Having owned and operated facilities in the self-storage industry for over ten years, there are pretty much two questions that customers always ask:
- How much is my storage going to cost? and
- What size storage unit do I need?
Sound familiar?
The first question is easy enough to answer. But the second one… much trickier to explain. Our staff would often get the answer wrong or not be able to communicate it well enough leading to friction in the sales process. And despite investing in high quality images and videos, our website could never answer the question properly either.
At first, we looked around the market to solve this problem. And admittedly we saw some solutions that kind of worked. Versions where the user inputted their items in a text based fashion and it kind of spat out a random calculation. There were also solutions involving a bunch of images which showed example units with example furniture (i.e. not customized for the customer) as a guide. The common theme is that all of these solutions were built on old-world technology and delivered a poor user experience (they failed to deliver an intuitive flow for the user, or reliable information to act on). Most importantly, no solution really let the user take control of the experience (or have any fun).
Taking matters into our own hands, we built our own. Introducing Calcumate. Utilizing new, industry leading technology, our intuitive 3D animated storage calculator now provides the answer visually in real time. And….by doing so, Calcumate greatly improved our sales conversions and our customers’ digital experience.
The results spoke for themselves, including:
- 23.7% increase in bookings
- 100s of additional leads
- 50% increase in page value
- our customer satisfaction score increased to 4.8 out of 5
How does it do this?
Easy. By allowing the ability to pick their individual items being loaded into their storage unit, Calcumate gives the user an accurate visual guide as to the storage space they require. Check out Calcumate's version).
The tool uses a complex mathematical algorithm to test combinations of loading a storage unit (including random elements like putting boxes between table legs!) to figure out an efficient way of using the space. It then visually shows this to a user so they can see the loading of the unit and importantly, trust the answer. Add in some key branding elements (colors, fonts, logos etc.,) as well as some optional fun items (skeletons in closet, kids, etc.,) and the tool enhances your website and makes the overall customer experience first class.
Sometimes we get asked questions like: why would I want to calculate the best space for my customers, I want my customers to rent the biggest possible unit. But this sort of thinking is old school. It doesn’t create the sort of trust in the sales process that leads to more sales in the first place and won’t differentiate you from your competitors. Moreover, it definitely won’t keep your customers coming back and referring your business to their friends.
So… what does this mean for you and your business?
After receiving request after request to help like minded storage businesses, we’re excited to announce you can now build your own Calcumate integration for your website directly on our platform. In fact, we now help clients all over the world including in North and South America, Canada, Europe, Asia and Australia.
All can be done in less than 5 minutes. Click on the portal and run through the easy 6 step process. The steps include:
- Setup – let us know the URL where the tool will be placed, whether you want self-storage or portable storage units, your call to action etc.,
- Storage units – input the size of your storage units so the tool knows the range of outputs it can choose from
- Categories – arrange your items into easy to use categories of items relevant to your market
- Presets – create a few clickable options that the customer can quickly choose from (e.g. 1 bedroom house to a 5 bedroom house) rather than going through each individual item
- Design – confirm the way you want to display the calculator including colors, fonts, etc.,
- Publish your integration – you get the code and place it directly onto any page on your website.
Interested in renting more units and having happier customers? Sign up here for a free Calcumate no obligations 30 day trial.
