Industry spotlight: Online pawn shops
The e-commerce market has grown to include pretty much any business that could be brick and mortar, but there are some types of stores you don’t see making the transition as quickly as regular retailers. Pawn shops are one of these markets. When you think about it – the process can seem a bit daunting. However, don’t worry, we’ll give you some advice to help you along the way!
Create a pawn shop online
There are some specific things you need to consider before you create an online pawn shop. First, you must decide what state to do business in. Where the transaction technically takes place is important, as pawn laws may vary from state to state. Next, you must find a way to accept and transfer funds for the merchandise being pawned; to do this you will need a recommended pawn friendly merchant account and payment gateway. You can always contact us for recommendations. After that, you need an appropriate e-commerce platform like Shopify or Woocommerce from which to operate. Being an online Pawn with FFL e-commerce sales adds a lot more complexity. If you are an FFL pawn dealer click here to learn how to get started.
Pawn is an industry with a lot of stigmas. Knowing how to operate in such an industry is important. The first thing you should do is learn more about the pawnshop market; here is a good article to get you started on the basics. Remember that the laws regulating the pawnshop industry aren’t all federal, there are also local and state laws that apply. You can also find more valuable info on the industry, like this article, with tips for getting started.
PLEASE CONSULT AN ATTORNEY WHO SPECIALIZES IN THE PAWN INDUSTRY. THIS SITE DOES NOT PROVIDE LEGAL ADVICE
Payment Processing and Merchant Accounts
The most important part of a pawnshop is how it handles its financial transactions. First off, online pawn shops are considered a high chargeback risk businesses. This means most standard online payment processors won’t let you use their services. You must get a payment gateway with a high-risk merchant account; we can recommend one that fits your needs from our list of partners. We can also set you up with an appropriate payment gateway, such as NMI, ePN or Authorize.Net. Our support for our clients can be as in-depth as 100% hand holding or just simple help when needed, so please contact us for more information and help setting up this important part of your e-commerce pawnshop.
How to market your pawnshop
Marketing your products should be pretty similar to marketing any e-commerce product. However, you may find that marketing your business is a bigger concern online than for your average brick and mortar pawn shop. This is because of the high amount of online fraud that is ever persistent and waiting to take advantage of the average customer. So what can you do to prove yourself to the online community you are joining? The best way to put people at ease when it comes to doing business with you is to give as much information about you as possible. Make vetting you an easy task by making your public presence known and easy to find information on. The first step is to verify all of your social business accounts, such as Google, Twitter, and Facebook. Being verified by each of these platforms will go a long way to proving you are a real business, but it might not be enough on its own. You need to go out of your way to ensure people can track your address and verify you own a business and are who you say you are, but you also want to be secure in your privacy and where you keep your inventory. Once you have done business with some clients you may want them to review the experience, as testimonials and business reviews can be a big factor in getting new clients to trust you.