Short answer: Mark still tracks the standard KPIs, such as occupancy and delinquency ratio. In today’s market he also measures how well an owner or manager shows up in the local community: referrals from local businesses, event attendance, reviews from business partners, repeat business and referrals from existing customers.
Why measure community involvement #
Self-storage is hyper-local. Mark sees partnerships with local businesses and a visible presence in the trade area as one of the ways a smaller operator stands apart from REITs and larger players. Measuring it turns that effort into something a manager can be held to and improve.
Five measures Mark suggests #
- Referrals from businesses in the area
- Event attendance
- Reviews from business partners in the trade area
- Repeat business
- Referrals from existing customers
These aren’t fixed. Mark encourages owners to choose any measure they feel would move the needle for a particular trade area and a particular manager.
Putting it into practice #
Mark’s free Community Scorecard is a one-page worksheet with these five measures, a row for your own, monthly and quarterly columns, and a log of partners and events. Review it alongside the monthly numbers.
Related answers #
- What metrics should a self-storage owner track every month?
- How can a smaller self-storage operator compete with REITs for customers?
- What is a self-storage delinquency ratio and how do you calculate it?
Source: Mark’s post Three Ways a Smaller Operator Can Win the Customer Game Against REITs
