- Industry News: Anatomy of a Product by George Johnson
- What’s New?: Kiosks : Endless Possibilities
- Customer Spotlight: Viking, the brain behind VODS
- What Customers Say: Tony Bongiorno, Excess Storage, Ron & Gail Brady, Port Storage
- Before You Go: Topics of interest for you
Anatomy of a Product
Does the average consumer have any idea of all the different elements that make up a product? Basically no. Over the last couple of decades there is no doubt that consumers’ awareness has heightened, and consciousness levels relating to ingredients and processing and quality often guide purchasing decisions.
To some degree, advertising and marketing espouse those qualities today’s consumers base their buying decisions on. Awareness is created along with product differentiation, and pricing , though still important, is not the ultimate guiding factor. Market recognition and acceptance has to be ubiquitous, and being price competitive is a necessity…..but ultimately there are a couple of less obvious factors that influence certain expenditures, especially in hard non consumable assets.
Products are created to satisfy an absolute need or perceived need in the marketplace. In the history of business there has always been, and will always be, a company or person that seeks to provide a “better mouse trap”. In our particular industry, portable storage and moving, a system was developed to allow people to more easily store household goods, books and records, or anything else that people typically store. The storage locker was mobilized and taken to the user’s residence where it could be packed conveniently and transported back to the provider’s location for storage. The moving of containerized goods evolved beyond the storage component because of, again, convenience and efficiency.
Operators in our industry obviously require containers for their business models, and these containers must meet obvious standards. They have to be safe and secure, durable, waterproof, wind and fire resistant, easily transportable, esthetically amenable and economically feasible. There will always be comparisons that study the aforementioned basics, along with pricing. But with large capital outlays other factors come into play.
In my 50+ years of business experience, there is no doubt that the critical boxes have to be checked in making purchasing decisions, but more often than not what influences the final decision are the people representing the product and the company. Most capital outlays are made in anticipation of creating positive returns, and the assets acquired are thoroughly analyzed for capability and all the other fundamentals required…but, in my opinion the major differentiation comes down to people and relationships. Are the representatives thoroughly knowledgeable of their products and the industry, are they trustworthy, are there value added benefits in engineering support and other related services? Bottom line, at the end of the day mutual respect and trust carry a lot of weight. In analyzing the “anatomy “ of a product (container), steel and labor and latches and floors have to be of the highest quality; and so are those relationships which work together to achieve their relative objectives.
What’s New? Storage Containers as Kiosks
Our fully customizable containers make any business possible! From pop-up boutiques to taco trucks, we help realize your dreams.
Customer Spotlight : Viking Moving & Storage
We spoke with Paul Webster, owner of Viking Moving & Storage
What prompted you to join the portable storage business? I started Viking Moving and Storage in 1992. We had a warehouse that was completely full which spurred the thought, “What a great idea to store property on other people’s property!” About that same time, we were looking for another warehouse, but once we ran the numbers we quickly realized portable storage containers would be the more financially beneficial option.
Why we chose Universal Storage Containers
A good friend of mine introduced me to your storage containers, and VODS was born! We call them VODS (Viking On-Demand Storage). Pictures are from the exciting delivery and assembly.
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What makes your operation desirable?
When a closing goes awry or any number of things keeps you from moving into your new home, you don’t want your belongings stuck on a truck. Engines, wheels, and registrations will cost you more money than a container rental in the long run. The safest, most dependable option is portable storage. Secondly, we provide the highest level of service to our customers and prospective customers. We’ll go out and help you decide what size you need. We always have labor available (if you’re in over your head or can’t move something safely). I would say our greatest quality is that we can deliver same day or within 24 hours most of the time.
What goals do you have for the next 5 years?
We hope for continued success and to expand beyond our current 35 mile radius of Concord, MA.
What Customers Say
“The company is absolutely fantastic to work with, from the order process right through to the set up. Communication was second to none.” – Ron Brady, Port Storage
“Great company to deal with, great communication, awesome products, will definitely do business with again, don’t hesitate… give them a call today!” -Tony Bongiorno, Frankfort Excess Storage
