Survey Says! Consumer Data Insight to Improve Your Online Marketing

Mario Feghali, SpareFoot

Agenda

• Why are surveys important?• Our surveys:– Consumer demographics–Why consumers need self-storage– How consumers research self-storage–Mobile– Consumer behavior– Prices and promotions/deals

• Takeaways

Consumer Surveys• Why are surveys important?– Help you understand your customers and better

your business

• How we collect data:– Automated surveys go out once a week (every

Tuesday) to everyone who moved in over the last week

– Survey Gizmo: customizable

• How it can help you:– Publish the data in different ways: cite it in blog

posts, trade show presentations, quarterlies, newsletters, email marketing

– Can be used in your marketing collateral and for interesting social media fodder (generate interest)Note: These are averages, each location varies

Who, Why, How?

How Old Are Our Customers?A. 18-24 years oldB. 25-34 years oldC. 35-44 years oldD. 45-54 years oldE. 55-64 years oldF. 65+ years old…

How Old Are Our Customers?

13%

28%

16%

23%

15%

4%

18-24 years old25-34 years old35-44 years old45-54 years old55-64 years old65+ years old

Storage trends tend to mirror life changes and can offer valuable insight into social patterns

Why Do Customers Need Storage?

A. MovingB. Student between housing or study

abroadC. Military deploymentD. Off-season vehicleE. Home remodel or renovationF. Wine collectionG. Family reasonsH. Other…

Why Do Customers Need Storage?

62.38%

4.18%

1.02%

2.96%

6.05%

0.85%

1.53%

21.02%

Moving

Student between housing or study abroad

Military deployment

Off-season vehicle

Home remodel or renovation

Wine collection

Family reasons

Other

The majority of customers look for storage when they are moving

How Do Customers Research Storage?

A. ComputerB. Mobile or tabletC. Friends and familyD. Called facilitiesE. Visited facilitiesF. Print resourceG. Other…

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Frie

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Calle

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Visite

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Prin

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100

200

300

400

500

600524

11885

122 10134 17

How Do Customers Research Storage?

More customers are using mobile devices to search. Make sure you’re mobile-friendly.

22% of SpareFoot AdNetwork customers used a mobile or tablet device to research self-storage facilities.

Also, could be more than one that they used.

69.35%

12.48%

11.69%

4.58% 1.58% 0.16% 0.16%

1 Source2 Sources3 Sources4 Sources5 Sources6 Sources7 Sources

How Many Sources Did Customers Use to Research Storage?

The majority of customers only use 1 source to research storage

What Types of Websites Did Customers Use to Find Storage?

A. Search enginesB. Storage directoriesC. Review sitesD. Local directories…

57%31%

6%6%

Search enginesStorage direc-toriesReview sitesLocal directories

What Types of Websites Did Customers Use to Find Storage?

Make sure you’re everywhere: Google Places, search engine optimization (SEO), social networks, third party websites, your own website

75% of search traffic clicks on the first five results

Mobile

Would Customers Download a Free Mobile App with Special Features for a Storage Website?

28.84%

14.57%

20.23%

36.36%

Yes

Yes - only if I needed storage, and I would keep it beyond that

Yes - only if I needed storage, and I would delete it after that

No

A mobile app for your storage website could make reserving easier for potential customers

Where Did Customers Use a Smartphone to Research Storage?

A. WorkB. HomeC. Friend or relative’s houseD. Public spaceE. Hotel roomF. In transit…

Where Did Customers Use a Smartphone to Research Storage?

10.11%

50.79%

3.72%

2.66%

2.13%

30.59%WorkHomeFriend or relative's housePublic spaceHotel roomIn transit

Customers are using their phones more and more for research, and not necessarily just in transit. Make your website as mobile-friendly as possible to stand out from the competition.

What Do They Care About?

What Do New Customers Ask About First?

64.06%

25.00%

10.94%

Truck rentalSelf-storageBoth at the same time

40.98% rent a truck during the moving process.

Most new customers have never even used self-storage before.

When Did Customers Reserve a Truck?

34.19%

30.83%

34.98%Before storageAfter storageOn the same day

Do Customers Know What Unit Size They Need?

86.60%

13.40%

Booked the right sizeBooked a larger unit at move-in

4% of AdNetwork customers plan on renting their unit for only one month.

How Do Customers Choose Storage Units?

A. By priceB. Free truck dealsC. AmenitiesD. Availability E. LocationF. ReviewsG. PhotosH. Special features and services…

How Customers Choose Storage Units

35.20%

64.80%

Chose lowest price at size needed

Chose based on amenities, free truck deals, availability, location, reviews, photos, special features and services, etc.

Price is not the most important deciding factor for storage-seeking customers

Prices & Promotions

How Prices Have Changed Since Last Year

58%

15%

27%

No change in pricesDiscounted pricesRaised prices

Did the Customer Ask for Additional Deals or Promotions During Move-In?

34.65%

65.35%

YesNo

Did the Customer Receive an Additional Deal or Promotion?

68.18%

31.82%

YesNo

The most common deal or discount customers said they received was free month(s) of storage, 39% of the time

Takeaways

• Surveys to previous and existing customers can help you better understand customers and refine your business for the future

• Anyone should be able to contribute survey questions

• Incentivize survey responses with “prizes” like a random gift card drawing

• Survey Gizmo is a convenient tool that lets you customize and sends you survey reports

• Questions?