About
Our leadership team has decades of self-storage experience. Meet the team below!
Meet Our Self-Storage Industry Experts
Copper Storage Management was created in 2019 by the Copper family. The Coppers have dedicated their careers to owning, auditing, analyzing and managing self-storage facilities nationwide.
Copper Storage Management offers maximum convenience and service through a fully remote business model, cutting the costs of part-time or full-time on-site storage managers. Since 2019, our company has managed over 250 stores in 39 states.
We are committed to providing our Clients a hybrid of technology and personal touch by streamlining our services and operations. Our leadership team is comprised of owners, operators, marketing and accounting experts who continue to challenge the status quo of self-storage management.

Jacob Copper
CEO

Brett Copper
President/Partner

Justine Diana
Human Resource Manager

Tess Toth
Director of Sales and Marketing

Matt Edwards
Director of Accounting
Questions?
Browse our FAQ to find exactly what you need. If it’s not here, reach out to us any time!
General
When was Copper Storage Management established?
We started in 2019 and have grown significantly. We currently manage nearly 200 facilities nationwide.
How does your management model work?
We take the hassle out of day-to-day management. We handle marketing, collections, auctions, customer service, optional bookkeeping and more!
Will there be someone who goes to my facility? If so, how often?
Yes, we hire and train a 1099 employee who goes to the facility at least once a week. We also have Site Coordinators who oversee 10+ stores in your region, and handle vendor relationships, facility needs and more.
How long does the onboarding process take?
30+ days. We have completed the onboarding process in less than 30 days; however, we like to provide a 30-day window to Clients.
How long is the agreement?
Minimum one year.
What are your fees?
Fees are based on # of units. We will supply this information in an introductory call to ensure you are set up for success.
Who is my point of contact?
Your Client Relations Specialist will be your point of contact once onboarding is complete.
Do you offer tenant insurance?
We cover tenant insurance, rate increases, and payments.
What does the bookkeeping service include?
We use QuickBooks for basic bookkeeping and we handle monthly P&L’s. You will handle your annual taxes.
How does Copper Storage Management handle auctions?
We have a designated auction team that handles the lien/auction process from start to finish (cutting locks, lien letters, scheduling, etc.). You do not have to lift a finger.
What type of locks do you use for overlocks?
We use Da Vinci locks. We release it once the bill is paid, and your tenant is texted a code for quick access.
Do you handle signage?
Yes, we handle on-site signage. We will order the appropriate external and internal signage for your facility.
Operations
What are the operations center hours?
7 days a week; 12 hours a day including coverage for the West Coast.
Do the facility owners have access to the recorded phone calls?
Yes, you have the option to access facility calls. You will work with Copper Storage Management to facilitate the release of these calls.
Is there a way the facility owner can tell if the unit was rented online or after speaking with someone in the call center?
If someone calls in and is not comfortable renting the unit online, will the agent offer to rent the unit over the phone?
Yes, our operations center will be happy to assist your tenants with renting units over the phone. 60%+ of rentals are on the phone with a live person.
What is the process for hiring and training the Boots on the Ground Employee?
A week prior to launch, we place an ad on Indeed. We let candidates flow in, screen them, and then call them to do a pre-interview. From there, we choose 2-4 candidates to bring on site and show them what the full requirements will be. Once chosen, we will do a full one on one training going through the weekly audit, cleaning units, reporting any maintenance issues, how to properly read the walk thru, how to upload auction pictures and lock cutting, updating the Davinci app every week making sure that all locks are accounted for, and making sure weekly pictures are being taken so that we am aware of the conditions of the property. We teach them about everything they need to succeed.
What happens during my weekly walk throughs?
BOTG will be required to give 24hr notice of what day they plan on visiting the property. This will ensure that they receive an updated report the day they visit. An email is sent that morning attaching a copy of the walk through and a link to the Monday Audit Task List. The task list allows the BOTG to list all required items such as units they have cleaned, any issues for us to be aware of, and allows pictures to be attached there as well. We receive the form back in digital form and update their report off of their info. We also require a monthly video walkthrough call for 15-30 minutes to walk around the entire property, check signage, look at a vacant unit, etc.
What should I expect on launch day?
We go onsite on the day of launch to complete our launch day checklist. We perform a full walkthrough, meet and hire a BOTG, notate any issues, discuss with the previous manager or owner on any issues they know, hang temp signage, and take a multitude of pictures. On the Day your site goes live, I will do a complete walk thru ensuring that the units we have in our system is what is showing on the property and make any necessary changes on site. We will place the signs making sure they are visual at the best location on site. We will also hang the Davinci Lock Box in an area that is convenient and accessible for the tenants. We have a thorough checklist we go through to ensure that when we leave the site, we have all units cleaned that can be cleaned and made RTR, all notes on the site taken, BOTG hired and trained for when we leave, and all suite pictures taken to maximize rentals.
Marketing
What does the marketing with Go Local entail? And is it required?
We require all our clients to use Go Local’s services. This includes PPC, SEO, tracking on marketing spend, listings on Google, Yelp, Bing, etc.
Why do I need to run PPC Ads?
What is a vanity domain, and why is it important?
Vanity domains make it easier for a user to find your website and make the URL more appealing for signage and printed material. For example, the URL a user can see on your page may be https://coppersafestorage.com/storage-locations/NC/Raleigh/123road/ and the vanity domain is raleighclimatestorage.com. If the user types in the smaller URL, they will be redirected to the correct page where the longer URL is visible.
When users search “storage near me” or my facility name in Google, will my vanity domain appear?
No, the website name will be Copper Safe Storage, and the URL below it will be the long URL that appears when the user is on your page. The title tag below is “Self-Storage Locations in North Carolina.” When you search your facility, the brand name may appear at the end of the title tag. The most crucial keywords need to appear at the beginning of the tag for SEO purposes.
What does Go Local do to drive online presence?
Organic
- On-Page Optimization
- Content is written to excel in local search results and target local communities. SEO monitors performance and optimizes on-page to keep up with ever-changing search trends to improve and maintain good rankings.
- On-page optimization includes technical website optimization for ranking and user experience factors.
- Content is written to excel in local search results and target local communities. SEO monitors performance and optimizes on-page to keep up with ever-changing search trends to improve and maintain good rankings.
- Off-Page Efforts
- Local Listings like Google Business Profile. Off-page efforts are affected by on-page efforts.
- Optimizing your local listings based on Google’s guidelines helps Google serve our listing based on relevance to the search, distance from the searcher, and the prominence of the search. We can help make your listing prominent and relevant based on what we see searched by optimizing the listing to its features, amenities, and more.
Paid Media
- Keyword Bidding – PPC Ads
- Bidding on keywords and searching for new ones that users are currently searching for storage specifically.
- Max Clicks to Max Conversions
- New properties have little data to start, so we push as much traffic within our budget in month 1 until we see actions taken on the site, such as rent or calls. We switch to a lead-based strategy once we have over 15 of these actions in 30 days.
- Performance max ads are designed to complement your keyword-based Search campaigns to help you find more converting customers across all of Google’s channels like YouTube, Display, Search, Discover, Gmail, and Maps. Performance Max enables you to drive performance based on your specified conversion goals, delivering more conversions and value by optimizing performance in real-time and across channels using Smart Bidding. Smart bidding: bid strategies that use machine learning to optimize for conversions or conversion value in every auction.
Why does my website not appear at the top of the sponsored section?
- Go Local uses AdWords:
- Advertisers bid to display brief advertisements, service offerings, product listings, or videos to web users. It can place ads both in the results of search engines like Google Search and on non-search websites, mobile apps, and videos.
- Ads with high ad ranking and bidding metrics will appear highest on the Google page. Many factors go into ranking, and more spending sometimes only equals the highest rank.
- The more times you search yourself, the less likely Google will show you one of your location’s ads. Google is trying to reach new, potential customers. If Google sees that you are searching for a brand often, it will assume you already know the brand name, and an ad is not needed to try and reach you since you are likely not a new user.
Why don’t I see my website when I Google “self-storage in X City”?
- Organic:
- The organic rankings you see depend on factors outside of just rankings, like your search history and geographic location. Googling your facility is not a reliable way to view the facility’s rankings. The Copper team can pass any questions or concerns to the Go Local team.
Where are the PPC Ads placed (just on Google or other sites like Bing, Facebook, Instagram, etc.)?
- We mainly utilize Google ads, with Google partners activated to show on items such as Google Maps or YouTube. Additional platforms such as social media or Bing would cost an extra budget. While we can sometimes see lead results from these platforms, we have yet to see the strongest ROI for lead volume. We recommend social media, especially if a location wants to saturate the market with brand awareness.
Accounting
What will I receive from accounting each month?
You will receive two main invoices from CSM each month. On the first of each month, you will be billed for the Management, Website, Bookkeeping, DaVinci Lock Fee and Line Tracking Fees. These amounts are fixed and are drafted from your bank account on the first of the month.
The second invoice will include any expense that was incurred in the prior month and any variable fees like Convenience Fees, Success Fees and Tenant Insurance. This invoice is sent out around the tenth of the month. The amount is drafted from your bank account 3-5 days later.
Is my management fee prorated?
The Management Fee may be prorated for the first month, but the other fees are not prorated because the vendors who provide the service do not prorate.
What expenses will I be billed for?
- Travel expenses for the Site Coordinator
- Storage expenses/supplies that were paid for on your behalf such as repairs, locks, signs, rodent traps, cleaning supplies, etc.
- Tenant Insurance Commission
- Advertising – Go Local click ads, SpareFoot.
- Auction expense – Locker Fox
- Convenience Fees (split with CSM)
- Success Fees (profit split)
- Job ads for Boots on the Ground (BOTG) – Indeed
- StorPass Fees
What should I expect from other vendors?
Other vendors may bill you directly and most are set up on autopay.
- StorEdge (Red Nova) – Monthly software charge
- Storable Merchant Fees – credit card processing
- Storable ACH Fee – ACH processing
- SpiderDoor – Software for gate and keypads
- Property First Bader – Tenant Insurance
- Late2Lien – Initial charge for postage deposit $300, additional charges after the deposit is used
- SpareFoot – This may be billed directly and not through CSM
- Utilities
- BOTG
What about insurance?

Jacob Copper
CEO
Jacob Copper is the CEO of Copper Storage Management, where he leads the company with a focus on innovation and excellence in the self-storage industry. Jacob joined CSM in November 2022, and his previous role as Senior Client Relations Specialist involved leading efforts to enhance client relationships and drive improved performance across the company’s facilities.
He holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from UNC – Charlotte, as well as a Master of International Studies from North Carolina State University. Jacob’s background includes valuable experience at Self Storage 101, where he conducted feasibility studies, due diligence audits, and operational audits. Jacob’s diverse exposure in the industry has equipped him with a well-rounded understanding of the dynamics affecting owners, operators, and property managers.

Brett Copper
President/Partner
Brett has grown up in the self-storage industry. As Bob Copper’s son, he has worked with Self Storage 101, the country’s leading self-storage consulting firm, since he was a teenager. After college, Brett worked with CubeSmart to gain further insight into 3rd Party Management and Operations before joining Self Storage 101 full time.
For the last 5 years, Brett has worked with hundreds of self-storage owners and operators on management, marketing, acquisitions, feasibility, and training for facilities all over the United States. Seeing a growing need for alternative management solutions in the industry, Brett, along with the rest of the Copper family, created Copper Storage Management.
Today, Copper Storage Management has become the largest (non-REIT) 3rd Party management company specifically catering to remote self-storage facilities. Copper Storage Management currently manages almost 200 facilities nationwide and continues to grow at an unprecedented rate. The Coppers have also acquired and sold large portfolios of unmanned facilities under the brand Copper Safe Storage.

Justine Diana
Human Resource Manager
Justine Diana is currently Human Resource Manager for Copper Storage Management. Justine is a proud graduate of King University where she achieved her bachelor’s degree in business administration in spring of 2021. Justine onboarded with Copper Storage Management in April 2021 with a desire and passion to create workflow processes, employee benefits, and a solid foundation for employees. Prior to working with CSM Justine worked in the medical field for 15+ years working with insurance companies, creating workflow processes, and meeting the needs of patients. In Justine’s free time she enjoys spending time and watching her daughter horseback ride. She loves the lake life, beach life, and loves to travel and take on new adventures.

Tess Toth
Director of Sales and Marketing
Tess Toth is the Director of Sales and Marketing at Copper Storage Management. Previously, she worked at Live Oak Bank for over 8 years in their marketing department and created the Lead Management sector at the bank helping drive millions of dollars of closed loans in 2021 and 2022.
At Copper Storage Management, Tess oversees the marketing and sales strategy, manages the lead pipeline and sales funnel, writes original industry articles and blogs, and creates company collateral.

Matt Edwards
Director of Accounting
Matt Edwards is the Director of Accounting at Copper Storage Management. He previously held positions in various industries, primarily related to residential construction, where he worked for two national builders. Matt holds a Bachelor of Science degree in accounting from the University of Central Florida.
At Copper Storage Management Matt oversees the accounting operation, ensuring that all of the company’s financial data is accurately recorded.