Rebranding Your Self-Storage Business? Learn to Effectively Manage Your Local Web Presence in the Switch

So, you’ve decided to rebrand your self-storage business. Maybe you’ve just purchased a facility and wish to put it under your own moniker. Or perhaps you operate a multi-site portfolio in which each property is currently flying under a different flag and you want to establish uniformity. Whatever the reason, it’s time to make a change.

There are a whole host of benefits that come with rebranding such as better name recognition, consistent messaging, a modern logo, an updated website, physical upgrades, consolidated marketing expenses and so on. However, there’s one piece of the transition process that self-storage operators frequently overlook, and that’s what happens to the company’s online presence. In fact, a rebrand and name change can have a significant impact on your local search engine optimization (SEO) and search results. You don’t want to lose momentum, so what can you do? Let’s look at some ways to effectively manage the switch.

Local SEO and Search

Optimizing your local SEO ensures that your brand’s web footprint is fresh, consistent and accurate. It goes beyond your self-storage website to include your Google Business Profile (GBP) and business listings found on sites like Apple, Bing, Yahoo, Yelp and others. When managed correctly, local SEO positions your brand for increased visibility and better ranking in local search results.

Local search refers to the results that appear when a person searches for a business or service in a specific geographic location. They include a map and a short list of businesses that are relevant to the query.

Local SEO and search are particularly important for self-storage businesses given how many consumers search online for locations in their area, including common “near me” queries. Having a strong local-search presence can help you attract more renters.

Rebranding Impact

When you rebrand a self-storge business with a new name, you need to carefully manage several items that impact your local SEO and search. These include:

NAP (name, address, phone number) information. This is one of the most critical pieces of local SEO. You’ll need to update this information on your website, Google GBP and other local directory listings. At a minimum, make sure your new info is consistent across all platforms. If it isn’t, Google will believe there are multiple businesses at the same location. The original business (not the rebrand) is the one that carries longevity and authority, which will add to the confusion.

Local citations. Also known as business listings, these are mentions of your self-storage operation on websites other than your own, such as directories, review sites and social media platforms. When you rebrand, you’ll need to update these with your new info, including NAP and other key details that may have changed.

Whenever you acquire a self-storage facility under a different brand name, it’s important to work with the seller when possible to obtain logins to all the various business listings, social media profiles, etc. This paves the way for a smooth transition and helps avoid potential legal issues related to competing listings, such as trademark or copyright infringement.

Your GBP. This is one of the most critical determining factors in local SEO effectiveness. When you rebrand and update your GBP profile, it’ll likely trigger a reverification process, usually solved with a postcard in the mail that contains a unique code. If this doesn’t work, you may need to provide additional documentation to Google.

Your website. Rebranding means you’ll need to update your website with your new business name, logo and other elements. If you have multiple locations and you’ve got a newly acquired property, you might simply need to add a new location page. In particular, make sure your NAP is consistent across your entire web footprint. We’ll take a deeper look into some other website effects below.

Reviews and ratings. Both are crucial for your local search presence. When you rebrand, you’ll need to transfer them to your new business name as best as you can. GBP may automatically do this, or you may need to reach out to them for manual help.

For recently acquired self-storage sites, other business listings are best accessed with current login information provided by the seller or via direct outreach to each platform’s technical support. If you have a lot of reviews and ratings to transfer, you might consider a review-management platform such as Birdeye, Podium or ReviewTrackers.

Additional Impact to Your Website

If you change your self-storage domain name as part of the rebrand, you may see a temporary drop in search traffic and perceived authority. This is because search engines will need to recrawl and reindex your website with the new name, and it can take time for your site to regain its previous ranking and traffic levels.

Transitioning to a new website and domain add a lot of complexity, so work with a web developer who’s experienced in managing such projects. For example, here are two common components that are often overlooked:

URL redirects. When you change your domain name or website structure, it’s essential to set up redirects to ensure that your old URLs are redirected to their corresponding new location. Failure to set up proper redirects can result in broken links, which can harm your search traffic and authority.

Backlink preservation. Any links to your self-storage website from outside websites (for example, you might have a listing on the site for the local chamber of commerce) are an important factor in your website’s authority and how you rank in search results. When you rebrand, do your best to ensure that your backlinks are updated with your new brand name and URL.

The Details Matter

As you can see, rebranding a self-storage business can have significant impact on your local web presence, so ensuring that your new information is accurate and consistent across your online footprint is essential for prospective customers as well as search engines. It’s also critical that your website migration is managed properly. Paying attention to all the details will help ensure a smooth transition and a successful fresh start for your new brand.

Tyler Suchman is the founder of The Storage Agency, a web-marketing agency exclusively focused on serving self-storage owners and operators with unbeatable performance and pricing. The Storage Agency is powered by Tribal Core, a boutique agency Suchman founded in 2002. To reach him, email [email protected].