A few weeks ago, as I was leaving a challenging meeting with a real estate client – frustrated that I didn’t get the deal done – I got a call from one of our facility Managers.
I immediately thought, “What now?”
When I answered, she excitedly said “I hit my monthly goal today! I didn’t think I would make it this month, but someone who’s been behind for months came in and paid cash. I’m $42 over. This morning I was over $3,500 behind.”
I realized it was the last day of the month.
My day just got a lot better.
It wasn’t the money. It was that Manager reminding me what someone who takes 100% responsibility looks like. Now my real estate transaction frustration occurred to me in a new way.
That’s what a great self storage manager does.
The reality is, that manager didn’t wake up on the last day of the month and say, “Wow, I’m behind this month. I’d better do something today.”
It starts around mid-month.
A good manager will realize around the 15th that they are either ahead for the month, on track, or behind.
Then they still have half a month to make it happen. I’m talking about their income goal.
Of all the KPI’s, Income Per Month is the one managers relate to the best (in most cases, not all).
So what does a great manager do when they are behind and know it?
Not just one thing. It’s usually a combination of actions:
1. Make collection calls.
Great managers don’t wait until they’re behind. They always have their eye on delinquencies as a percentage number. They are always making these calls. I’ve noticed that all my great managers always have a delinquency list on their desk with lots of notes on it.
If they are clearly behind, this is the first place they go to mine money, from the people who have already said “I will pay you,” but haven’t yet.
2. Run a special.
This doesn’t happen as much now with high occupancy, but in the old days they would come to me and say, “I have a lot of 5 x 10’s unleased. Can I run a special?”
3. Sell more Tenant Insurance.
They reach out to the existing customer base of tenants, as well as new people moving in, who don’t have tenant insurance and sell them some.
4. Sell more retail.
I have seen managers really focus on increasing retails sales with new customers as a way to make up ground. It’s amazing what people will buy if you just ask them.
5. Ask for more referrals.
Reach out to customers and local contacts reminding them we pay referral fees.
Our number one source of referrals outside our existing and past customers are other self storage facilities. I’ve seen managers double down on touching base with other facilities (and apartments) to remind them we have this or that size available. They will run a cash referral fee quickly to them if they have someone in mind.
I’m sure there are more things they do that I don’t even know about.
But this doest just start on the last day of the month, or the last week even. It starts much earlier when a manager realizes they are behind for the month.
It is important for a manager to have a mid-month reality check, see if they are going to make it or not. Then a great manager will do what’s necessary to reach their income target.
Of all the things I have stated so far, that is the most important: to do an assessment mid-month of how it’s going. In reality.
Not to have some quick excuse why things are behind, then pick up the newspaper again. A reality check. Something like, “I’m behind and unless I turn things around, we’ll miss this month’s target.”
When I’m hiring, I ask myself if this candidate will be someone who:
- can, and will, ask themselves that question, and
- take action and not rationalize it away.
Literally, that is how I attempt to determine if the candidate will be someone who is “100% responsible”.
We are not just looking for responsible people, we want people who are 100% responsible. If you are someone who is 100% responsible for an outcome, you have reality checks often. You also don’t make a negative answer mean something negative about yourself.
Most people make a negative answer mean something negative about themselves. And rather than deal with that, it is quickly rationalized away. Something like, “…it’s the fall and things always slow down,” or “there’s a new facility leasing up down the road. Of course, I’m going to be slow.”
A negative answer is just that, a negative answer. It means, “Now I have to do something different. What would give me the best results?”
I know when I get that call on the last day of the month from an excited manager, there was a whole lot of internal conversations and actions that have been happening for days and weeks.
That inspires me and reminds me who I can be as well.
