As the self-storage business is unique with tasks and reporting unlike other businesses, the management software for self-storage must be designed to meet a brand’s specific needs. After investing both time and money into the development of self-storage business owners are faced with the difficulty of managing manual tasks while running their business. But too often, they rush into choosing any management software without analyzing whether it fits their needs or not. Due to the unique nature of a self-storage model, it is important to determine which program best suits your requirements today and tomorrow.
What is self-storage management software?
Self-storage management software is a solution that provides the ability to manage self-storage units on the basis of facility size, budget, and operational requirements to meet business goals. Whether you own a small self-storage business or a well-established one, self-storage management software helps you in managing your storage facilities in a quick, methodological, and professional manner.
Simply put, self-storage management software is a system that enables storage space owners to manage their storage units remotely and have all the key pieces of information available and accessible at all times. You can easily access the data on available storage spaces, booking, payment processing, etc.
This helps you save your valuable effort and time, control your workflow, and help you focus on other aspects of business more intensively. Alternatively, there are white label self-storage management solutions that help you to create a full-fledged website to develop your self-storage platform.
Benefits of self-storage management software
The advancements in modern technology have brought in significant changes in the ways we do self-storage business. The use of self-storage management is one of them, which helps businesses to have better control, enjoy improved efficiency and high productivity, and eventually deliver better customer experiences. The benefits of this amazing software solution don’t end there. Here are some of the benefits of self-storage management software for your self-storage business.
Convenience
The most significant benefit of using self-storage software is the incredible convenience it offers. This holds true especially if you are using a cloud-based self-storage system. This facilitates your business to access the data from anywhere when you have Internet capability.
You could be traveling at work or stuck at home, and still have access to all your booking information and billing reports. The self-storage managing software also allows you to have a degree of control over the business operations to make sure everything is running smoothly. This expedites your response to issues and allows you to enjoy greater control to set things in order.
Self-storage unit management
The fundamental function of self-storage management software is to allow businesses to manage move-ins and move-outs of self-storage units, keep a database of user information, and allow you to review the payment status of customers. Good software also comes with a
A user-friendly dashboard that gives you a quick view of the availability of spaces, occupancy, revenue generated, and other key metrics relevant to your business success.
Website design
Some self-storage management solution comes with web design features are an ideal option if you have no web presence and want to set your own self-storage platform. This comes with several advantages like seamless integrations between your online booking, inventory control, and other management systems.
User-friendly system
Self-storage management software offers a simple and user-friendly system to manage your business effortlessly. With user-friendly software, your team need not spend a lot of time to familiarize with the software system. Higher-end solution providers offer better customer support which allows enjoying constant support and guidance in case you need any help after installation. Most software is PC and Mac compatible, allowing you to access the software from literally any computer system you use.
Inventory control
One of the primary benefits of software for self-storage business is to keep track of which storage spaces at your facility are available for rentals in real-time. Some software systems also give you a visual picture of available and occupied storage units through a custom storage facility map.
Process and collect online payment
The ability to process and collect payments online is a game-changer for self-storage space businesses. In this digital age, customers prefer to enjoy the ability to book and pay for self-storage units online.
If a customer comes to your self-storage website through an online search, the ability for them to book and pay for a storage unit online will impress them which will benefit your business in turn. Otherwise, most probably, they will continue their search to book your competitor’s services that allow them to pay online.
Recurring billing
Unlike the standard account management software, self-storage management software allows business owners to apply recurring billing. At any point while using your services, your customers can get a detailed report on payment details which all customers will appreciate.
As billing is made in advance for self-storage businesses, regular accounting software cannot offer complete payment information. This is where self-software management software becomes significant.
Efficient customer relationship management
Self-storage management software offers an automated way to proactively communicate with your existing customers and prospects. The software would feature many built-in trigger events to activate a customer relationship management process that you can configure. It also handles lead management allowing to automatically follow up and send notifications to respective customers. Altogether, self-storage management software is not just a customer relationship management tool, but a go-to multi-purpose tool to run your business efficiently.
Security integrations
The success of self-storage businesses lies in the security integrations it provides as security systems being the most important aspect of any self-storage facility. With self-storage management software, you retain the ability to lock out non-paying customers and customers who are not adhering to the policies which help to keep your self-storage facility more safe and secure.
The software is industry-specific
From the surface, renting self-storage units appears to be simple. However, in reality, it’s not. It involves a complex set of business operations that needs careful execution. For the same reason, your self-storage software is industry-specific to deal with customers according to the specific industry. Each industry needs a specific self-storage management software system to complement the business the best way.
Don’t have to worry about updates and backups
With a self-storage management software system, you need not worry about software updates and backups. You need not download or install anything. The management software will always be live and up-to-date. As the software can be updated so easily, any problem can be easily fixed, tested, and updated quickly. Finally, you never have to worry about backing up data and the software will do all these tasks on its own so that you can focus on other business activities.
Customer support
One of the most important factors while choosing any software is the customer support you receive. Self-storage management software programs that are web-based are more easily supported when compared to web-enabled software programs. The reason being, the solution providers can access the essential data along with the user, see exactly what they see, and often fix the problems quickly. When picking a self-storage software system, make sure fee support is integrated into the package as well.
Things to consider when purchasing self-storage management software for your self-storage business
Choosing to invest in a self-storage management software system for your storage business is the most significant decision that drives your business growth. To make sure you are making the right decision, here are some of the key things to consider when buying self-storage management software.
Buy the software at the right time
When buying self-storage management software for their business, most brands make the mistake of being late with the software purchase. Many think that they can manage the business operations manually, only to realize later that it is hectic.
It is important to choose the software at least sometime before you officially enter the storage business. This is important as the software must be customized according to your unique business requirements. Having enough time to consider all the necessary features and customizations and then choose the best software is of key importance.
Choose a flexible self-storage management system
Your self-storage businesses will go through constant development which is impossible without making necessary customizations in the way you run your business. Hence, it is really significant to choose a flexible self-storage management system that adapts to your changes in policies to follow and support your business as it expands. Otherwise, you will really risk the smooth running of your business as your software fails to adapt to your business changes.
Get clarity about software terms
If you don’t understand the terms and conditions, you will have a tough time making an informed decision about which self-storage management software system is best for your business. For example, you need to understand PC-based software, web-based, and web-enabled software programs.
PC-based software is a web-enabled software system that can be installed directly on a computer system and doesn’t need to be connected to another computer. Whereas, web-based software is a software on-demand system that requires an ongoing fee instead of a software license purchase. Web-enabled or PC-based software run in all Windows operating system environments.
Buy software that interface with other software systems you use
Most businesses select software systems without realizing it will not interface with other business systems. If you don’t choose a software system that doesn’t interface with other software systems, you use it. For example, payment integration systems, access control, electronic payment processing, etc. A mistake like this will prevent your self-storage software from following the growth and development of your business.
No flexible payment option
When you run a self-storage business, you must make sure you offer convenient payment options to your customers that will result in timely financial transactions and great customer relationships.
The software you choose must allow customers to make payments on your business website through electronic check processing or automatic credit card processing. The more options you offer to your customers; the fewer excuses your customers will have for missing a payment. This will also help in retaining your customers.
Choosing the wrong software solution
When you are investing your time and money into choosing the right self-storage management software, you need to ensure that you are making the right decision. Build a strong relationship with the solution providers, to pave your path to success. A good software system along with a relationship with knowledgeable, experienced, and helpful solution providers will ensure your long term business success.
Coming to an End!
The Self-storage software offers a number of benefits, but ultimately it’s up to the self-storage business owners to determine what’s appropriate for their business. Unique business requirements, budget, and a number of other factors play a significant role in your key decision. If you are choosing to invest in the self-storage management system, it is important to remain up-to-date about new technologies so you can operate your self-storage business and serve your customers in the best way possible.
