Self Storage Security

If you are a self storage user, protecting the safety of your stored belongings is very important. Whether you are storing just a few items or quite a few things that are worth a lot, you will want to ensure that your belongings are secure at the self storage facility you choose. Before choosing a self storage facility, pay close attention to these tips on how to secure the safety of your items:

• Use a high quality lock – A simple Internet search will bring up recommendations on the best padlocks to choose for your storage needs. Try not to sacrifice quality for price. Remember that spending the extra $10 or $15 might make all the difference instead of having to replace your belongings in the future if your unit gets broken into.

• Never share your entrance code or access card with strangers – Many storage facilities provide you with an entrance code or an access card. Be sure to keep yours private. Only share it with those that you want to have authorized access to your storage unit. Many times, unscrupulous people will say that they’ve forgotten their access card and might inveigle you into letting them in. Direct any person with such a story to the management office of your storage facility, as they will be better able to assist them than you would.

• Utilize the extra lights at night – Your storage facility will usually have extra lighting available to you. Sometimes it is switched off to conserve electricity. At night, you can make use of these lights to better see your surroundings and take extra control of your security.

Remember that, ultimately, your security and the security of your personal items in your storage unit is primarily your responsibility, so ensure that you do all that you can to protect them. Visit USSelfStorageLocator.com for a comprehensive listing of self storage facilities to safely and securely store your belongings.

Portable andTraditional Self Storage

Both mobile/portable and traditional self storage units are offered in a variety of sizes. The type of self storage unit you ultimately choose will be determined by a few but important factors. If you are having trouble figuring out if mobile/portable or traditional self storage will fit your needs let us give you a couple of tips to help you decide. Always keep in mind:

• Space Availability – Portable self storage, commonly known as pods, are delivered to you at your home or office, and usually placed on the driveway, parking space, or any space available where you can keep such containers. If you have the space it can be a very good option because it offers instant accessibility. If you don’t have the space to keep such large storage container then you’ll have to stick to traditional self storage.

• Ease of access – Your choice of a self storage unit will also depend on how often you need to access your stored items. Traditional self storage allows you to retrieve your items whenever you need them, just make sure you go to the storage facility during access hours. Portable storage is a little different. If you decide to have the storage container picked up and stored in a warehouse for long-term storage, you wont have access to your items unless a container delivery is scheduled, which can cost you extra. Portable storage is also used to store short-term, just keep the container parked outside your house or office for the time you need to store your items. This is a real convenience, you’ll have access to your items anytime and you wont even have to drive anywhere to get them.

• Security – Traditional self storage can be a more secure option, compared to portable storage containers parked outside your home or office. Some storage facilities offer insurance, security cameras, and storage units with security alarms. Portable storage usually does not carry insurance, unless your homeowners insurance covers it. The portable/mobile storage company might offer insurance if you decide to have the storage container picked up and stored in their warehouse.

Both self storage options have a variety of features to fit the individual needs of the self storage customer. You can keep these points in mind when trying to decide on a mobile or traditional self storage unit. Compare and save on many traditional and mobile/portable self storage units by using USSelfStorageLocator.com.

Google+ for Self Storage

Google + is a fast growing social networking site operated by technology giant, Google Inc. The site has been gaining notoriety over the past few months and continues to build its user base daily. How can it benefit your self storage business? Google + has pages for businesses, similar to Facebook pages, where you can list and promote your self storage facility. Here are a few tips in order to help you navigate this fairly new social network:

• Choose a suitable display picture – Unlike Facebook’s profile photos, the Google + profile photo must be square. The dimensions for the picture is 200px x 200px and the thumbnail is 48px x 48px. Once you have chosen a picture, you must crop it into a square so keep this in mind when selecting a profile photo.

• Create keywords to promote your self storage facility – There are three fields where you can enter text – the Tagline, Introduction, and Contact/Website fields. In the Tagline section, use only about 10 words. Anything longer may get cut off. You can provide more details about your self storage company in the About summary section. These pages get indexed by Google, so ensure that you fill these fields out with your complete information.

• Promote your profile – After creating the page, add a +1 button to your company website if you have one. By adding this button, visitors to your company website can easily visit your Google + profile without going to an external site.

• Add additional photos - There is a scrapbook area where page administrators can add photos of the business. Since the Google + is plain when compared to other sites, you can use the photo feature to make your page more eye-catching and interesting.

Share your Google + page with all your employees and have them share it within their own Google + pages in order to increase engagement. Suitable keywords, photos, and adequate promotion will ensure that your Google + business page makes a strong contribution to your online marketing efforts.

Insurance for Self Storage

When storing items, one of the main goals is to keep them safe. However, self storage units are not immune to accidents, theft and natural disasters. Many people assume that insurance is a part of the package when renting a self storage unit. However, one should take great care in choosing a self storage insurance plan that will adequately cover your belongings in the unfortunate event of damage to the self storage facility and unit. Keep the following tips in mind when looking for self storage insurance:

• You might be able to save by bundling your policy – If you have renter’s or home insurance, check with your insurance company first if it would be possible to insure your self storage items. By doing so, you would be able to take advantage of discounts from your current insurance provider instead of switching altogether. It is also simpler and easier to have just one company to deal with your insurance policies. In some cases, the items in your self storage unit might be covered under your home policy. Review these details carefully to avoid incurring additional unnecessary costs.

• Purchase sufficient insurance to meet your needs – Do not purchase only the bare minimum in an attempt to cut costs. If you are ever in the unfortunate situation where you have to make a claim, you should ensure that your policy adequately covers the replacement of your belongings. Detail the items in your unit beforehand and check their current market value in order to assist with purchasing a self storage insurance plan.

• Carefully review the details of the insurance policy before purchasing – Self storage insurance policies can start as little as $6 a month. However, you should not let the low price entice you into buying without carefully weighing your options. For example, some plans do not cover items such as jewelry, currency, or precious stones. Take the time to ensure the policy you are purchasing meets your current needs and can cover you if you plan to add more items to your unit in the future.

Remember that insurance may not be a part of your monthly rental fee and it is wise to purchase it. The self storage facility might have adequate security but they can do little or nothing to prevent occurrences such as malicious damage, fires, floods, and other natural disasters. You can search a wide range of self storage facilities and inquire about their insurance policies in our Self Storage page.

North Miami Beach, FL-based startup USSelfStorageLocator.com has reached a milestone and have partnered with all four of the largest self storage companies that utilize self storage aggregators in less than 13-months after launching. USelfStorageLocator.com, a nationwide self storage aggregator, provides customers the ability to locate, save, and rent self storage online anywhere, anytime.

Recently, USSelfStorageLocator.com achieved a rarity in the self storage industry, when they reached a marketing agreement with each of the four largest self storage companies (in total square-footage) in the United States, according to Inside Self Storage, that utilize self storage aggregators.

Other self storage aggregators have been in business longer, but USSelfStorageLocator.com offers the best overall package that appeases customers as well as owner/operators alike.

Victor Dante, Founder and CEO at USSelfStorageLocator.com, expressed his enthusiasm and zeal for the success and continued rapid growth of USSelfStorageLocator.com. “I’m extremely elated that our hard work and efforts have brought about overall great results,” said Victor Dante. “Becoming such a major player in such a relatively short-time, is truly a testament to our outstanding product—especially in today’s economy,” said Victor Dante.

USSelfStorageLocator.com was created to provide consumers with the most efficient user-friendly experience to locate self storage online. Cutting-edge technology has enabled USSelfStorageLocator.com to implement various features that allow self storage renters the ability to locate, save, and rent self storage online anywhere, anytime. For example, customers can search for San Diego Self Storage, or any city or zip code and locate any facility using USSelfStorageLocator.com.

• In addition to becoming marketing partners with some of self storage’s most successful companies, USSelfStorageLocator.com has done a solid job of signing on various independent self storage facilities. Customers who use USSelfStorageLocator.com can find the following features:

• Facility listings with unit sizes, prices, specials/discounts, addresses, phone numbers. Facility amenities such as automatic and online payment capabilities, packaging supplies, office hours, security cameras, truck rentals.

USSelfStorageLocator.com offers the user amazing blogs, tips, expert suggestions, and useful information in all fields related to self storage. Their website is incredibly user friendly, attractive, and most of all allows customers the ability to locate and acquire self storage.

Pick up the latest copies of Sports Illustrated and ESPN The Magazine. There you will probably see advertising pages featuring Anheuser-Busch Inc. and MillerCoors Brewing Co. for example in both magazines simultaneously.

Pick up Forbes, Fortune, Inc., or Businessweek magazines and take notice that each publication features ads from car makers such as Lexus, Mercedes Benz, Ford Motor Company, and General Motors to name a few. You will see the same exact ad in various magazines within the same month. Why? The brewing and automotive companies want to reach every potential consumer in their prospective markets. They want as much exposure as possible so they don’t limit the potential to reach every customer available. The more exposure the better.

Anyone who has purchased any form of advertising (television, radio, online, billboards, bus benches, etc.) knows that you pay for ads in advance with the hope that your efforts will result in more business. With USSelfStorageLocator.com’s pay-per-rental model, you pay after you receive results. That means you receive free exposure 24-hours/7-days /365-days a year. Where is the risk? There isn’t any risk. It doesn’t cost anything to advertise with us. It’s FREE!

USSelfStorageLocator.com’s pricing is clearly designed with the best interest of self storage owner/operators in mind. Our business plan clearly distinguishes us from other aggregators.

“We’re already signed up with another aggregator”

USSelfStorageLocator.com regards industry feedback very seriously. That’s why I must address a perplexing mindset that exists among a few in the self storage industry. Some execs have expressed the following to our marketing team: “We’re already signed up with another aggregator.”

Their (our marketing team’s) first reaction is always “Great,” upon learning that they do use an aggregator. They immediately know they understand the advantages and value of aggregators. Then their secondary thought is, why limit your online exposure to one website?

No matter what Internet surfers are searching for, they will locate and utilize websites that they didn’t know existed, and get the desired results they are looking for.

When you Google search, Google doesn’t list the most popular item only or even one page of results, it provides a list. People like choices and customers are diligent. They want what best fits their needs.

The Internet Is One Big Spider Web

Earlier this year I had a series of gifts to purchase and 99% of my shopping was completed online—which was my intention. While looking for a Cuisinart PowerEdge Blender to purchase, I came across a website called hayneedle.com. I purchased the blender, but more importantly, the manufacturer of the blender has product available on walmart.com (Walmart ®), the largest retailer in the world; target.com (Target ®), the second-largest discount retailer in the United States; and amazon.com (Amazon, Inc. ®) the world's largest online retailer, and in the stores of Walmart and Target.

Hypothetically—how productive and proactive would it be if a Cuisinart executive had declared as an initiative for their company, which manufactures small kitchen appliances, “Hey, our product is in stores and we’re online with the largest of the largest retailers—that’s it—do not seek and/or place our product with any other distribution outlets—especially those crummy small unheard of websites.

If hayneedle.com didn’t carry Cuisinart blenders, they wouldn’t have had my sale of $149. That’s an example of how the Internet can work to your favor as well—simply by being where people are looking. I got the blender and now I’m also a hayneedle.com customer.

My point is simple; be everywhere consumers are looking online. If a potential renter searches for Miami Self Storage, your company should be included on as many viable and credible websites available under that search, especially if you can earn a new customer.

If you still don’t feel that being on more than one website is good for your company, ask your competitors, who are all over the web, “Why are you on various websites?” The answer is simple, they want to be everywhere. They don’t care where new revenue is generated from. They will gladly accept the business.

Spring Season Storage

Using self storage can be seasonal for some users. If this is true for you, there are certain things that you should consider before storing at certain times of the year. Plan your self storage activity in such a manner that you have access to all the items you need at different points during the year. However, if you are storing indefinitely, there’s no need to be concerned with self storage structure. Just ensure that you have selected the appropriate unit type for your possessions. Definitely choose a climate-controlled unit if the items you will be storing are susceptible to mildew, expanding, or heat damage to name a few. As winter subsides for the next month or so, here are a few tips for springtime self storage:

• Put away your winter gear – Now is a perfect time to stow away the bulky winter-related possessions such as coats, comforters, heaters, the snow-blower, and snowmobile that may be taking up space in your home. Depending on where you reside, the cold weather should be warming up by mid-March. Winter “officially” ends March 21st and the spring will be upon us, therefore, you can get a head start by putting away all the bigger winter items, to lessen your spring-cleaning.

• Get rid of unnecessary items – Use this trip to your self storage unit as an opportunity to rid yourself of all needless items you acquired over the winter. While you’re in your self storage unit, take the opportunity to throw away old spring items that you really haven’t used, or you know the probability isn’t likely that you’ll use certain items again.

• Put summer items to the front of the unit – While you’re rearranging things throughout your storage unit, start thinking about your summer unpacking. Therefore, if you have items in your storage unit such as a blow-up pool or cooking grill, put these items towards the front or in a certain section, so that when you pack away spring items, it will be easier to unload.

It is a good idea to arrange your self storage unit so that your items for the next season are generally towards the front. For example, since winter is ending, put your winter-related gear near the rear. When spring is over, put your spring items behind the winter items. That way, you will always have less work to do when it comes to packing and rearranging. Happy spring-cleaning!

Website Traffic

If you have a self storage website, you should know by now that a lot of work goes into making it successful. You need sufficient content, a user-friendly interface and, most importantly, website visitors. Quality content is nothing if people aren’t willing to visit you self storage website to see what it is all about. Generating website traffic does not have to be expensive. Here are a few free and relatively easy ways in which you can increase your web traffic and expand your reach on the world wide web:

• Search Engine Optimization (SEO) - Try to design your site around a keyword strategy. Include all the relevant keywords related to self storage and be sure to research proper web page optimization. You can read more about SEO in our blog here http://usselfstoragelocator.com/self-storage-blog/seo

• Guest Blogging - Invite bloggers from the self storage industry to post on your site from time to time. By doing this, you will get traffic from their websites because their readers are likely to follow them to read their post on your site. You can even blog on other websites, thus increasing your online visibility even more.

• Email Marketing - You can add a subscribe option to your website in order to assist with building a mailing list. Once you have done so, send interested individuals consistent emails. Include links to the pages on your website that you want persons to visit the most.

• Research Market Leaders - Look for the most influential forums, blogs, online magazines, and podcasts that are currently leading the self storage industry. Join and post regular comments and build a solid online relationship with other members. This will help to get your name out there and drive more traffic back to your website.

• Social media - There are numerous social media sites that are free to use. You can learn more about them here – Self Storage Online Marketing. Maintain active accounts and interact regularly with other persons. This is also a great way to connect with and research industry leaders. You can even use it to keep an eye on your competition.

These are just a few ways in which you can drive traffic to your website absolutely free of cost. Each method listed requires a bit of work but the pay off in the end will be worth it. You will need to consistently work on whichever one you choose as the results will not happen overnight. For more information on what online marketing can do for your self storage facility, check out our other blog posts right here on our Self Storage Blog.

Self Storage Tips

Renting a self storage space can be a pretty big commitment. Depending on your storage needs, you may use a self storage facility for a very long time. Some people actually store, for the sake of storing—in other words, they store indefinitely. Upon deciding to use self storage always cover the very basic necessities before you choose a facility. Take note of the following tips listed below when looking for a place to store your valued belongings:

• Find adequate insurance

  Many facilities offer insurance, while others have insurance rates built into the unit rate. Sometimes these plans will come at a higher cost. Do some independent research and find an insurance company with a monthly or yearly premium that fits your budget. Ensure that you do not under value your items. In the unfortunate event of an accident, or theft, you will want your items replaced at full cost.

• Make a list of your items to be stored

  This can assist with keeping track of your belongings, especially if you plan on storing a large number of things. If you are storing one or two pieces of large items, such as furniture, a list may not be necessary. However, if you are storing many small items in boxes, take note of the contents in each box before you place them into self storage. This also helps in the event of “foul-play”—so that you can determine if anything is missing.

• Determine the amount of space you need

  When renting online, it might be difficult to estimate how big of a unit you may need. You don’t want to rent too much or too little space. Unit sizes are often listed as 5x5, 10x 10 etc. If you are not sure how much space you will need, call the self storage facility and tell them what you will be storing in order for them to recommend an appropriate size before you reserve a unit online.

• Inquire about the different types of units

  It is good to be aware of the different unit options you may have available. Remember, self storage is not a ‘one size fits all’. You may need a specialized unit based on what you are storing. For example, if you will be storing items that need to be kept at a certain temperature to prevent mold and mildew, you may want to a consider climate controlled storage unit.

• Purchase a high quality lock

  Whether you are storing items worth a couple hundred or a couple thousand dollars, it is a given that you will want to keep them secure. Be sure to use a high-quality lock. Some self storage facilities sell padlocks on the premises, but this convenience may come for a slight bit more.

Overall, you should choose a unit that you are comfortable with. Consider the frequency in which you will use your self storage unit when deciding the proximity of a facility. A reasonable distance from your home and/or office should be ideal if you plan to visit your locker often. Make sure you have all the access and storage options that you will need in order to comfortably store your belongings. To locate a unit that is right for you, use the search option on USSelfStorageLocator.com.

Self Storage Aggregators

Find self storage anywhere anytime – The ability to look for a storage unit online lets you do your research anytime from the comfort of your home or work, without ever waisting time driving around or making phone calls. You can look at unit sizes, prices, amenities, special offers, and much more. Then make you reservation and move-in on the date you selected.

• Find a self storage unit anywhere anytime

  The ability to look for a storage unit online lets you do your research anytime from the comfort of your home or work, without ever wasting time driving around or making phone calls. You can look at unit sizes, prices, amenities, special offers, and much more. Then make you reservation and move-in on the date you selected.

• Making use of the advanced search options

  Self storage facilities often have amenities such as climate controlled, 24-hour access, drive-up access etc. When using a self storage aggregator, you can begin your search by including the amenities you are most interested in so that you can find a deal which is applicable to your needs. You don’t want to find a great rate only to realize that the unit does not have all features you need.

• Comparing facilities before renting

  Some aggregators like USSelfStorageLocator.com have a ‘compare’ feature to see the deals and features of many different facilities all at once. Though many facilities might be offering similar deals, the ‘compare’ feature will help you narrow them down so you can find the best deal in the area closest to you.

• Self Storage Tips and Information

  Good aggregators offer lots of useful self storage information and tips. They have dedicated people working on bringing you the most useful information about storing your valued items on a self storage unit. From packing tips to security precautions and much more. Reviewing these tips will help you have a good self storage experience.

These were just some of the benefits a self storage aggregator can provide you the next time you need to hunt for a self storage unit. Remember, there are many self storage aggregators available. However, the customer centered features offered by USSelfStorageLocator.com can assist in conveniently finding the best self storage deals and facilities in your area.