Call Me!

Are customers slipping through the phone wires?

By Keith Ruehle

Youdesigned the perfect ad, spent weeks negotiating with the Yellow Pagesrepresentative and, finally, the new phone book is out. Your ad is working; it'sdrawing calls from many prospective customers. It seems all is well, right? Notquite.

The perfect self-storage prospect is someone with the Yellow Pages opened toyour ad and his hand on the phone. You could not ask for a better potentialcustomer. Statistically speaking, he's perfect: He lives nearby, has animmediate need, can afford storage, and is taking action right now. Here's thebest part: He's dialing your phone number! Life is great--but only if yourmanager answers his call.

The Hard Facts

Actual self-storage statistics indicate nearly one-third of the best possibleprospects will never even speak with a facility's manager. How can this be?Maybe he's calling before you open or after you close. Perhaps the phone isbusy. Or maybe the manager is out fixing a roll-up door and the prospect isgetting the answering machine. Will he leave a message? It's not likely.Research shows only two of 10 callers will leave a message. Will he call back?Sorry. Chances are he will simply move his finger down the page to the nextlisting and call your competitor.

The self-storage industry is unique in that more than 90 percent of itsbusiness transactions occur over the phone. Think about it: If your phone lineswere somehow down, business would temporarily come to a halt. Nothing would bemore important than getting them operational again. The telephone, being theprimary vehicle of customer inquiry, is the lifeblood of your business. If thephones are ringing, business is good. But given the importance of thiscommuncation tool, it's amazing how little most business owners know about theirtelephone traffic.

How Much Do Lost Calls Cost You?

There are actually two types of losses. First, there is the loss ofadvertising costs. This is simply calculated by adding up your yearlyadvertising costs and multiplying by 30 percent. Far more expensive and notquite as obvious is the cost of lost opportunity. This is essentially how muchmoney you could have made from missed prospects. The lost opportunity cost iscalculated by knowing how many prospects are missed, your average closing ratioand the value of a new customer. For example:

You logged 140 new-prospect calls this month. The industry average indicatesyou missed three of every 10 calls, therefore, you were actually called by 200new prospects. You missed 60 calls. Your average closing ratio is 50 percent,which means you could have converted 30 of these missed calls into payingcustomers. Assuming a new customer is worth approximately $500 over the lengthof his contract, the loss of 30 customers in a month equals the loss of $15,000.Your actual numbers will vary slightly, but between lost advertising andopportunity costs, the net result is staggering.

Prevention and Recovery

The good news is you can take some simple steps to reduce the number of lostprospect calls. There is also a creative way to recover the lost prospectsthemselves. First and foremost, there is nothing better than having a friendly,well-trained manager answering the phone. All self-storage businesses have timesof the day when the phone rings the most. Make sure your manager is present inthe office during those times when the majority of calls come in. They shouldalways be available to answer the phone during those times.

Cordless Phones

One way to reduce missed calls is for the manager to keep a cordless phonewith him at all times when he is away from the office. Some self-storagefacilities are experiencing good results with the new 2.4 GHz multiline portablephones, which have a much longer range than the older 900 MHz phones. It isreported the reception is good around the yard, but degenerates inside a metalbuilding. A good system with one handset sells for about $500. It does seem abit expensive, but one additional customer will pay for it.

Cell Phones

For a time, cell phones seemed to be the solution. In this instance, themanager can dial a code to forward the business line to the cell phone wheneverhe leaves the office. The reception is good even within metal units. When themanager returns to the office, he dials another code to release the forwarding.Unfortunately, many store managers have reported the constant forwarding andun-forwarding was problematic. In many cases, unbeknownst to the manager, callsremained forwarded to the cell phone after it had been turned off.

Call Centers

If prospects receive no answer at the site, forwarding them to a call centeris another option. Call centers are better than answering machines--but only ifa live operator answers immediately. If the caller has to enter menu selections,you can expect as many hang-ups as with a machine. Remember the prospect has animmediate need and wants to speak with someone now. He has just heard fourrings, a click, another ring, and is now required to enter a menu selection.There is a good chance he will simply call the next listing in the phone book.

Another problem identified with forwarding prospects to a call center is manymanagers realize they now have a backup. Over time, they answer fewer phonecalls. This results in even more prospects hanging up before a live personanswers. Call centers work best for after-hours callers. In this scenario, theprospect can be forwarded immediately, reducing the risk of him hanging upbefore speaking with a salesperson.

Caller ID

While it is always best to answer phone calls personally, some calls willinevitably be missed. The good news is there are basically two ways these lostcalls can be recovered. One is automated, and the other uses a manual system.They both use a caller-ID service from the phone company.

In the manual system, the manager uses a small caller-ID display unit. Hesimply checks the device when he returns to the office and writes down the name,phone number and the time of the call on a form. This form then becomes the callsheet. The manager simply places a return call to each prospect and says,"Hello. This is John Doe from City Storage, and I see from my caller IDthat you tried to reach us. I apologize for missing your call. Is their anythingI can do for you?" When the manager is diligent making return calls, manyextra rentals will result.

Automated Services

One Atlanta company offers an automated system that recovers lost calls. Thisservice utilizes a proprietary device installed at each self-storage location.The device monitors every aspect of incoming and outgoing calls (except theconversation) and reports the information to a data center. There, the data iscompiled, analyzed and merged into a number of reports, graphs and maps. Theseare sent to the owner on a regular basis. For example, graphs are compiledindicating when call volumes are heaviest as well as when most calls are missed.This information helps managers determine when outside activities should beperformed and part-time employees scheduled.

One of the most beneficial aspects of this service is a daily report ofmissed calls. Each morning the site manager receives a list of calls missedduring the previous day. He can then make a courtesy call to each of theprospects on the list. The service can also denote calls from existing customersand vendors. Furthermore, it can cross- reference the missed-call list with theoutgoing calls made to check the manager's diligence in following up with missedprospects.

Some managers are reluctant to make return calls to missed prospects. Theymay feel it is intrusive or they just don't like the idea of placing them.Self-storage managers claim that when they call missed prospects back, they aregenerally receptive and appreciative the manager cared enough to call. Accordingto John Bauer, manager of a Shurgard facility, "We rent an extra two tofour units each month by calling prospects back. They often thank me for callingthem, even the ones who don't rent."

Take Action

It is essential you implement at least some of these ideas to reduce andrecover missed prospect calls. Don't let them slip through the wires. You havealready paid big money in advertising dollars to get these prospects to call, sorevenues from any prospects you can turn into paying customers goes directly tothe bottom line.

Keith Ruehle is the vice president of the Client Discovery Service, whichhas provided sales, marketing and operational information for the self-storageindustry for more than three years. This unique service monitors all telephonetraffic to and from individual locations anywhere in the country. For moreinformation, call 800.240.4637; e-mail [email protected].