Sometimes the best advertising campaign comes from the heart. When a self storage facility reaches out to a community or embraces a cause, it sends a message that it cares, a message that resonates deeply with many people. And when those people someday need self storage, a familiar name will pop into their head. A name they will associate with a good feeling of caring and giving.
For some storage facilities, giving back to the community isn’t just an isolated event but an ongoing way of doing business. Hide-Away Storage, a 10-facility company headquartered in Sarasota with four locations in Manatee County, came up with an offer for any 501(c)3 registered nonprofit organization to receive a 40 percent discount on long-term storage or three months of free storage for short-term needs.
“There are many nonprofits who have furniture and other things they want to keep, but they need a place to keep it. Or they do things every year, fundraising events, and they just can’t throw stuff away between annual events. They need storage space,” said Steve Wilson, managing partner of Hide-Away Storage in an article for the Bradenton Herald.
Hide-Away has a long list of nonprofits that have taken Wilson up on the offer, including the PACE Center for Girls, The Loving Hands Ministry, Manatee County Audubon Society, and Adopt-a-Family in which volunteers are able to shop year-round for Christmas gifts for needy children and store the gifts until they’re distributed in December. The benefits Hide-Away provides to the nonprofits is good business for them as well.
“You have a lot of nonprofits gathering things in a defined period of time and need space, and those nonprofits involve all kinds of people – people who may decide to use us in the future,” Wilson said.
Several other storage facilities have recently taken the step to support a good cause. California’s A-1 Self Storage is donating money to the Saint Alphonsus Foundation Project Haiti. This fund promotes emergency intervention and provides medical aid to those affected by the earthquake in Haiti in 2010. Cathedral Village Self Storage in Cathedral City, Calif., is partnering with other local businesses to host a carwash fundraiser on April 16 for a fallen police officer who died March 18 when he lost control of his patrol car during a high-speed chase. And Access Self-Storage in Bernardsville, NJ, and AERC Recycling Solutions have partnered to celebrate Earth Day on April 22 by inviting businesses and individuals to drop off used, old or unwanted electronics at participating Access Self-Storage locations during the month of April.
Sources Used:
Mannix, Vin. “Hide-Away Discount Plan Benefits Nonprofits, Churches.” Bradenton. com. March 23, 2011.
“Access Self-Storage, AERC Recycling Partner in E-Waste Collection Endeavor.” Inside Self-Storage. April 4, 2011.
“Cathedral Village Self Storage Holds Carwash for Fallen CA Officer.” Inside Self-Storage. April 5, 2011.
“A-1 Self Storage Supports Saint Alphonsus Foundation’s Haiti Project.” Inside Self-Storage. April 5, 2011.