Competitive Strategy Sessions
a virtual conference presented by The Storage Group
JULY 21-22, 2020
Competitive Strategy Sessions Brings Together a Who’s-Who List of Visionary Self-Storage Pros:
DAY ONE: Tuesday, July 21
Your Reputation Matters Melissa Stiles
Storage Asset Management 
11:30 AM – 12:15 PM ET/8:30 AM – 9:15 AM PT
With more traffic coming to our facilities from online and consumer behavior changing, it is important to have a proactive reputation plan. This presentation will cover avenues to receive more reviews along with managing your storage’s facility reputation online. Tools, tips, and tricks will be presented to get you started on a reputation management plan.
How Contents Insurance Can Increase Your Profit Without Any Expenses Jim Grant
Storage Protectors 
12:15 PM – 1:00 PM ET/9:15 AM – 10:00 AM PT
Vertical income stream through contents insurance while eliminating your liability for damage or break-ins. Storage Protectors allows for the largest administration fees to be paid to the facility, while not incurring any costs or licenses.
Call Centers in the COVID 19 Era Tron Jordheim
Call Here Self Storage Call Center 
1:00 PM – 1:45 PM ET/10:00 PM – 10:45 PM PT
Use call center capabilities to fill more units, collect more rent, establish no-touch practices, and make your customers happy.
15 Minute Break
COVID and Lien Sales….The New Normal Scott I. Zucker, Esq. & Carlos D. Kaslow, Esq.
Self Storage Legal Network and Storage Lease Now 
2:00 PM – 2:45 PM ET/11:00 AM – 11:45 AM PT This session will focus on the impact of the pandemic on the legal rights of self-storage owners and managers to enforce their statutory liens over their tenants’ property when the rent is not paid. This discussion will include the ability to charge late fees, the right to overlock and ultimately the right to sell stored property notwithstanding existing state emergency orders, stay at home limitations and court closures. Any operator that has suffered COVID related rent defaults will want to participate. This session will also discuss the importance of a having good rental agreement and the advantages of services like
www.StorageLeasenow.com Online Auctions- Back to the Basics Tony Johnson
Self Storage Auction 
2:45 PM – 3:30 PM ET/11:45 AM – 12:30 PM PT SelfStorageAuction.com will share how to handle your lien sales online to comply with safety protocols in accordance with COVID-19. You’ll learn how the auction process aids owners and managers in performing lien sales in a safe and timely manner while also boosting traffic to your live auctions to the largest bidder base in the industry.
Lien to Auction Automation – A Digital Way to Recession-Proof Your Business Fredrik Velander
AI-Lean 
3:30 PM – 4:15 PM ET/12:30 PM – 1:15 PM PT
During this presentation, the team will outline additional challenges related to lien processes, highlight the benefit of digital opportunities, and present their views on the ongoing economic situation and trends. A focal point of the discussion will center around how automating key processes can actually position self-storage owners to invest more time into business activities that drive better customer satisfaction, loyalty, competitiveness and ultimately higher revenue.
DAY TWO: Wednesday, July 22
Selecting the Right Access Control Technology for Your Property Paul Bodell, President and CEOVizPin
11:30 AM – 12:15 PM ET/8:30 AM – 9:15 AM PT
Controlling access to your property is no longer an option, it is a requirement. There are a wide range of technologies available today which can make it hard to decide what is best for you. In this presentation we will look at the pros and cons of the most common access control systems, keypads, card readers, biometrics and Smartkeys along with its cost efficiency.
The Automation Revolution: Untangling the Web of Technology in Self-Storage Kevin Kerr
Storage Commander Cloud Software 
12:15 PM – 1:00 PM ET/9:15 AM – 10:00 AM PT
Self-storage is undergoing a transformational shift revolving around technology and automation. With the rising availability of industry-specific products and services, it is more important than ever to understand how all of these tools can work together and how to leverage them for your benefit.In this session, we will discuss how technology is changing the established business models within self-storage and how adapting with these trends can unlock the revenue and growth potential of your business.
You will learn:
- How to identify potential issues and find solutions in technology
- What growing technology trends are available in self-storage
- How to improve the customer experience though automation
- How technology automation can increase potential revenue
- Best practices for practical implementation
How to Compete With the Big Guys Tracy Sells
Harbor Storage Group 
1:00 PM – 1:45 PM ET/10:00 AM – 10:45 AM PT
You do not have to be a REIT or large Operator to be successful. There are practices and policies you can implement to stay on a level playing field with them – and even outshine them. From Revenue Management to Marketing to Day to Day Operations and everything in between, there are ways to stay competitive with the big guys. This presentation will help you recognizes and understand the technology, tools and practices that will help you get – and stay – on a level playing field with the big operators with seemingly unlimited budgets.
15 Minute Break
On-Site Selling Strategies Carol Mixon-Krendl
SkilCheck Services, Inc. 
2:00 PM – 2:45 PM ET/11:00 AM – 11:45 AM PT- Improve your communication skills
- Organizing yourself for success
- Know your store’s advantages over your competitors
- Learn great phone sales techniques to get the customer in the door
- Think about going above and beyond the customer’s expectations
Getting the Most from Your Revenue Management and Pricing Program Warren Lieberman, PresidentVeritec Solutions 
2:45 PM – 3:30 PM ET/11:45 AM – 12:30 PM PT
Traditional pricing approaches, such as “everyday low pricing,” may be easy to implement, but typically result in less revenue, and far less profit, than data-driven strategies. Furthermore, many self-storage operators underestimate the willingness of potential customers to pay higher rents for more desirable storage unit locations – in short, square footage is only one element of what customers are willing to pay for.This presentation highlights how self-storage operators can leverage their data and information to set more profitable move-in rates and adopt more profitable rent increase strategies. We will also highlight the frequency and amount by which self-storage operators change the prices on their web sites, and how that can change geographically.
The goal of this presentation is to help attendees think differently about pricing than they currently do and have them identify specific ways they can improve their pricing decisions.
Contactless Rentals: 8 Key Features Your Online Rentals Must Have Steve Lucas
ClickandStor® Online Rental Suite 
3:30 PM – 4:15 PM ET/12:30 PM – 1:15 PM PT
For many facilities, contactless rentals have been keeping operations running amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. However, does your facility have the 8 key features necessary to optimize online rental ROI? We’ll cover common, costly drawbacks that occur and how to easily replace these with more effective and affordable solutions. Don’t let your rental tool be the reason for lost revenue generation and higher rental abandonment rates! We’ll show you how your rental tool can be an extension of your sales team. We’ll also cover areas of risk regarding online theft and fraud, and how best to mitigate this with no-nonsense security features.
Over two days, you’ll network with industry pros, experience the latest products and services, and gain useful knowledge and resources to grow your business.
