By Jerry LaMartina
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t’s everywhere. Virtually everyone uses it. It defines modern life, with both good and bad effects. And it keeps changing and growing. It’s technology. It has changed how industries, including self-storage, do business, how consumers buy and use products and services, and in many other ways how people live their lives. Various technologies continue to improve self-storage facilities’ ease and efficiency of operation and usage.
SECOND QUARTER 2022
These technologies enable a host of functions, including signing the lease, paying rent, accessing the storage site and unit, and managing security, accounting, payment processing, documentation, and tenant protection plans, among many others. Most, if not all, of these technologies are adapted for use on mobile devices, and some include artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning. While technology makes these functions easier
and more efficient for operators and tenants and bolster operators’ bottom lines, it also presents possible pitfalls for operators to avoid. Tech’s Impact On Self-Storage The Alexandria, Va.-based Self Storage Association estimates the industry generates $34 billion in annual revenue in the United States. In roughly the past two years, despite the COVID-19 pandemic’s worldwide disruptions, and in some ways because Self-Storage NOW!
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