A newly built self storage facility was struggling to fill units, leaving the owner in a precarious financial position, losing over $4,000 monthly. With no steady marketing system in place, the property saw no improvement in website traffic or move-ins during Q2 and Q3 2024, traditionally some of the busiest months for storage rentals.
Facing the possibility of being unable to pay the bank, the owner urgently needed a solution. Additionally, development on unused land was on hold until the existing units reached profitable occupancy levels.
Summary
- Move-Ins
- Increased by 80%, from 10 in Q3 to 18 in Q4, despite only having two full months plus the last week of October to implement our marketing system.
- Projected 23+ move-ins if we had the full month of October.
- Net Move-Ins
- Increased by 160%, jumped from 5 in Q3 to 13 in Q4, even during slower seasonal demand.
- By comparison, they had only 6 in Q2—no real growth during peak season before we partnered with them.
- Website Traffic
- Doubled from 582 in Q3 to 1,213 in Q4. They got more traffic in Q4 than both Q2 and Q3 traffic metrics combined.
- Demonstrated the immediate impact of on-page SEO, local search optimization, and focused PPC.
Challenges
- Small Market & Limited Search Volume: The facility’s local area wasn’t generating enough leads due to low keyword search volume.
- High-Competition Neighboring City: While a nearby larger city offered more potential renters, it was already dominated by REITs and major operators with bigger marketing budgets.
- Location Constraints: Situated between a small and large market, the facility had few immediate residents within a 3-mile radius and needed to attract renters up to 5 miles away.
- Lack of Digital Marketing Know-How: The owner had little experience or guidance on leveraging online channels effectively.
- User Experience Issues: The existing website, built on the Easy Storage Solutions platform, had a subpar rental process and poor user experience, further hindering conversions.
Our Approach
- Local & Organic SEO Overhaul
- Optimized Google Business Profile (GBP) to improve map pack visibility.
- Refined On-Page SEO to improve rankings and click-through rates.
- Built Citations & Backlinks on industry-relevant sites to strengthen domain authority.
- Created pages targeting RV and boat storage to capture specialized demand.
- Launched city-specific pages focusing on the larger nearby market to funnel new move-ins from that city.
- Targeted Google Ads Campaign
- Geographic Focus: Ran ads targeting the nearby larger city to tap into a bigger pool of potential renters. Used “Pin mode” in Google Ads to get hyper-targeted with our locations.
- High-Intent Keywords: Allocated budget to terms most likely to convert into move-ins. Refined and paused the keywords that did not convert into move-ins over time.
- Strategic Bidding & Tracking: Monitored conversions closely to ensure maximum ROI on ad spend.
- Ad Copy: Made ad copy stand out by focusing on our locally operated value prop, current promo, and rates.
- Website Expansion & Conversion Improvements
- Rental process improvement: Streamlined the rental process by reducing the required form fields, reducing friction from initial click to completed reservation.
- UX Adjustments: Added social proof and our value prop to key pages to build user trust.
- Analytics setup to identify which marketing channels drove the best leads and move-ins.
Key Results
- Move-Ins
- Increased by 80%, from 10 in Q3 to 18 in Q4, despite only having two full months plus the last week of October to implement our marketing system.
- Projected 23+ move-ins if we had the whole month of October.
- Net Move-Ins
- Increased by 160%, jumped from 5 in Q3 to 13 in Q4, even during slower seasonal demand.
- By comparison, they had only 6 in Q2—no real growth during peak season before us partnering with them.
- Website Traffic
- Doubled from 582 in Q3 to 1,213 in Q4. They got more traffic in Q4 than both Q2 and Q3 traffic metrics combined.
- Demonstrated the immediate impact of on-page SEO, local search optimization, and focused PPC.
Why It Matters
Storage facilities often struggle to maintain growth outside of peak seasons. By leveraging an aggressive local SEO strategy, building niche service pages for RV and boat storage, and tapping into an adjacent metropolitan market with Google Ads, this facility reversed its mid-year stagnation and significantly boosted both traffic and move-ins, even during a traditionally slow quarter.
We should have this facility fully leased up in 2025, and then we can start the expansion project.
Ready for Similar Results?
Get a Free Marketing Plan tailored to your facility:
- Marketing Tactics Analysis to drive more online rentals and move-ins
- Promo & Competitor Rate Review to optimize your pricing strategy
- Conversion Rate Audit revealing what’s stopping visitors from booking
- Keyword Forecast identifies the highest-return search terms in your market
Contact us for your no-obligation Free Marketing Plan and discover how you can increase move-ins, even in the slow seasons.
