Thread: Lots of Price Inquiries- But not Renting

This is a slow time for us due to extreme cold -30 Celcius. I get alot of calls, but not renting.
I know our rates are right in line with all the other places in town. I'm not sure what I can do to try to retain these potential tenants.
Any suggestions?:

Try to overcome their concerns... If they say that they are still shopping, ask them if they are looking for something in particular. Build rapport with the caller. Always invite them in for a site visit.

I found this article, it might help. It has a couple of tips about speaking to potential customers on the phone to close the deal.

5 Things Self-Storage Operators Should Be Doing to Rent More Units

Phone customers are really tricky... Because once they hang up, you've lost them. It's best to grab their attention immediately, and pull them into the conversation. I, myself, sometimes buy based on the sales experience. Then I hang up the phone saying "I hate salesman " LOL...

Its cold and non stop snow here as well - so often we get calls first. It is important you have several questions memorized so you can learn about your potential clients and they can learn about you.

When do you need storage? - will tell you if they are for real & often so much more

Have you seen our facility? - our cameras- gate - office hours - can you stop by at ...

Do you know what size you need or can I help you with that?

Do you want to make a reservation? Get name & number ---

In the end they choose the facility that provides "that feels right" feeling. When they call - when they drive by - when they stop in.

Originally Posted by storage-gal

This is a slow time for us due to extreme cold -30 Celcius. I get alot of calls, but not renting.
I know our rates are right in line with all the other places in town. I'm not sure what I can do to try to retain these potential tenants.
Any suggestions?:

It sounds drastic but offer a promotion during this time of year for (deep breath) 50% off their first 6 months. Your occupancy will truly skyrocket, and most will stay for the year and beyond. The long tail revenue from the spike in occupancy is considerable.

Keep in mind, if you don't do it - your competitor might.

Originally Posted by marcgoodin

Its cold and non stop snow here as well - so often we get calls first. It is important you have several questions memorized so you can learn about your potential clients and they can learn about you.

When do you need storage? - will tell you if they are for real & often so much more

Have you seen our facility? - our cameras- gate - office hours - can you stop by at ...

Do you know what size you need or can I help you with that?

Do you want to make a reservation? Get name & number ---

In the end they choose the facility that provides "that feels right" feeling. When they call - when they drive by - when they stop in.

Your absolutely right, it's that gut feeling that makes the decision... and I'm sure many of us know that "Gut Feeling" is usually right. Not everyone can overcome that feeling, so those who can with the upmost sincerity have the best outcomes.

Ask the question, is there any reason why you are deciding not to rent with us today? Offer an up-sale, Free lock, 1/2 off next month, give them a reason to rent other then their own personal need to rent.

We were having this problem at the begining of our lease up phase and our prices were in line with most of the other guys, so we slashed our prices and made sure we were the lowest to get the ball rolling, now we have a good reputation in the community of being the best price in town and the best customer service, not to mention we have all the bells and whistles so we are the most secure facility in town. I have also found that if you are family owned and operated you need to let that be known, we had a customer that we cut a deal with and he decided to rent, but when he found out we were family owned he wanted to pay full price.

On the other hand if you have been around awhile then price probably isn't the problem if you are in line with the rest of the facilities. I know all the "experts" preach about drilling them for info and this and that, but I am a firm beleiver that you take what you can get, customer service will win out over everything 90% of the time. Also there are a lot of people out there that are pricing but not ready to store yet, we have people price us monthws ahead of time, and we assume we might not see them again, but then they show up 2 to 4 months later when they are ready to rent. So unless you are really rude on the phone I do not think there is much you can do about it, other than offer a great deal to get them in. Like lydia said offer half off for 6 months, half the rate is better than nothing, but then if you are at 98% full thats probably not a good idea.

Thanks for all the tips!
I am putting together a marketing plan for this year in order that our units are full during the extreme cold.
I have found many inquiries are now calling back and renting.
I'm also offering a price match. I'll match any competitors price and taking over the phone reservations, this way I can get the potential tenants name, phone number, etc. I get alot of email enquries from our website, these often don't include a phone number. However, I am offering to email or fax a rental agreement . Things are starting to move again.

As always, thanks for the tips!