Being in the pawn business, there are a few things that we tend to hear from our customers day in and day out, especially when it comes to items on the sales floor. Let me know if this sounds familiar: (1) What's the best price you can sell this for? (2) Is this price "out the door," and (3) What kind of guarantee does this have?

To be honest, I was skeptical of using a Protection Plan. For many years I had just worked on making the customer a really good deal. After all, our sales were pretty strong and our cost of goods were very manageable. After chatting with Len for a bit we decided to offer a pretty solid Protection Plan. Our goal was to improve the customer's buying experience with peace of mind for gently used merchandise. Training was essential with our team, from verbiage and how to offer the plan to upselling and management involvement.  For a small percentage, the customer can protect their purchase for up to 6 months on general merchandise or 1 year on jewelry. If an item is exchanged the customer would need to purchase a new Protection Plan for the exchanged item to cover the same way.

Talk about a hit! From one year to the next not only did our sales increase by over 20%, but more importantly, we also had better profit margins than our company has ever seen! Just imagine having the potential to add 10% to every item out for sale with a worst-case scenario of upselling the customer again in a few months. Below I have outlined a few key points about the protection plan module that have really been game changers for us. Thanks again to PawnMaster for the support and flawless execution with this feature.

Benefits of a Protection Plan - Business Standpoint

• Higher Margins
• Upsell possible for every transaction
• Returning customers & bigger sales

Benefits of a Protection Plan - Consumer View

• Peace of mind
• "VIP" status 
• Guaranteed Loan Value

Rob and I recently sat down to discuss loaning, and tips to ensure a strong loan balance that produces a strong yield.

While the easy things to discuss are qualifying and having the correct exit strategy, (i.e.: redemption vs sale), how do you get the balance to work for you? How do we get the customer to be engaged enough with our business to pay and eventually pick up?

I’ve heard brokers discussing the “lifetime value of a customer”, but isn’t it more important to discuss what you are doing to retain each customer? What is your system for notifying customers of payments due? Of loans about to forfeit? Do you call? Text? Email?

I certainly won’t sit here and tell you what the answer is, but I think that it is perhaps the most important question, and the answer probably lies somewhere among all of those best practices.

The loaning on the front end, and the decision making that goes with it, are only half of the equation. How you “service” your loan balance is the other half. In a state like Florida, you have the potential to make 300% a year on each loan. Other states where it is less, makes the servicing of those loans even more important.

Here is the point. Many of the smartest people that I have ever met, have been from the Pawn business. Most of you out there are thinkers, strategists, and very observative. So, use all of that to your advantage. Talk to the customers, and don’t be afraid to call them for payments, or text them. Listen to them, and offer real actionable solutions to help with their problems.

I once had a boss who used to say “If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.”

Data Age Business Systems, developer of PawnMaster, the industry leading pawn management software, is pleased to announce the onboarding of Dave Larson as Director of Client Development.

What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas. This may be the case, but I have taken some thoughts and ideas back to sunny Florida with me.

URGENT ALERT: Don’t lose your data or have your business shut down as a result of your software company going out of business or not answering support calls.

Because we all use bar codes in our daily routine, we wanted to share this cool,yet informative infographic about the history of the barcode that is now turning 60. As you know PawnMaster uses several different types of barcode scanners that help you manage your inventory. Happy Anniversary Bar code! Today is the 60th Anniversary of the barcode; and if you’re interested in learning more fun facts like the ones above as well as how the barcode came to be, its practical uses, and how industries have implemented the technology today, check out the infographic below.

It's that time of year where things get bananas around the shop and the exchange of money really starts to flow. Will you, or are you ready as the influx of people start showing up ready to pawn, buy, or sell their items? PawnMaster can help you be that extra clerk, manager, or set of eyes you need when things get chaotic. Think of PawnMaster as your must trusted employee that always has your back! As we come into the heart of the holiday season, we are here to support you with any and all of your hardware and software needs. Feel free to contact one of our industry specialists for assistance 888-949-7296. Here is a great article we found about the upcoming holiday season.

This video will help you understand the importance of purchasing hardware through Data Age instead of with a 3rd party vendor. Visit us online at http://www.pawnmaster.com for more information or to request a demo of our pawn management software. Don't forget to subscribe to our Youtube channel so you can stay up to date as we roll out new videos.

Pawnbrokers, we know you have heard the phrase "Image is Everything". We have visited pawn shops all over North America and the Caribbean. We have seen some of the worst and best shops in the business and the ones that stand out the most are the ones that are clean, well lit and make people feel safe to conduct business in. As Data Age / PawnMaster gets ready to turn 25 years old, we know as the industry leader, our image is constantly being watched by our competitors so we work extra hard to ensure we keep it positive. A key part of building your brand is promoting a polished and consistent image. Your image is reflected in everything that represents your business – logo, business card, packaging, tag-line, etc. To make a lasting impression, be sure every aspect of your marketing strategy mirrors that image in design, color and overall appearance.