Retail Observer

RETAILOBSERVER.COM JANUARY 2019 42 R ent to Own dealers face many of the same challenges independent retail dealers face, but their business is unique in several ways, and their go-to-market approach is a bit different as well. For this article, I reached out to TRIB Group marketing vendors for their perspectives. Our marketing vendors are all very experienced in the Rent-to-Own space, and I'm pleased to present this recipe for a successful RTO marketing program. As you'll see, there are a number of similarities between RTO and retail, and there are a few differences as well. EVERY CHANNEL MARKETING "Although RTO companies have more choices than ever before, getting results is more difficult, as our advertising dollars have become diluted by the abundant number of choices." says Tim Hector of Every Channel Marketing. "RTO dealers must work to find ways to compete with traditional channels that are now offering 'No Credit' offers. Here are some tips we recommend to our clients." • Tip 1: Have a good website, regardless of whether you're also using TV, Radio, Billboards, Print & Mail, Email, Text, Internet targeting or Social Media. The first thing today's potential customer will want to do is visit your website. The more complete your site, the better. Can your site process orders? • Tip 2: Your market and location will help determine which advertising alternatives you should use. Some advertising channels work better in cities than rural areas, and some ad channels may require several locations to help absorb the high cost. • Tip 3: The shotgun approach to advertising can definitely give you a broad look at your potential customers, but it's also a great way to see which way the wind is blowing as you throw your money out the window. In other words: don't throw away your money just to see where it sticks. "We recommend using a highly targeted approach with very tight parameters for print & mail, text, email, social and other online digital ads. Tie them together to hit your customers at key times to gain the most traction for a given budget. This will drive customers to your store and to your website." CENTRAL FILE MARKETING (A DIVISION OF THE ANSTADT COMPANIES) Al Benson of Central File explained how the company helps dealers stay competitive with customer retention programs. Customer retention is important in any industry, but with RTO success means reaching out with different product areas to reach more customers. Central File has provided effective customer retention programs to RTO stores and employees for 28 years. And by using their experience with RTO operations they've developed a comprehensive, cost- effective Customer Re-Acquisition program. Central File recommends that RTO dealers pay close attention to the following factors: 1) Data Security: One of the most valuable assets a store has is its customer list. RTO dealers must protect their customers' data by utilizing secure data encryption. 2) Keeping track of customers, even when they move. This can help dealers recover lost or written-off merchandise, an aspect of RTO that traditional retailers don't face. 3) Create targets, timing and offers, then examine the success of each. Central File helps its dealers by providing them with detailed reports that explain what works best. They also work with store personnel to maintain levels of success. As you can see, some features of marketing to RTO customers are the same as with traditional retail marketing. It's important to have an up-to-date digital presence with a quality website, to focus on existing customer data, and to analyze it to help you increase sales to your existing customers. In addition, you can use that data to target the customers and create the offers that will have the greatest impact. Using social media channels to build and maintain relationships with customers has become a key part of the mix, but we'll delve into that topic at another time. MARKETING TO THE RTO CUSTOMER RO Dennis Shields Rent-to-Own Trends Dennis Shields, Executive Director of the TRIB Group

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