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Methods For Identifying Customer Needs

We’ve previously talked about identifying customer needs, so you know how important doing this is for the success of your business. In that previous article, we also talked about what information about your customers and their habits and needs you need to identify as a Self Storage facility owner. But how should you go about getting that information? There are several methods for identifying customer needs out there, but here are some of the most effective.

Look through your records

You probably have some information in your records already. You should have basic demographic information, such as your customer’s name, contact details, and address, for example, from when they first moved into their storage unit or even first made an enquiry with your facility. Make sure you start your search by establishing what information you already have.

Talk to your staff

Often, your staff are interacting with your Self Storage customers a lot more frequently than you are. Because of this, they probably have a little bit more information about what your customers need. For example, customers in the past have probably made your staff aware of any complaints or compliments they have about their experience with your facility. Check with your employees to try and identify any patterns in these complaints or compliments. While patterns are important, it’s also important you don’t ignore the one-offs. These can still give you valuable insights into the needs of your customers.

Map the customer’s journey

Mapping all the steps your customers need to take in their Self Storage journey with your facility can give you valuable information. For example, your customer might search Google for Self Storage in their area, find your website, search through your website, find your contact number, call your facility, and book their storage unit with your staff over the phone, all before actually moving in.

This journey map can help you identify room for improvement. For example, investing in RapidStor for your facility can help eliminate some of the steps and make the process more convenient for customers. With RapidStor, your customers can book their storage unit online.

Interview your customers

If you’re looking to find specific information from your customers, interviewing them is one of the most effective ways. Develop some interview questions that can highlight some of the needs your customers have that aren’t currently being fulfilled. When interviewing your customers, you can use the ‘five whys’ technique. This technique involves continually asking your customers ‘why?’ to get to the true cause of their concerns. Often, you’ll need to ask ‘why?’ several times before uncovering the root cause. Doing this can help you create solutions to the actual problems of your facility, rather than simply putting bandaids over the symptoms.

Survey your customers

Interviewing your customers can uncover a lot of detailed information about them, but it can take a lot of time. A more time-efficient method of identifying customer needs is to survey your customers. Surveys allow you to gather data from a larger potion of your customer base. This can help you identify common problems and find patterns among your customers. When crafting your surveys, it’s best to include a mixture of open-ended and closed-ended questions.

These aren’t the only methods for identifying customer needs, but they are some of the most effective processes. If you’re looking to identify the needs of your customers, follow these methods. If you’re ready to take advantage of RapidStor and make your customer’s journey more convenient, contact us today!