The industry was given some unfortunate news about Dazzle Pawn this week. It is not only unfortunate for this person’s loved ones, but also for all of the pawn brokers who have invested their futures into a one-man software shop without anticipating the consequences that are coming to light today. Of course we don’t expect the worst when it comes to things like this, but this is why it is important to ask solid questions before committing to any vendor.  Unfortunately, we have seen similar situations more often than we would like in our 28 years in this industry. Data conversions are part of the business for us but even with that, we never like seeing a fellow pawnbroker go through the stress of trying to get back up and running overnight if things were to go in a bad direction. As we have for a long time, we encourage our customers to shoparound and do their homework.

The technology industry is not a clear cut one in the terms being understood. To make things even more difficult, you’re almost never comparing apples to apples. Today’s pawn broker has so much on their plate and their time is spread very thin. It is important to understand, when looking for technology, that there are many factors – many questions you may not have to ask in other circumstances. You probably don’t even know what you don’t know. As a software development company we know there are many one-off developers out there who are talented and who operate lifestyle-like businesses. This route has very limited advantages; price may possibly be one. With that comes risk so huge you can’t put a price tag on it.

One major risk is the short and long-term support of the technology. When you invest in a technology you should be doing it for the long haul. Make sure your provider is in it for the long haul with you. This makes sense because the ROI will be a given the longer you use the technology. Making sure you ask questions about the provider, their current support/infrastructure, long terms plans/goals and road maps are vital. Also knowing the “what-if” scenarios.

Data Age will continue to educate our industry in concert with working with the known associations to ensure accuracy and transparency is represented in the space. Leading up to NPA, we will be sharing information about technology. We will be collaborating more and more with technology leaders and sharing their expertise with the rest of our industry. Exciting times ahead for sure… more to come.  

We’ve seen this happen many times before. Here are a couple things to look out for when shopping for a secure pawn software solution.

Click here to download our free eBook, “10 Questions to Ask when Choosing a Pawn Software”