Built to Scale

| February 13, 2017

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When you set out to build software that will service thousands of customers like we do here at Data Age, you have to concentrate on the foundation.  Building to scale is something you hear all the time but what constitutes accuracy in this statement? Building the platform on infrastructures that are inadequate for growth is the main mistake that software developers make. In an effort to keep their own costs at a minimum, they may host your data at the nearest facility that they can get a cheap price at instead of leveraging the best possible solution for their customer base.  Also, not keeping up to date with the latest technology is a major issue for many software providers. Remember, cloud technology is constantly changing so anything past 5 years old in technology is already outdated.

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Customer Profile: Parlour Pawn

| February 11, 2017

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Bill Daigle, Parlour Pawn, Moncton, New Brunswick, Canada

Bill Daigle is the general manager of Parlour Pawn, overseeing almost 30 employees in several different departments. BDaigle_headshot.jpgAfter initially having a difficult time finding a pawn software that could keep up with their expanding inventory, Parlour Pawn turned to PawnMaster. With PawnMaster’s bin location system, Bill and his staff are able to safely, securely, and easily manage their 15,000+ pawns. (more…)

“I have a diamond I want to sell”

| February 8, 2017
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How YOU can get the Most $$ Money when Selling
GEMS to Dealers!
 
 
SELLING COLORED STONES
 Why its so hard to sell back color?
 
My friend Ankur tells me that the market is flooded with TREATED stones. This has causes the price of most colored gems to drop dramatically. It costs more money to sort them, than to cut new gems. 
 
Matt Winward of MD Diamonds buys OTC (over the counter) color, but he says it is very difficult because gemstones that have been in rings are most likely damaged.

Matt says the cost and time fix a gem makes it cost prohibitive. Also, it is capital intensive to buy color. Not just the initial purchase, but also expensive in terms of education, equipment, and trustworthy people.
 
 
 
Who Buys Color?
 
MD Diamonds (801) 628-4785
 
Eric buys nicer color

Johnny ABBGS (314) 517-3606
buys mostly nicer break out
larger sizes. pays about $1/ct 
 
Bartier Lapidary Service 
Damaged goods ONLY
 
Arun Gems, Bangkok Thailand
 
“I used to come to 
work and think
What can I SELL today?
Now I come in and think 
What can I BUY today”
 – Bob jeweler, FL
  Why Aleah can get you the MOST MONEY when you are Selling a diamond?
Aleah breakfast
  • I’m GENEROUS. I truly want to give you the absolute highest possible price for your diamond.
  • I SHOP IT AROUND. If I’m not the buyer, I find someone who is. 
  • I CAN GIVE OFFERS OVER THE PHONE! Just email me and I can give you a ball park price even without seeing it.
 
 
How to get the Most Money for Your Diamond Melee
How to get the Most Money for Your Diamond Melee
HOW TO SELL
 DIAMOND MELEE
handing money

 

STEP #1 GET THE CZ’s OUT

If you can frost your CZs out, you can get more money for your melee.

 

STEP #2  SIEVE IT

Sorting is very time consuming, but sieving is easy and helps you get more profit! There are three main plates you need. Sizes 16, 11 and 6. Each size is a different price point. You get more money by separating the price points.

 

MELEE BUYERS 

Try these melee buyers  

 Viraj     917-907-3522

 Verma  404-995-6782
 

 

Here is a Fun VIDEO for you to share to get 

MORE people to SELL TO YOU!

 

HOW TO SELL MELEE  DIAMONDS TO DEALERS

 

Take your parcel and

do one of two things.

 

1. If there is a trade

show, take your

parcel there. Shop it

to different booths.

Find the dealer that

pays the most, and send them your future melee.

 

2. Split your parcel into 3 sections.

Send 3 smaller parcels to 3 different buyers. Take the highest offer.

 

 
HOT TIP!
CLEAN MELEE GETS 
TWICE AS MUCH MONEY AS DIRTY! 

Amit did the research.

He showed THE SAME

 parcel before and after cleaning it and got very different offers! 

 

$70 for dirty verses $140/ct just for cleaning it. Be sure to clean your melee in the

ultrasonic before you

sell it.

 

     BEFORE     

AFTER

 

 

SIGNS 

YOU WISH YOU COULD PUT UP IN YOUR STORE!

 

 

Make More Money Using Your PawnMaster Data: Inventory Turns

| February 7, 2017

In my next post, you’ll read about the Seven Habits of a Successful Pawnbroker. One of those habits is the effective use of the PawnMaster data. The first item I want to drill down on is running the Aged Inventory Report. This should be done at least quarterly, if not monthly. To view, this report, go to Reports and select the Inventory category. Select report #1, “Items in Inventory” and click print. On the first filter select “Aged Inventory”, on the second filter choose all items or select an item type to display. Generally, on the next filter, it is preferred not to include “Bulk Items”. Now enter your start and end days, such as 365 and 730, to display items in the shop more than one year but less than two.

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Who Really Owns Your Data?

| February 6, 2017

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With so many pawnbrokers making the decision to change software vendors in 2016 as a result of several unfortunate circumstances, we feel it is important to provide these types of resources. When you’re entering into a SaaS agreement for the first time, you may have some questions or concerns. That’s normal. According to CIO Review, “The best means of protecting yourself is to carefully read and understand the terms of the contracts with your data vendors. Often these provisions can be negotiated–for example, you can require that your data to be anonymized when it’s used by the vendor.”

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Customer Profile: Premier Jewellery and Loans

| February 4, 2017

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Martin Strasser, Premier Jewellery and Loans, Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada

Martin Strasser had been using a custom-designed pawn software for years, but development costs and the amount of MStrasser_headshot.jpginventory he was dealing with led him to look for a stable platform with superior support. After researching PawnMaster and meeting with our team, Martin felt confident that he chose the best pawn software for his ever-growing business. (more…)

A Sweet Jewelry Tip!

| February 1, 2017

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 Effective Event Tip: “The Focus Group”
 
 
 
Super Sales Line
 
Andrew from Cincinnati says this great line, “When a diamond is sent to GIA it is given grades based on the opinion of three men, none of who’s opinions matter right now. You know who’s opinion matters? HERS. All that matters is what she see’s when she opens that box”
 
 
 
Special Sales Line
 
David from Alabama recommends gradually referring to the diamond you are trying to sell as “your diamond” and before long the customer will think that way too!

Price Guide

| January 31, 2017

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As we constantly strive to add value to our products, sometimes the best features can go under the radar.  Over the last 5 years we have put a stronger emphasis on training and consulting our new customers and this has allowed us to introduce more of the features that should be used on a daily basis in the PawnMaster software. 

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