Powered By
11 Types of Difficult Customers and Ideas for How to Handle Them (INFOGRAPHIC)
A critical part of running a successful business is managing customers. If customers are served properly and they leave your business premises happy and satisfied, your business can grow and continue to succeed. However, if customers leave upset, it can really hurt...
5 Tough Situations You’ll Eventually Face When Managing People
As a business owner, managing people is by far the toughest responsibility of all. Every person is different, unpredictable, and motivated by a unique set of factors. And while good hiring practices will mean smooth sailing most of the time, every business owner will...
Cracking the Code on Loyalty Programs: 5 Ways to Improve What You Offer Customers
How well is your retail store’s loyalty program working for you? What can you do to make your shoppers more loyal? Two recent studies have some valuable insights. Here’s what you need to know about trends in loyalty programs, why loyalty programs matter, and how to...
Beyond the Shop: The Manager’s Circle
If you’re an owner or even a manager of a pawn shop, the one thing I would advise you to do is get out from behind the counter and stand in what I call the manager circle, which is a three-foot imaginary circle in front of the counter. Because, who do you want meeting...
PRECIOUS-Gold steadies after worst fall since November 2016
The stronger dollar dampens demand for gold by making it costlier for buyers holding other currencies, while geopolitical uncertainty fuels interest in bullion as a safe investment. Spot gold was flat at $1,278.71 an ounce at 1434 GMT, while U.S. gold futures for...
Bad Boss Awards: 15 Signs You Might be the Winner and What You Can Do About It
You may not think there are that many bad bosses out there. But think again: Clearly, the idea of a horrible boss rings true with enough people that the movie Horrible Bosses was a hit, spawning Horrible Bosses 2. (Rumors of a Horrible Bosses 3 remain just rumors as...
eBay Gives Rural and Small Town Businesses a Global Presence, Report Shows
For rural small businesses, the ability to expand beyond their local market is extremely challenging and important. The impact eBay (NASDAQ: EBAY) is making on this front just came to light as the company partnered with a team of economists from Sidley Austin LLC to...
Here’s How to Write Off Equipment and Capital Improvements Like a Pro
The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act makes it easier than ever to write-off the cost of buying equipment or making certain improvements rather than depreciating the cost over a number of years. And small businesses are taking advantage of these new rules. The NFIB reported that...
You NEED A Facebook Business Page
You need a Facebook Business Page, especially if you don’t have a website. Facebook's more than two billion monthly active users make it an impossible platform for any business to ignore and let’s face it, if your customers can’t find you on line why should you think...
13 Ways to Onboard Employees Like the Pros
Getting a new employee integrated into your business takes time and plenty of resources. You may feel like you are spinning your wheels trying to remember everything they need to learn. You may not have a solid system for the onboarding process, leaving your new...
How I price a certified coin at my counter?
In this article, I will briefly run down for you how I price a coin that would come into my store if it were certified by PCGS or NGC. Most coin dealers believe that PCGS is the number one grading service followed closely by NGC. Two other grading services can be...
How to Spot a Phishing Email or Fake Landing Page and Save Your Business (INFOGRAPHIC)
Are you sure that email from FedEx is actually from FedEx? A major problem for small businesses is recognizing phishing emails. Oftentimes, hackers trick employees into clicking malware infected zip files and malicious links in emails that redirect to fake landing...
Master the Art of Local Marketing with these 12 Tips
Local marketing has multiple benefits for a business. It offers you the opportunity to get your products and services in the face of new home-based customers and can elevate your business in the community. Your company can easily become a household name by being front...
32% of Small Businesses Want to Improve Marketing
The challenges small business owners face are well documented, but marketing remains a critical focus for many. In the ShopKeep Small Business Pulse: 2018 report, 32% of respondents said they want to improve their marketing. The report highlights the increased...
“I salt my lots by throwing in Platinum to make sure my Refiner is honest.”
The first time I heard this, I was shocked! Then it was endless stories of pawn owner’s explaining how refiners didn’t find their platinum. So let’s talk about this elusive metal. To start, sneaking metal into your refining lot is never a good idea, especially...
10 Things You MUST Know About Social Media Marketing with Your Pet
There’s no shortage of animals who have become stars on social media. From Grumpy Cat to doggo memes, people love looking at pictures of cute pets on Instagram and similar platforms. Some businesses have even begun to leverage the popularity of pet accounts for...
10 Ways to Move Beyond the Marketing Basics
If your business already has the basics of social media and email marketing down, then it’s time to take your marketing efforts to the next level. Members of the online small business community have honed their expertise in these various areas over the years. And now...
Don’t Waste Time! 4 Steps to Targeting the Most Important 20% of Your Customers
Do you know the 80/20 rule of retailing? According to BRP Consulting, 80% of a retailer’s sales typically come from 20% of its customers. The key to growing your business is to identify that 20% and get them to buy more from your store.