Posts filed under 'Media Relations'
A follow on to yesterday’s posting… When I said to “get involved” by posting on other newspapers’ comment boxes about self-storage stories, I got a comment on my blog. But the comment wasn’t relevant. It was merely an unrelated promotional message for a company, whose name I won’t mention. I deleted it because this blog doesn’t promote services, not even my own. That’s not true blogging.
I thought it went without saying, but it may very well be that we all need a little more education on the web 2.0 world before we can properly use it as a public relations tool. Here’s a quick hint: Don’t spam someone’s blog or post irrelevant comments on a newspaper’s comment box. You’ll lose credibility with the blog, the newspaper and everyone who reads it.
If you decide to comment for PR purposes, the idea is to add something to the conversation, a witty thought, a cogent comment. You’ll get credit by registering your name on the comment. No need for shameless, self-serving plugs, OK?
Hopefully, this will save some of you some red-faced heartache when an editor blasts you for irrelevant plugs… or quietly deletes it and puts you on the blacklist.
July 11th, 2007
Want some publicity for your storage facility? Then get involved in the web 2.0 world and start commenting on online newspaper stories about the industry — especially ones in your home town. It’s quick, it’s free and it’s effective. It’s called viral marketing. Why not give it a try? Social media is the wave of the future.
For all of you self-storage operators and consultants and real estate brokers in Arizona, here’s an article to get you going:
Click here to read: Can’t get a handle on clutter at home?
Just don’t say anything I wouldn’t say. In other words, tread carefully because if you don’t choose your words wisely they could come back to haunt you. It’s a balancing act. You need to know the ways of communicating in a socially networked web 2.0 world.
July 10th, 2007
arcus & Millichap’s national platform has paid off for its clients once again, connecting an East Coast client to a West Coast property in a $7.35 million sale. Marcus & Millichap’s The Mele Group, in cooperation with Bobby Loeffler in Sacramento, brokered the sale of All Size Storage in Elk Grove, Calif.Michael A. Mele and The Mele Group Investment Associate Scott Rutherford joined forces with Bobby Loeffler, Director of the National Self Storage Group at Marcus & Millichap, combining their self-storage expertise and investor connections to ensure the All Size Storage property earned top dollar in the competitive California market.
“The All Size Storage property was a prime acquisition as it is quickly approaching stabilization and offers Class A construction quality,” said Michael, who is also president of the Florida Self Storage Association. “Although there are markets in California that are overbuilt, this Elk Grove facility assures the investor a strategic advantage with little competition.”
Click here to read the rest of this release.
July 9th, 2007
When South Lamar Storage & Wine Cellar opens its doors on July 16, area residents and businesses will be introduced to a whole new approach to self-storage, according to a press release about the opening.
In addition to traditional storage services for general household and office items, the company will offer climate-controlled self-storage solutions for fine wine, tobacco and archival collections, and concierge services to meet the needs of downtown Austin’s high-end clientele.
Will Steakley, vice president of residential sales at urbanspace Realtors LLP in Austin, explains that as Austinites move into small urban spaces, their storage needs are evolving. “As our youth and empty nesters trade in a garage full of lawnmowers for the simplicity of a maintenance-free box in the sky, the demand for accessible long- and short-term storage within our urban core will become more and more precious,” he said.
I applaud this out of the box thinking. It may not be a whole new approach to self-storage in some regards. Wine storage is nothing new, but this is definitely a fresh approach that will have no trouble finding media attention in Austin, which is a great media market. Congratulations to South Lamar Storage for its innovation — and its commitment to communicating its differences in the local market.
Click here to read the rest of the release about South Lamar Storage.
July 6th, 2007
Zacks Equity Research highlighted Public Storage (NYSE: PSA) as the Bull of the Day. Shares of PSA have traded down about 17% since mid-April.
Zacks attributes this to a correction in the sector as investors are taking profits after multi-year gains. Zacks thinks the sell-off has been overblown and PSA is still operating in an excellent environment for self-storage.
The company continues to have strong earnings momentum, and as the economy strengthens, the company should see even greater returns. With the acquisition of Shurgard, PSA removed a major competitor, and is by far the largest self storage operator in the U.S. Zacks is also encouraged by a slowdown in new supply coming on line in major markets.
This is good news for all of self-storage because PSA is a good indicator of industry health. I’m glad Wall Street is watching. It gives us a real look at the industry, not just what the internal pundits say. If I were in charge of marketing for Public Storage, I would amp up my marketing right about now. In fact, if I were marketing for any quality facility, now is the time to beef up marketing/branding campaigns to leverage this rebound.
July 3rd, 2007
Ouch. The author of “Sorting It Out: One Disorganized Woman Solves the Problem of Too Much Stuff” just blasted self-storage. She writes:
“Renting storage space is generally one of the most useless expenses anyone can add to the household budget. I’m hard-pressed to come up with a legitimate reason for it, except for those rare instances when the rental facility is truly a temporary or seasonal solution to a storage problem.
“Temporary does not mean forever; that would be permanent. So, if you have stored something for longer than a year (a very generous length of time), it is probably no longer a temporary arrangement. If you haven’t accessed what you have in storage during that year, unless you were off having a fine old time touring the continent (or facing the challenge of serving our country abroad), it’s pretty safe to conclude that you don’t need what you’ve stored. That means it’s time to unload the burdens of the storage unit and all of its unnecessary contents.”
Good grief. Not someone we want evangelizing for the industry, is it? This is the kind of information that needs to be combated with information to the contrary. This author goes on and on and on about self-storage’s origins — all in the name of promoting her book.
See, if you buy her book, she figures, you won’t need self-storage because you’ll be organized. What she fails to acknowledge is that there’s many other reasons people use self-storage, among other key points.
What do you think? Is she accurate in her description of “selfish storage?” Or shouldn’t we do some education to the contrary here?
Her blog comments have plenty of supporters. What say you?
Read her blog here.
June 29th, 2007
Edmond residents, like most Americans, own a lot of stuff — so much stuff, in fact, that they don’t have room to store it all at home, according to an article that recently appeared in The Edmond Sun in Oklahoma.
The self-storage trend is on the rise locally, as well as across the country, the story reports. According to the Edmond Economic Development Authority, building permits have been granted for 107,000 square feet of self-storage space in the Edmond area since 2004.
The industry coverage is awesome, but is self-storage still in the trend stage? Or is it just that this reporter hasn’t been duly educated on the industry’s decades-long history? Sure, the industry is relatively young, but it’s not wearing diapers, either.
So, yes, perhaps it is a trend the reporter is seeing, but it’s not a new trend. It’s a trend that remains alive and well — and it’s spreading, which is probably what our reporter friend in Oklahoma is noticing. In any case, it’s great to see the story. It’s our job to educate reporters from coast to coast and in other nations about self-storage so the trend can live on in a positive light.
June 28th, 2007
Here’s one way to get publicity: Hire someone with star power to manage your facility. That’s just what Hawaii Self Storage did.
Shaun Salvador in 1996 was a football walk-on for the University of Nevada at Las Vegas, for which he played a year at tight end, including one game he suited up against University of Hawaii (which UNLV lost), according to the Star-Bulletin. The Star goes on to conduct a Q&A with the “star.” This is priceless publicity because folks in the local community will doubtless want to meet him, or at least the kids will.
What can you do to leverage the star qualities of your staff? They say everyone has their 15 minutes of fame. Perhaps you don’t have any ex-college football heros on your team, but ask questions of your staff and make the most of their experiences. It could be that they are comunity service superstars or foster parent heros. Get the idea?
Click here to read the story in the Star-Bulletin.
June 26th, 2007
Marcus & Millichap’s The Mele Group has listed a three-property portfolio in Corpus Christi, Texas, demonstrating that the Tampa-based self-storage brokerage has the manpower, investor database power and networking power to broker deals in markets beyond its home base in Florida.The AAA Storage portfolio is listed at $14.8 million. Michael A. Mele and Kevin Gordon from The Mele Group joined forces with Mark A. Villanueva, an Investment Associate in Marcus & Millichap’s Real Estate Investment Services’ National Self Storage Group in Austin, to broker the sale. The trio will combine their self-storage expertise and investor connections to ensure the AAA Storage portfolio earns top dollar in the market.
“The AAA Storage portfolio offers investors a unique opportunity to buy into a group of properties that are not only in close proximity to one another, but strategically located in markets with high rental populations,” said Michael A. Mele, Senior Investment Associate at Marcus & Millichap’s Mele Storage Group. “Projecting a closing in early fall and due to its strong lease-up pace, the portfolio will be deliverable near a 7% CAP Rate at list price and offers room for both physical and economic occupancy increases. This is an investor’s dream.”
The three properties are AAA Storage Ayers, AAA Storage IH 37 and AAA Storage Rodd Field, all within 12 miles of one another. The trio of single-level properties offers a group of premier self-storage facilities totaling 322,085 rentable square feet and 2,238 units. Each site is built out to capacity and is currently in lease up of the final build-out phase. Over the past 12 months, the portfolio has seen its physical occupancy climb, on average, net 2,000 square feet a month – a strong contributor to its investor appeal. As of May 31, 2007, the portfolio posts a 66 percent physical occupancy.
“From a management perspective, the AAA Storage portfolio offers clear benefits. With the properties located so close together, oversight of the facilities becomes easier,” said Villanueva, an Investment Associate in Marcus & Millichap’s Real Estate Investment Services’ National Self Storage Group in Austin. “With occupancy rates rising each month and the city of Corpus Christi poised for growth, this is a strategic acquisition for an investor who is willing to purchase all three properties.”
Click here to read the rest of this release.
June 25th, 2007
Yet another fund is including self-storage in its mix. Harrison Street Real Estate Capital closed Harrison Street Real Estate Partners I LP. The total value of the fund is expected to be between $800 million and $1 billion. Beyond senior housing, student housing, parking and medical properties, the fund will invest in, yep, you guessed it - self-storage.
The powers that be at Harrison said they wanted to focus on “niche areas” of real estate. At some level, self-storage may always be a niche. At another level, self-storage is a force to be reckoned as it continues to show strong among investors against other property types.
Success is always a two-edged sword. It presents opportunity and challenges.This is great marketing for the industry, but, of course, will lead to stiffer competition for operators.
June 21st, 2007
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