Your Pawnshop’s Holiday Prep Checklist
By Kristy Bauer Carney
This blog post is part of Bravo’s 90 Days of Retail Marketing Guide for Pawnbrokers. To see more content like this and to follow along on our calendar, visit our 90 Days of Retail webpage.
We’re heading into the holiday season – is your store ready? When I was a pawnbroker for Max Pawn, these were the best practices we used to draw customers in and encourage them to stay and shop. Here are some reminders as you’re preparing for shoppers:
1. Get your inventory ready. Do you have expired layaways, buys or loans that you’ve been holding? It's time to forfeit, re-price, and put them online/on your showroom floor. Shopkeeper helps you track where items are located.
2. Offer a new service!!! NOW is a great time to add Consignment into your inventory mix. It’s FREE inventory that so many pawnbrokers desperately need. Warranties is another easy revenue stream you can capitalize on, which offers peace of mind protection for buyers of pre-owned goods.
3. Update your online photos. Spending extra time on great photos will allow you to appeal to customers by providing a better visual experience. We have a quick guide to great photos in our blogs section.
4. If you are selling online, order extra wrapping, packaging and shipping supplies. According to an Adobe study, e-commerce sales rose 32% in 2020. Though more retail spaces have re-opened in-person shopping since then, uncertainty surrounding Covid-19 is still prevalent, and the demand for online shopping has remained strong.
5. Clean and update your front window. A seasonal display will let customers that your store is a destination for holiday shopping, while enticing new customers to walk into your store. Some easy ways decorations include adding string lights, snowflake decorations and beautifully wrapped gift boxes. You want customers to be able to visualize your items as a potential gift!
6. Clean and update your display cases and shine up the jewelry. How you present your products can be just as important as the products themselves.
7. Create a holiday gift guide with your customer in mind factoring in your available inventory. Grouping similar categories and price points together in-store makes gift shopping much easier and more efficient. And don’t forget to mention that MobilePawn offers a Wish List function, so your online shoppers can save their favorite items.
8. Get your staff in the right headspace! Brush up on those customer service practices, store security protocols, ongoing promotions and – most importantly – employee sales incentives. Have employees wear festive clothing – such as Santa hats or holiday sweaters – or ask them to dress up a little more to emphasize that “special” time of year feeling.
9. Don’t forget sounds and smell! Make it smell and sound like Christmas in your store. The smell of cinnamon, in particular, is shown to encourage shoppers to buy more.
10. Add that “soft touch” customer service – such as complimentary gift-wrapping and jewelry engraving services - to encourage shoppers to complete their holiday list in your store. It’s a great way to keep customers engaged longer (and possibly pick up another last-minute item) and round out your store’s holiday atmosphere.
We know there’s a lot on your plate this season, which is why Bravo comes with more out-of-the-box features than any other pawn software on the market – for the same price. We hope these tips help you get back what matters most this holiday season: Your time and money!
Happy retailing!
(Download a printable version of this checklist by clicking on our 90 Days of Retail banner below!)
About the Author
As Head of Product Management at Bravo, Kristy is responsible for leading Bravo's development roadmap. Kristy has over 15 years of experience working across all levels of pawn and FFL. Having worked as a pawnbroker and in sales and product development for multiple pawn software companies, including PawnMaster, she's a pro at understanding industry trends and market outlooks, and how that can impact Bravo customers. She is a product expert who knows what matters to pawnbrokers, and is known to go above and beyond to help develop the best solutions for their needs.
Kristy holds Masters certificates in Internet Marketing from the University of San Francisco and UX Design from the UX Design Institute in NY. She lives in Stoddard, WI with her husband, son, dog and two cats.
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