By Anna Horn

Creating a brand and buzz around your self-storage facility can be difficult. However, thanks to the Internet and online publications, generating content and finding placement to spotlight your storage business is now easier than ever. By knowing some tools and tricks of the trade you’ll be able to find media exposure for your facility before you know it. Here are three ways to help you find media opportunities for your self-storage facility as well as tips on how to reach out and get some press coverage.   

HARO 

One of the fastest and easiest ways to be quoted in the media is through HARO requests. HARO stands for Help A Reporter Out—and that’s basically the whole idea. First, you need to create an account on the website. You’ll then receive a list of requests up to three times a day. There are typically 30 to 40 requests per e-mail. If you see something that piques your interest all you have to do is e-mail back and wait for a response. The best part is legitimate sites including “ABC News,” “Fox News Channel” and “The Huffington Post” all use this service.   

Google Modifiers 

You can find an endless amount of media opportunities simply through online searches. To get more from your search queries, it’s important to use modifiers or, as I like to call them “cheat codes.” You can find a great list of these here, but these are a few of my favorites:

Press Releases  

If you have a great promotion or you’re spearheading a charity event, you can get some great media exposure by writing a press release. Distributing it to local media outlets is an excellent way to build some buzz and drive people to your event and facility. Make a list of all the local media you hope to reach and start finding e-mails. Use the “Contact Us” page on the media outlet’s website or you can use a tool like Voila Norbert to help you “guess” the right e-mail addresses. Once you’ve sent your content be sure to follow up!

In the end it’s all about doing some research and finding what works for your self-storage business. Good luck and remember to be professional in your outreach efforts! 

Anna Horn writes for NYC Mini Storage, a self-storage facility in Bronx, N.Y.