PHOENIX, Arizona – October 18th, 2015 – OpenTech Alliance announced that industry newcomers, Steve and Barbara O’Rourke, recently opened the first unmanned storage facility in Ames Iowa. And after a year of operating the facility without routine human intervention, their plan to create a win-win business proposition for both tenants and property owners has become a reality.
Since opening Ames West Side Storage in November of 2014, the duo insists that their facility provides an easier and more convenient option for storage customers. Most importantly however, they guarantee that the automated business concept offers owners much more.
“By creating a flexible and effortless storage experience for our customers, we have realized higher net profits without being required to man our storage office for 60 hours a week,” said Steve. Steve is a licensed public adjuster and Barbara is a NICU registered nurse. “Our storage property is self-sufficient, and the INSOMNIAC® kiosk allows us to oversee a top-notch storage property, and maintain our full-time jobs without many headaches,” added Steve.
When asked about not offering good old-fashioned customer service and or the possibility of hearing negative feedback over the lack of a manager onsite, Steve replied, “Our new customers and tenants still get immediate help when they want it from a live storage counselor through the 2way video feature that our kiosk provides.” The couple believe that the 24-7 technology offers their customers a level of consistency that neighboring facilities can’t. And their kiosk operational reports back up that belief by revealing over 40% of their kiosk rentals occur after 5 p.m. on weekdays and weekends.
“We get no complaints about our setup, and every customer coming in is treated exactly the same. Those who want to rent a unit or access their storage can do so all day, every day. Our competitors only have manager’s onsite to sell and serve from 9-5. With only 190 units, our facility is on the smaller side and it would not be as profitable to have a manager onsite,” added Steve.
Being entirely committed to the self-service concept from the onset and after implementing a number of best practices after, Steve & Barbara’s INSOMNIAC kiosk continues to perform at a level that is equal to their competition. On the other hand, the win-win scenario that they have created sets Ames West Side Storage apart from the competition.
Why We Do What We Do: Every day, OpenTech Alliance connects thousands of tenants with storage companies around the world. With over 4,000 daily transactions, the companies automated products and services helped store managers move-in over 100,000 tenants in 2014, generating over 100 million dollars in new sales revenue alone. OpenTech, Making Self-Storage Easier, So More People will Use It. For additional information, please click: OpenTechAlliance.com or call an OpenTech Business Development Manager at (602) 749-9370.
Press Contact: Mike Sawyer, Director of Marketing
OpenTech Alliance, Inc.
602.324.8655
msawyer@opentechalliance.com
NOTE TO EDITORS: OpenTech Alliance, the OpenTech logo and INSOMNIAC are trademarks of OpenTech Alliance, Inc. Other company and product names may be trademarks of their respective owners. INSOMNIAC kiosks are protected by U.S. patent number 5,946,660.
