March 27, 2008

I am at the end of a two week training class with brand new Phone Smart Reps.  It is always a pleasure to see them make their way into the call center.  Tonight they will each be taking their first call.

So how do we get our Reps ready to serve our storage facility customers? 

We teach them about sales, the storage companies we serve and the industry.  We are very proud to be a sales force and not just an answering service for all of customers rather they have traditional storage units, climate controlled storage units, boat storage, rv storage or wine storage.  We work hard to get reservations and tenants into the storage facility we are answering the call for. 

Below are the Basic 5 agreements that every Phone Smart Rep uses on every call while on the call center floor. 

1. Is our location convenient for you?
2. How soon will you be needing storage?
3. Do you know what size unit you will be needing or can I help you narrow that down?
4. Security – Amenities of the location and their benefits, how does that sound so far?
5. The price is ONLY $ XX!   I can lock that price in right now, your Name?

Good luck to the new reps as well as a great chance for our mentor reps and long time pros to do a self evaluation that they are using these 5 agreements on every call.   Building agreements through out your call makes closing the sale, oh so sweet! 

Car storage units : http://www.Carstorageunits.com

Selling over the phone is very different than traditional/retail sales.  The person that you are speaking with cannot see anything that you can see.  It is very hard for the average person to picture what you are saying to them.  When you are selling self storage the problem gets even worse.  This can be seen as a drawback, or you can see it as an opportunity.  The great thing about not being able to see each other is the fact the customer cannot see you either.  This gives you a unique opportunity to create price stalls.  A price stall is a great way to build value to your store.  A great example that has been proven to work is the computer loading price stall.  Everyone can relate to waiting for a computer to "load".  While the information is being pulled up, now you have a chance to tell the customer why they should rent there.  If something is worth storing, then its worth having it in a nice place.  With these price stalls you will be able to have uninterrupted time to explain what sets you apart from the competition.  Let them know the type of quality that you can offer them.

Self-storage bins  : http://www.Selfstoragebin.com

Call centers are a great way to answer your phones when you are not in the office.  Many companies over the last few years have been outsourcing their call center to save money.  It is questionable weather or not some of these companies actually saved any money.  It is true that they spent less money on paying call center employees you must ask yourself if it’s worth it.  What was the “actual cost” of having your call center outsourced to another country?  Even in other countries, you get what you pay for.  If you pay them less, which is the reason to outsource in the first place, you will get less quality.  A company like PhoneSmart is a great way to get a balance of a great price, and excellent service.  These companies are gaining in popularity because they get results!  If you are thinking of going elsewhere, or hoping that your employees can handle the phone calls themselves, you are taking an unnecessary risk.  In the world of mini storage PhoneSmart really has an excellent call center staff!

Self-storage comparison  : http://www.Selfstoragecomparison.info

I will admit it, when I hear people whispering in the corner of a room I perk up my ears and lean in that direction. Call me nosy... but if you won't admit that you do it too, you're just in denial.

One thing I can say though, is that eavesdropping on our self storage call center is nothing to be ashamed of. A few moments ago I was standing behind Kurt, waiting to discuss our Chipotle salsa preferences. He was wrapping up a storage rental inquiry and I thought it was going well.  I think the customer was in Crofton Maryland but I am not sure, it was either Crofton Maryland or somewhere else in Maryland.

Kurt gave all the self storage data . He was leading the customer to the site visit and then did a great job creating urgency and offering the reservation. I thought for sure he had it in the bag!

I was giving the play-by-play in my mind: "Ya Kurt, it's a slam dunk!"

Just then, I could sense hesitation in the caller's voice. "Oh no, hurry Kurt, save the rental!"

But the hesitant caller was no match for Kurt! He effortlessly replied, "Yes, we only have a few left and with the weekend coming up and the holiday, it is a busy time for moving. I can go ahead and reserve that for you now on a Visa or Mastercard, which one would you care to use?" - The classic sense of urgency for self storage facilities .

"Oh Yeah!! Kurt saved it! He's totally got it in the bag now!"

Moments later, Kurt was writing down his confirmation number and we were chatting about green Chipotle salsa!

Self storage rooms  : http://www.Selfstoragerooms.com

I felt like we had a good week in the call center. We did not get the kind of rental demand i would have liked, but we had strong answer rates. I heard a lot of good attitude from the reps. even though storage unit rentals are down.  Many of the newer trainees are really starting to sound good. I look forward to another good week.

Tron

There is a growing demand for call center outsourcing and for very good reason.  Whent it comes to industries such as; selfstorage, property management, or any kind of renting in general, there is money being lost everytime you don't answer the phone.  Many times people wil be out of the office showing a potential customer what personal storage is all about.  While they are away from the phone, if it rings, it is potentially costing you moeny everytime.  For the cost of about a small unit, you could be enjoying the piece of mind that comes with using a reputable company, such as phonesmart, to answer the phones for you.  Many places that use PhoneSmart as an offsite sales force expierence reservations even after their local business hours.  Most people, who are looking for storage, will get the phonebook out and start dialing, if the first one doesn't answer, it is right on to the next.  The first person to answer is going to greatly increase their chances of getting the rental.

Self-storage room  : http://www.Selfstoragerooms.com

Sometimes I get a little chuckle when I hear about some people’s opinion on the importance of the random shops that are pulled to test call quality. I hear so many people kind of blow off or not seem to care when the call center leaders are putting such a big deal on one call.

If you take a couple of seconds to think about it, most selfstorage owners are all about making money. If they actually decide to spend money in order to make a huge profit in the long run, most owners would jump at the chance. The moment they feel as if they are losing money or their money is not being well spent, they will find out why.

There have been many managers calling the call center trying to shop us to determine whether or not we are worth the money that we charge. Most of the time, they only shop us once or twice a week. They call into the call center and randomly shop a call center rep. That call center rep does not get the opportunity to explain that they had just taken 20 calls in a row and they were frustrated. The manager only cares that the customer that they were helping for their company was not being served.

In all reality, I feel there should be more stock in the random pulls we have a couple of times a month so people can understand that that random pull could have been a self storage owner, wondering if we are important enough investment to keep paying. If every client thinks that we are not worth the investment, there would not be a call center. Every call counts.

Self-storage comparison  : http://www.Selfstoragecomparison.info

You know, the people in the call center do a really great job and I believe that they should be commended for their work. Some of the people in the call center have been there a long time while others have been there for a short time. With some people it seems effortless to talk to people on the phone about their self storage options. Whether it is boat storage, car storage, wine storage, or just regular storage of items in their house, our call center reps do not blink an eye when it is time serve them. They provide great customer service as well as great sales instinct. We even have some reps who push the envelope a little much sometimes, but hey, they are taught to be nice, thorough and get the caller into the store. That is all I can ask of them to do. I am proud of the way we have been trending lately, and it has been a total team effort getting us to this point. Instead of just riding the wave, I am ready to step on the pedal and accelerate faster than we ever have. I am glad that there is a team in there that is going to do a good job for us.

Self-storage comparison   : http://www.Selfstoragecomparison.com

The average storage facility manager can spend a lot of their day on the phone.  With both incoming calls from storage inquiries as well as the outgoing calls to follow-up, the minutes could add up fast.  With today's Call Center options, managers have been given the opportunity to spend more time taking care of customers at the counter while someone else takes care of their incoming calls.

Any decent Call Center can provide a storage facility mananger with a number of leads containing detailed informantion.  Most of these leads tell the manager who it was that called, what was discussed, and how to reach that person back directly.   What separates the professional manager from the amateur, are the ones that call those leads back immediately.  A quick follow-up response from the site manager simply augments the opportunity to get that customer in to rent.

Call Centers can provide a great sales staff to go over the basic information, amenities, prices, and specials of any property.  However, only managers on site can provide detailed information, offer alternate specials or discounts, and answer any specific questions that caller may have.  Any manager who currently follows up with their Call Center leads will tell you how much it increases their opportunity to reserve and rent a unit to that caller.  Who would want to pass up that chance?

Car storage units : http://www.Carstorageunits.com