Marrying Technology And Hospitality To Level Up Your Business

Written by Katharine Lau, CEO and Co-Founder, Stuf

Throughout my career, I’ve focused on places — aka commercial real estate. What I realized a few years ago is that places are nothing without people, which is why I’ve made it my career to reinvent the way people use the built world. Stuf was born out of the trite idea that a trip to a storage facility is something to be endured rather than enjoyed. It’s an outdated thought made true by most of the options available today.

Today, visiting your self-storage unit is typically a sporadic, seasonal trip. Of course, some of that infrequent use is due to the inherent inconvenience of accessing far-flung locations, which, by design, is exactly what we’re solving for Stuf customers. We partner with real estate owners to monetize underutilized spaces in commercial buildings as hyperlocal storage, including in basements, garages, and retail spaces right where people live and work. Our locations are remotely operated, and we don’t have any team members on site, relying entirely on IOT and proprietary technology to provide a seamless storage experience to our users.

Here are 3 tips on how to marry technology and hospitality to level up your business, supported by concrete examples of how we do it at Stuf:

1- Go beyond the initial sale

Making the sale is important, but what happens after the sale often informs the future of your customer relationship. And while most industries do things online, the self-storage industry is just starting to get there (yes, even in 2022). At Stuf, potential customers can book and move in without having to deal with paperwork, meeting a facility manager, or working around office hours. More than that, we go the extra mile, conducting ID verification at booking to ensure our community and their belongings are secure. Additionally, we onboard new customers with short video content to get them acquainted with the space before they ever set foot on site. Not only does this ease the move-in process, it also minimizes the work our team must do to support new members.

2- Design for the future

Modern consumers want what they want, when they want it. That’s why we’ve designed a booking, move-in, and access experience with as little friction as possible. We use IoT (digital access control systems, security cameras, and sensors) to monitor the space for cleanliness, safety, and utilization, so even if our locations are remotely operated, it’s as if we have eyes and ears to the ground to help our members without physically being there. Who wants to be babysat anyway? In addition to managing member experience, this technology gives us insights that improve the way we design, sell, and operate our spaces. It means we get better as we expand, not worse.

3- Find balance

While we talk about technology and the fact that it powers so many businesses today, it’s important not to use it as a substitute for service but rather as a complement to it. Finding balance is key, and in our case, if we didn’t have a great physical product — welcoming and inviting storage locations close to home and work — a great mobile app would not make up for it.

The opposite is also true. Our hyperlocal storage network is only half of the equation. If we didn’t have the technology and expectations-exceeding service that make for a wonderful storage experience, we wouldn’t be anywhere.

Moving is stressful, which is why hospitality is core to our product. While old-school hospitality is all about human connection, in a modern world, I believe technology is core to ensuring most, if not all, your customers feel taken care of, not just a lucky few.