Yellow Page Ads

What should they consist of?

By Pamela Alton

As most of usare aware, the Yellow Pages ad is where most tenants first learn about a storage facility.It is probably the largest advertising expense a facility owner has, so it should be madeto count.

In some areas, a good Yellow Pages ad could cost as little as $500 or as much as $1,800or more per month. The larger the ad, the more visible a facility will be, especially whenit's in a saturated area. Statistics indicate that typically, a prospective tenant willcall four ads before they choose the site they want to rent at; therefore, does aself-storage business need to be the first in storage section of the Yellow Pages?Probably not. However, an owner shouldn't scrimp on the size of his ad, as most placementsin the book are based on the size and length of advertising. An owner with a new facilityshould budget for the largest ad possible. You can't expect a new facility to be full insix months when you have an eighth of a page ad on the last page of the storage section.It just won't happen.

There are several companies that offer telephone books in most cities: GTE, AT&T,PacBell and their subsidiaries, and local directories such as the Donnelly Directory.Prices of ads will vary, depending upon which book you go into and its distribution. Inlarger cities, it can be very costly if you try to advertise in all books. An owner shouldjust concentrate on his local area, since most tenants will not drive more than five milesfrom their home or business to store their goods. Of course, these companies will try totalk you into their directory, saying they are the best to advertise in. It's important tokeep in mind that it's the salesperson's job to sell space and get owners competing witheach other's facilities. An owner should stand firm and choose the directory that iswithin his budget, the one distributed where most potential residents will come from.

When designing an ad, use good-quality graphics or photos. Allow a picture or graphicto speak 1,000 words for you. Some software programs, such as Microsoft Publisher or FrontPage, have several Yellow Pages templates for your convenience, plus they usually have anextensive graphics package. Start planning next year's ad right now, even if it's not duefor several months. Don't wait until two days before the Yellow Pages closes its ad space.If not enough time is spent on the design of an ad, you could end up with something youaren't happy with, but stuck with for a whole year. Allow yourself plenty of time so youwill be pleased with the outcome of your ad. Make a list of all of the items you want toput in your ad, design it, then be critical. Is it too wordy and busy looking? Is it tooplain?

Evaluate other ads in the same book, not just self-storage ads. What draws you to onead over another? Use the other ads to give you design ideas. You may want to considerhaving a professional design company design your ad for you if you don't have the time orthe artistic talents. A large map indicating the location of your facility is a mustin any Yellow Pages ad. Once a person has decided they need storage, they pick up the bookand begin cruising the ads. After the first couple, they typically zero in on maps to finda facility close to their home or place of business. If you have more than one location,you may want to consider a consolidation ad that consists of maps of your variouslocations.

The word storage should be in the largest print type in your ad. You may beproud of the fact that you named your facility after you, your children or the streetcorner it is located on, but a tenant couldn't care less if they store at Thompson'sSelf-Storage or not. Storage is what you are selling, so make that stand out in your ad.

Now, I know some of you have the dreaded "s" word--security--in your facilityname; however, avoid the use of that word when describing the features of your site.Instead of "security gate," use electronic gate; instead of "securityalarm," use individual door alarm; instead of "security cameras," use videocameras, etc. If you have rental trucks or accept charge cards or have extended accesshours, state that in your ad.

Personally, I don't think you should waste your money on red or blue print, or whitebackground. Spend the extra money to enlarge the size of your ad. When placing your ad,you may want to contact a national Yellow Pages advertiser that groups several adstogether to receive a discount.

One thing about storage: You usually don't have to sell the person calling you fromyour ad on storage. They have already decided to store their goods--that's why they calledyou. However, you must compete with the other storage facilities in your area. That is whybeing competitively priced and having effective telephone closing techniques are soimportant. The cost to advertise may break down to $5 to $15 per call, just to make thetelephone ring. Remember: Great closing techniques will go hand in hand with an effectiveYellow Pages ad, so make each call count.

PamelaAlton is the owner of Mini-Management^®, the largest nationwidemanager-placement service serving the self-storage industry. Mini-Management also offersfull-service and operations-only property management, policy and procedures manuals, salesand marketing training manuals, inspections and audits, consulting and training seminarsnationwide. For more information on the various services offered by Mini-Management, call(800) 646-4648.