Is Email Marketing a Thing of the Past? Heck, No! Learn How It Can Be Effective in Self Storage

The modern, digital world offers so many forms of marketing it can be dizzying to keep up. One that has stood the test of time is email. As one of the oldest channels, it still has its advantages—when used wisely.

Email allows you to relay information about your self-storage products and services to prospects and existing tenants. More importantly, the right platform lets you automate your communications and even tailor outreach by customer segment (for example, college students or boat/RV owners).

Though email is a fairly straightforward marketing method, a lot goes into making it truly effective. Thankfully, there are many platforms that can help you organize, write, send and track your messages. Each provides recommendations on the best subject lines to entice recipients to open, how to avoid spam filters, how to get readers to click on a link and so much more. That said, it can be a lot to digest, and it can be challenging to know what’s right and wrong.

The real question is, does email marketing work well in the self-storage industry? Probably. Let’s dig deeper to see how it might fit your business.

Where It Works and Why

Like any marketing tool, email works great for some businesses and not others. Here are three in which it can be particularly effective:

Hospitality. When you book a stay at a hotel, it isn’t long before you to start to receive emails promoting discounts and other benefits. This works for a couple of reasons. First, people generally like taking trips, and second, there’s a good chance a hotel visitor will need another room at some point in the future.

Weddings. When it comes to venues and other wedding-related products and services, prospects often spend a lot of time researching before becoming a customer—sometimes years. Email marketing allows a business to build a relationship with that person over time.

Luxury brands and retailers. In these sectors, email use is much more straightforward. Messages are used to connect with repeat customers who spend time browsing and shopping for items. The more a brand is in front of someone’s face, the better.

But why is email marketing successful in these industries? There are two factors that are particularly important: prospects who spend extended time in the “lead” category, and a high potential for customers to be repeat buyers. Unfortunately, neither generally apply in self-storage. In this business, a consumer doesn’t typically become a prospect until they’re ready to rent. Their need is usually immediate and often sudden due to a life transition. This doesn’t allow for the kind of relationship-building you find in other sectors. Yes, people may come back and rent from you more than once over the course of their lives, but this isn’t necessarily common.

How to Use Email in Self-Storage

But just because email marketing isn’t always a perfect fit for self-storage doesn’t mean it has no place. Operators can still use it effectively to drive rentals and improve the customer experience. Here are four things it can help you do:

Follow up on leads. At some point, a prospect will land on your radar who doesn’t immediately rent a unit. You want to stay in front of them until they do or risk losing them to the competition. Rental decisions are often made quickly, so be top-of-mind via email. Of course, you should also use other communication methods like phone or text if that’s what the customer prefers; but sending an email in addition is a great way to cover your bases.

Correspond with people on your waitlist. There’s no better way to keep in touch with people who are waiting for a unit than email.

Nudge prospects who abandon your online forms. A prospect will sometimes begin filling out your online inquiry or rental form and abandon it partway through the process. They might get busy or distracted, or be unsure about whether they want to proceed. When this occurs, you want to be in front of them and offer guidance in case they’re struggling to decide. Email is a great to do this. Reach out and remind the customer to complete their application. You can also offer ways for them to get in touch with you if they need additional help or have questions.

Keep things positive. Once the prospect becomes a paying tenant, you can continue to use email to encourage online reviews and word-of-mouth referrals, both of which are critical to driving new customers to your self-storage business. In fact, there are many ways you can use email to improve your relationship with tenants, such as making important facility announcements, sending seasonal messages and tips, and reminding people to make their payments.

While email may not be the only or even the best digital-marketing strategy for your self-storage business, it can be an effective way to close sales and enhance customer relationships. Best of all, you can get a lot out of it without spending excessive time, energy and money to yield a proper return on investment.

Robert Priester is a content writer at StoragePug, a Knoxville, Tennessee-based software company that helps self-storage operators attract new leads, convert them to paying tenants and rent units online. He enjoys creative problem-solving and writing content that’s informative and interesting. For more information, call 865.240.0295.