C’mon Man!

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C’mon on Man!  Really?!  These old school approaches just no longer work in today’s one click information world.  We have talked about the abundance of information at the buyers finger tips.  We already know the statistics around how many buyers have made up their mind before even speaking to a sales person because they are doing their own research and collecting their own information.  The product pitch, the blind marketing sales approach to anyone who will give you a minute, the persuasion , slick talk, over the top energy and the slapstick proposals are over.  The only old school approach if you can call it old school would be form the old television show Colombo (severely dating myself here) The grizzly private investigator who’s key line was, let me ask you a question.  QBS… Question Based Selling is effective, is streamlines your sales process and most importantly it helps your client.

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Business Spotlight: Take care of them They will take care of you

header-BusinessSpotlightREDUX.jpgImpacting your customers on every level is what it is all about. It seems like the competitive landscape is tighter than ever before.  There are more and more competitors flooding the market with similar products and services.  What really stands out to excel someone’s business to become a leader?  A the end of the day how your treat your customers is the key.  Impacting their lives in some way will see them come back to your business and will also see them referring your business to others.  This is easier said than done.

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Customer Profile: Castle Rental & Pawn

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Lincoln Nail, Castle Rental & Pawn, Northwest Arkansas

Lincoln Nail manages a multi-store operation in Northwest Arkansas. He appreciates being able to manage software LNail_headshot.jpgsettings for all of his stores through PawnMaster Ignite’s browser-based interface, allowing him to implement changes from one centralized location. Lincoln loves the ability to customize Ignite’s home screen, allowing him to place the menu items that he uses the most at the forefront, saving him time and streamlining his work flow. (more…)

Business Spotlight: Social Proofing… No Longer a Luxury

header-BusinessSpotlightREDUX.jpgAs we continue to examine the power of the customer in a one-click market and how social media impacts business, the need to have the market validate the value you state you deliver, has become more important than ever before. Social proofing is no longer a phenomena it is a legitimate methodology and one any great company needs to embrace and master. What we now call social proofing, used to be mainly driven by endorsements. The big name athlete getting paid to talk about a product. As we all know the concept does drive people to the product but once the product was consumed no one really had the chance to hear about the end results. 

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Why aren’t we seeing software vendor choices out there in the Pawn Industry?

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We don’t see too many new vendors throwing their hats in the ring to service the pawn broking industry. Why is that?  It seems lucrative, right? Pretty straight forward? The loan payment calculations seem easy enough… It’s quite the contrary. As far as software goes, this is a very niche or vertical market. That is to say that this market is very finite in the number of possible customers and very specialized in terms of operation and calculations.  Not only that, there are also specific requirements state by state when it comes to regulatory mandates, controlling the rates that are charged and how they are calculated over a period of time. In the nearly 30 years that I have catered to this industry, I’ve seen over a dozen decent sized software vendors come in with high hopes only to fade awaysome slowly, years later, and some abruptly. With every new vendor I met while attending any state, regional or national trade show, I always made sure that I sincerely extended my handshake and wished them good luck in their new endeavor. I always followed my well wishes with, “It’s not easy.” (more…)

Sales Spotlight: Inside Sales, The Powerhouse of Sales

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Inside sales has grown leaps and bounds over the years. There are no longer sideways jokes about inside sales, or the telemarketing stigmas that used to accompany this model. Inside sales is serious business and provides great flexibility to a company’s ability to not only secure new business, but allows them to effectively maintain a base of business while maximizing their marketing spends. Buying behaviors have changed dramatically over the past decade; the information a buyer needs is just one click away. A sound, well-planned strategy of how to utilize an inside sales team can elevate and greatly impact a company’s efforts to grow their business, properly service their customers, and avoid attrition.

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Why Do We Buy Jewelry?

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So Why Do We Buy Jewelry?
No one buys jewelry because they need to. In fact, jewelry is the opposite of practical! It’s heavy and it could carry bacteria. People buy jewelry because of the way it makes them FEEL.
 
Jewelry Sales are 100% Emotional (more…)

Business Spotlight: Hire for Attitude

header-BusinessSpotlightREDUX.jpgLet’s face it, I have said it once and I will say it again. We are in the people business. We talk a lot about our customers. We speak to understanding their needs, what motivates them and how we can best help them.  The other side of the coin sees us all operating businesses and having to hire people to help the plan in place succeed. Over the years, I have known many entrepreneurs, VP of Human Resources and countless corporate hiring managers investing thousands of dollars into tools to help make this process more efficient and successful. These tools, in the own way, are effective but I will never discount instinct as a very powerful tool in this process.

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