Melissa Stiles, Chief Marketing Officer of Storage Asset Management (SAM), shares her journey from answering a blind ad to leading one of the largest third-party management companies in self-storage. Overseeing marketing, revenue management, business development, and communications, Melissa has helped SAM grow from 32 stores to nearly 600.

In this conversation, she explains how her team evolved into a full-service, agency-style structure with specialists in SEO, paid ads, social, and local marketing. Melissa dives into strategies that drive lease-ups, from influencer partnerships and community events to data-driven revenue management models. She also discusses how AI is reshaping SEO, what makes local marketing still matter, and why reputation and relationships remain central to SAM’s success.

Key Takeaways:

• 0:00 Introductions - Melissa’s role with SAM

• 2:02 Melissa’s Journey to become CMO and the growth of SAM

• 5:27 Developing the marketing team

• 9:00 Key questions to making a great hire

• 11:00 Case study for building a marketing strategy for a self storage facility

• 13:43 Strategies for a successful for lease up

• 16:46 When should you expect stabilization

• 17:46 Getting found with AI in the lease up process

• 20:47 The advantages of scaling up for a brand

• 23:06 Using data to impact operations

• 25:33 Revenue management tactics

• 27:07 The pride of making a real world impact