Getting Ready for Spring and Summer

By Alyssa Browning

Spring and Summer are the times of year that everyone looks forward too! There is beautiful sunshine, beach days, hiking, and swimming, but for the storage industry these seasons look a little different. Historically speaking, spring and summer are the busiest times of year for the self storage industry, because it is “moving season”. In addition to the spring cleaning and moving, this is the time of year when college kids are returning home to their parents house. This means an increased demand for rentals. So, how can you prepare your facility for the influx of rentals coming your way?

One of the most important things to know is what trends are like in your specific location. While spring and summer are generally the busiest times of year, depending on where you are located your busy months may vary a little bit. For example, in one town busy months may not start until July, but in a town with a lot of college students busy season may start as early as March. Knowing when you will get your first influx of tenants will help you be as prepared as possible.

Once you have figured out approximately when your busy season will start you can make a plan to get ready. A great place to start your planning is with taking inventory of your vacant units and any issues you may want to fix in them. For instance, say you have 5 open units and 4 of them have peeling paint on them. You may want to repaint those units in preparation for your busy time. In conjunction, you may want to look at other areas of your facility that could use some additional maintenance or deep cleaning. Organizing, and preparing your facility before you get busy will ensure that you have reduced problems during your influx.

Another critical element to review before your busiest time of year is your rates. Being competitive is great, but if your facility has a history of being too busy you may want to consider increasing your rates enough to deter some traffic, but not all traffic. This may make your hectic season a little more manageable for you and any managers you currently have.

Finally, create relationships with your competitors. Knowing who your competitors are and having a good relationship with them allows you to refer people to a facility you know will serve them well if you are at capacity. In addition, it means that your competitors can also refer people to you if they are at capacity. Creating this professional relationship can benefit you greatly in the long run- especially during your most hectic times of year.

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