by Josh Parker
I recently had the opportunity to attend the Northeast Self Storage Association (NeSSA) Fall Retreat. In addition to a wonderful lunch, there were two educational seminars, an industry round table discussion, and networking opportunities with industry professionals and vendors.
NeSSA Fall Retreat at Public House, Sturbridge, MA
The seminars were presented by fantastic speakers. Melissa Stiles of Storage Asset Management, Inc. presented on marketing, and Joe Doherty of Self Storage Association gave an update on recent legislative successes and changes to local lien laws. I attended the retreat with a local self-storage manager, and we both gained valuable insight, knowledge, and made great connections with other industry professionals.
While the retreat I attended was put on by a local self-storage association, the national Self Storage Association (SSA) provides wonderful member benefits. In addition to the retreats and conferences, being a member of means that we have access to valuable resources- education, training, legal information, and publications. SSA provides advocacy, lobbying before Congress and federal departments, and represents the self-storage industry in state and local municipalities.
SSA also provides online directories for both facilities and vendors, and stays current in industry research and data to assist owner-operators and facility managers.
These are just a couple of the many great takeaways for me from the retreat:
The Self Storage Association is always working to make positive changes (and prevent harmful changes) to lien laws across the country. For example, in CT where I am, recent changes to the lien laws now allow for facilities to have RVs, Vessels, Motor Vehicles, etc to be towed in lieu of auction procedures.
Marketing is more important than ever, and the trends are important to keep up with.
Can you require all tenants to be on auto-pay? It depends on your state laws. MA requires that you accept cash payments, so auto pay cannot be required.
Market research indicates that the speed your website loads is extremely important to your potential customers! I would never have thought that as little as 1 extra second to load would make a difference!
Josh Parker is VP of Technology and Development at Storage Authority. A tech guru with a background in large facility operations and team leadership, Josh is passionate about helping individuals and teams achieve success! He can be reached at josh@storageauthority.com, by phone at (942) 275-1340, and can also often be seen visiting local coffee shops across Central Connecticut.
If you want to learn more about Storage Authority Franchise Opportunities, you can request a call here www.storageauthorityfranchise.com/opportunity4
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