Self-Storage Marketing in a Fierce Economy: Taking Campaigns to a Whole New Level Entrants to the ISS ‘Best in Self-Storage Marketing’ contest share marketing that works in tough times - Amy Campbell 12/08/2009

Just do it! Got milk? Have it your way. Melts in your mouth, not in your hands. Good to the last drop. Let your fingers doing the walking.

I’ll bet you can name the products behind the famous branding above. They’re etched in our minds, often connected to memories. Companies like Nike, Coca-Cola and Burger King know how to create a message that will stick. But you don’t have to be a billion-dollar business to come up with unique and impressionable ad campaigns.

Last summer, Inside Self-Storage invited its print and online readers to share their most clever and impressive marketing ideas and pieces. The “Best in Self-Storage Marketing” Contest was open to facility owners, operators and managers nationwide. Dozens of submissions poured in, ranging from catchy print ads and mailers to funny radio and TV clips.

First-place winner Terri Gavins, senior manager of Storage Center of Southwood in Tallahassee, Fla., won $1,000 for her multi-faceted campaign. A YouTube video by Andrew Emory, operations analyst for Self Storage Management Co. of California, nabbed $300 and the second-place prize. His “Naked Storage” video used Lego pieces as props to grab attention and illicit chuckles. An eight-piece print-ad campaign by Stephanie and Joe Tharpe, managers of Lock Box Self Storage in St. Juliet, Tenn., also aimed to make an impression through humor. The Tharpes were awarded $200 for their third-place entry.

While the submissions varied in content and delivery, all had the same goal: to get the facility noticed and attract new tenants.