach storage operators how to handle any rental issues and understand the agreement like a pro. The last webinar for January will be held on the 25th at 11 a.m. and is free. This intermediate course is dubbed “Relate Your Facility Features & Benefits.” It will focus on making sure your customers know how your features and benefits will help them in their storage process. It will stress how every feature can be a selling point and how to relay that to the customer without being pushy.
On Feb. 9, 2011, a webinar by another company is scheduled and will be hosted by industry experts Larry Rolando, vice president of business development for OpenTech Alliance Inc., and Steve Lavery, vice president of property management for Herman & Kittle Properties Inc. The webinar is titled “How to Successfully Operate a Mid-Size Self-Storage Facility With One Person.” How to staff a business is crucial to business success when it comes to providing good customer service. The webinar is aimed at facilities of 500 units or less that have operated with two or more staff members. Rolando will offer advice on integrated self-service and call-center operations used by Herman & Kittle in its self-storage operations. Herman & Kittle owns and manages more than 25 self storage facilities under the Infinite Self Storage name. They have recently whittled away the number of staff members they keep on hand at each facility. The company used to employ three full-time employees at each facility, but now operates with only one full-time employee or none at all at each location.
Topics scheduled to be discussed at the webinar are the following:
· Business drivers for evolving to a more efficient staffing model
· Cost-savings benefits of efficient staffing
· Challenges that must be addressed
· Call Center reservations completed at kiosks
· Technology and third-party services that increase staffing efficiency
OpenTech offers operation management services and products. It sells seven models of its recently-developed INSOMNIAC self-storage kiosks and offers an INSOMNIAC Live! Call-center service that storage facilities can benefit from if they wish to cut down on employees. The company also offers the INSOMNIAC Self Storage Network which enables participating storage facilities to book online storage reservations.
Registration is required for this free OpenTech/Herman & Kittle online event which will be moderated by MiniCo’s Poppy Behrens as part of the Mini-Storage Messenger Self-Storage Webinar Series. Registration for the webinar should be completed in advance at MiniStorageMessenger.com.
MiniCo Insurance Agency, LLC, publishes the “Mini-Storage Messenger,” the leading monthly trade magazine covering the global self-storage industry. Other publications include “Self-Storage Now!,” “Mobile Self-Storage Magazine,” “RV & Boat Storage Today,” “Self-Storage Canada,” the “Self-Storage Almanac,” the “Self-Storage Construction & Renovation Handbook,” and the “Self-Storage Buyer’s Guide.”
Sources Used:
“Optimizing Self-Storage Facility Staffing the Topic of Next MiniCo Webinar.” PR.com. Jan.10, 2011.
“SkilCheck Services Now Offering Webinars.” PRlog.org. Jan. 10, 2011.
“Efficient Self-Storage Staffing the Focus of Free Webinar on Feb. 9.” Inside Self-Storage. Jan. 10, 2011.