At my previous place of employment, we got around the insurance issue by having our staff drop off and pick up the truck. Sounds a lot more labor intensive than it really is.

Lisa- thank you VERY much for your post, that was very informative. I've continued to do some research and am getting closer to making the purchase. I think I will use your program in regard to renting the truck to people moving out. My store is in a very densely populated area of northern California, and although there are many trucks and SUV's around here they are only for looks....nobody would dare put anything in the bed of their 60k truck and risk scratching the bed!--OR--they don't know how to get the tailgate down.

I've found that vehicle wraps are running about $4k for the truck, but simply putting on large decals made of the same quality 3M material is only about $1200. I've learned that much of the cost of the wraps are in the computer software that makes adjustments in the printing for the curves and shaping of the vehicle's body, something that is not necessary at all for a 4 sided flat box truck.

Since my heightened awareness of the possibility of getting a rental truck, I've noticed even more people asking for one on the phone, and more opportunities for me to loan it out to community groups.

I'm thinking too that if gas prices continue to go up there will be fewer and fewer private parties that are driving full-sized trucks as a daily driver. This may be a good time to get a truck for their use to capitalize on that too.

We have thought about utility type trailers instead of trucks...customers would have to have a vehicle with hitch...Anybody have experience with trailers? Is the insurance and liability the same as a truck or is it less since they are driving their own car or truck?

Thanks!

Rob

I noticed Autodoc offers use of trailers at his facility, click on his webpage link in his signature. I'm sure he has some insight into trailers. I'd be a little concerned about a trailer, in many respects they are harder to handle than a 14' moving van. Most people have no idea how to back up a trailer. I would also be concerned as to who actually does the hookup to the customer's car. If you or one of your employees does it, I assume you take on some liability for doing it safely and correctly, and knowing whether or not the car is appropriate for pulling that extra load. If you have them do the hookup, likely many will have no idea where to start.....ball size, safety chains, light hookups, how to distribute the load, tarping, securing, etc.

In my market I have to fight with a truck, since that is what the standard is now. A trailer would do nothing more than make people laugh at me I would guess there is some measure of insulation liability-wise with a truck too, since they present a valid license that says they are qualified to drive a vehicle of that length and size. You wouldn't get that type of assurance that a customer knew how to handle a trailer from looking at their DL.

The trailers are the only way to go!!! VERY low maintenance.

We have had the trailers for a very long time and I think it makes us stand out from the crowd.

As far as the hookup -- that is all done by the customer - I tell them that if they need assistance I can instruct them, but I am not allowed to touch anything! So far it has not been a problem.

As far as backing up -- you are correct that most people can not back a trailer to save their life -- best to un-hook and do it by hand (when it is empty). I have more damage around here from people who shouldn't be driving a truck!!! My poor rain gutters and wall take a beating from these crazy drivers!!!

The way we do it is the trailers can be used between 9am and 4:30pm (too young to stay out at night! ;-) ) we require a $50.00 damage deposit and a copy of the current insurance for the vehicle towing the trailer. Only twice in the 2 1/2 years have I kept the deposit!

If you have further questions feel free to e-mail me anytime.

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Wayne
All American Self Storage
Palmdale, CA.
webmaster@all-americanselfstorage.com

The truck use really works. You must think from the perspective of the future tenant. Moving cost money. I have alway been fortunate enough to have a truck for my tenants to use at our location and I can safely say that it is responsible for 45 to 50 % of my renatls. They love it. For the tenants who only have a trailer the truck cuts there moving load in half , saving them time and hassel. Speaking of Hassel, the idea for a credit toward a turck rental is good, but I know that the persons I work with the most want the simplest solution to there already stressful move. They don't want to go one more place to make it happen. So having a truck on site is saying, this is your last stop. We can handle all of your moving needs.
Not to mention that when rentals are down you can boost the income of your property by being willing to rent your truck out to existing tenants for things other than a move out. For example, they bought new furniture and they drive a sports car. Delivery for these things can get pricey, so if they know they can pay you 50.00 dollars to rent your truck(if avail. ) then you have made more money for your property. Just be sure to really stress, not for move outs. Always be aware of the ever changing insurance need and follow the rule to the letter. I must have only insured drivers over the age of 21 with valid drivers license on file before I can let them drive my truck. The laws are different from state to state. Good Luck.

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Lovin it.

OK, so I bought the truck.

Now I have the dilemma of what to put all over the sides of it to generate income and interest (in that order..) I know whatever I do I will have to live with, so I want to get it right the first time. I'm not paying for a wrap, I've found that most of the cost of a wrap is for the computer to generate a decal that takes into account the curves of a vehicle, so the advertising looks right. Since I have 4 big flat squares to advertise on, I'm not paying for the wrap technology. I will go with the vinyl 3M lettering, and it looks like they can do pretty much anything I want.

Any ideas out there? I figured I would work around a huge FREE TRUCK on all 4 sides, and maybe do it in reverse lettering on the surface above the cab.

What's important....?
phone number
address
family owned and operated
map to location
sizes available
individually alarmed
computerized gates
11' tall units
access 6am to 9pm 365 days a year
cutesy pictures of a storage unit and boxes
"call for specials"
etc....

Make sure that you include your website since it can be such a good salesman for your facility. Also think to putting some of the letters on the front of the cab in reverse so someone looking in their rearview mirror gets the message about who is behind them.

MisterJim444

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Learning Never Ends

Don't get too cute as this is basically a rolling billboard, so think along the same line as a static billboard. You can only put so much information on one of those since drivers are the primary target audience, and the window for catching their attention is short. Do you have a catchphrase, a snappy name for your facility, a logo that has visual appeal, a website?

With four sides, you can push four different aspects of the business. For instance, one side is security - images of a camera, keypad, door alarm if you have those - and a phrase that speaks to the peace of mind security offers.

Maybe another side hits on the total access you're providing with the 24/7/365 approach, though you may be leaving money on the table by giving every tenant round-the-clock access. A lot of sites have a tiered pricing schedule based on the hours of access tenants get; may not be applicable to your facility, but it's out there.

I would probably NOT do a map; again, this is a rolling billboard and a map takes some time to work through. Not sure of the perceived value of being family-owned, either.

Upside is you have four sides and, as such, the opportunity to hit on four different aspects of your business. And with magnetic lettering and images, you can rotate the images. Just my two cents --

Thanks Alexlekas, good ideas there.

I don't offer 24/7 access, so that concern would not apply in my case.