The Public Perception of the Self-Storage Sector: What You Need to Know About Awareness, Cost and Service Usage

The Public Perception of the Self-Storage Sector: What You Need to Know About Awareness, Cost and Service Usage

Customer data insights can reveal much about the perception of any industry. But so can a public survey. In fact, a public survey can often reveal much of the “bigger picture”, data that self-storage businesses will find indispensable when making commercial decisions. However, discovered this information can be challenging for a range of businesses. And the self-storage sector is no exception.

Now, sure, understanding detailed, specific information takes a little more digging than, say, if you wanted to learn more about Twitter or X’s public perception, which seems to have new articles written about the social media platform almost daily, but resources are still out there. But do a little research, find the right resources and you’ll be able to find just what you’re looking for.

If you want to learn about the self-storage sector, there are few better insights than the Cushman & Wakefield SSA Industry Report public survey. So, what did the report’s public survey reveal about what the general public thinks about the self-storage sector? Let’s dive in and examine the results.

The results of the report

Let’s start with the results of the report. More specifically where the information came from. After all, how can you trust a report without first verifying its sources? The results from this portion of the report were taken from a survey conducted using an online interview administered to members of the YouGov Plc UK panel of more than 800,000 who have agreed to take part in public surveys.

The Cushman & Wakefield SSA Industry Report uses an unbiased sample of 2,102 UK adults aged 18 or over that is weighted to the profile definition to provide a representative reporting sample.

The results of the report are meant to gauge the understanding and attitude of members of the general public. The public survey has been completed each year since 2014 and is representative of the whole of the UK.

Industry Awareness

To qualify awareness and understanding of self-storage, survey respondents were asked if they agreed with a series of related statements. The majority relate to the core services self-storage provides. Key percentage takeaways include:

52% of survey respondents said that they understood that providing a range of unit sizes is a key selling point of self-storage.

35% of survey respondents said that they understood that the customer locks the unit and keeps the key or password, therefore controlling who has access to the items they have in storage.

Why is this important? It illustrates that while members of the public understand self-storage, they are not fully aware of all its benefits, and therefore greater awareness of every benefit might be needed.

Additionally, the report’s big reveal is that, for the first time, awareness of the self-storage sector dropped compared to the previous year. This was largely a result of a drop in awareness in the London area and an increase in the number of “don’t know” responses. This was likely because of an anomaly in this year’s data. The follow-up questions asked do not support this drop in awareness. That, and an understanding of, and the benefits of, the self-storage sector.

When removing the ‘don’t know’ field, the results become more typical with a small increase in awareness. London has had the highest level of awareness for some time. Over 53% of people showed a positive awareness of the self-storage sector.

Cost

36% of respondents believe self-storage to be expensive. However, this percentage does come with a caveat: most have not used the service before and are therefore unaware of what the true cost is.

This is important because cost is one of the primary barriers to people using the service. The sector is taking steps to nullify this, with many players offering upfront discounts.

Whereas 42% of people have admitted that they have not put anything new into storage, it is a needs-driven service that people search for when they need it.

Given that less than 3% of the UK population actively uses self-storage, it’s clear that the sector has tremendous growth potential, regardless of how often people are putting more of their belongings into their self-storage unit.

Potential self-storage use

Self-storage may only be used by between 2–3% of the UK adult population; however, this percentage has increased from just 1.3% in 2018.

The growth of self-storage is further supported by the increasing amount of occupied self-storage year-on-year. Demand has risen since COVID-19 as people continue to address and adapt their storage needs.

In fact, 7% of the survey respondents said that they were considering using self-storage in the next 12 months, while a further 7% said that they were unsure.

Therefore, it’s safe to assume that the foundations have been laid for the sector to blossom as the decade unfolds.

Customer knowledge and awareness

There are more than 2,000 self-storage stores in the UK. This means that there is a store in almost every significant town. However, more than 50% of the respondents to the public survey said that they could not name a single store in their local area.

Why is this? Well, again, it’s likely that this is because self-storage is a needs-based purchase; therefore, people only look for it when they need it.

The last five years have seen more stores being built, service awareness marketing has accelerated, and yet people seem aware of the services in their local area. This tells us that self-storage marketing should be stepped up.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, areas with a population more inclined to renovate or move home have a much greater awareness of self-storage – because people are looking for a self-storage service to meet their needs.

Awareness based on need

Perhaps unsurprisingly, areas where a high percentage of people have either moved home or undertook renovations have a higher representation of self-storage. This reflects that self-storage is a needs-based service.

However, moving home is not the primary customer driver. 30% of people who have used self-storage have done so primarily to create more space, either in their home or business, and not necessarily as a consequence of the WFH phenomenon. This underpins self-storage as a mid-long-term storage solution and not a short-term solution until people have created enough space to accommodate their needs.

An additional 18% of demand is made up of those people who have moved home but no longer have the space required for their possessions—another long-term driver for self-storage.

Brand awareness

What could be most eye-catching for self-storage businesses was the lack of brand awareness the general public has of self-storage. Around 66% of survey respondents could not name a single self-storage brand, while a further 5% named brands that were in fact not part of the self-storage sector.

There could be several reasons for this. Firstly, again, forgive us for reiterating the same point, but it is an important one. People who haven’t either routinely or recently used self-storage are unlikely to have an expansive knowledge of brands; it is a needs-first service after all.

Secondly, members of the general public don’t typically memorise or can even list ten, five, ten, or twenty brands off the top of their heads. Google, yes. Apple, likely. Nike and Coca-Cola may be less likely. But a self-storage brand? Somewhat unlikely.

Although who’s to say that this won’t change in the years to come as the sector continues to evolve and more and more people become aware of and use its services?

What the report reveals

When all’s said and done, the 2023 Cushman & Wakefield SSA Industry Report Public Survey sheds a great deal of light on what the public thinks about the self-storage sector.

From cost to use and awareness, there’s much that self-storage businesses can take on board. The good news is that self-storage businesses can act to bolster their brand awareness and reputation to appeal to more prospects and customers and increase their revenues.

What’s clear is that the self-storage sector is an industry that’s blossoming despite the challenging economic times, providing a valuable service to people across the whole of the UK.

If you haven’t considered your storage needs recently, perhaps now’s the time to do so.

Sources:

https://www.cushmanwakefield.com/en/united-kingdom/insights/uk-self-storage-annual-report