RSS Feed

It’s the worst nightmare and it happens all the time.  Hackers are able to steal credit cards from retailers who store credit card information on their computer systems, large and small.

For example, according to SC Magazine, just one hacker, Albert Gonzalez, was recently convicted of hacking seven retailers: TJX (parent of T.J. Maxx and Marshall’s), BJ’s Wholesale Club, OfficeMax, Boston Market, Barnes & Noble, Sports Authority, and Heartland Payment Systems, 7-Eleven and Hannaford Bros. supermarket chain.   Over 100 million credit cards were stolen in the process.  Source: SC Magazine, March 30, 2010.  http://www.scmagazine.com/jcpenney-joins-heartland-tjx-as-gonzalez-victims/article/166946/

According to ARS Technica, in another case before the U.S. District Court of New Hampshire, a band of Romanian hackers are alleged to have hacked 150 Subway restaurants and at least 50 other small retailers.  The hackers are alleged to have gathered credit and debit card data from over 800,000 victims.   http://arstechnica.com/business/news/2011/12/how-hackers-gave-subway-a-30-million-lesson-in-point-of-sale-security.ars

Don’t let it happen to you.  Talk to your rental software developer today.

The best solution is a credit card processing system that does not store credit cards on YOUR computer system.  Instead it maintains them off-site in an ultra-secure “Data Vault” managed by one of the world’s largest card processing institutions (such as VeriFone), using the latest bank encryption technology.  So this means no one, regardless of security level, can download or view anything but the last four digits of your customer’s card number.  On the other hand, your store staff can still safely process any authorized charges for deposits, cycle billing, meter usage and more.

Don’t put it off.  Secure your customer’s credit card information today.  You’ll sleep a lot better tonight.

Leave a Comment;

Whitney Carnahan, Features Editor of Rental Management Magazine, recently contacted Rob Ross, President of Alert Management Systems, for opinions regarding a variety of credit card payment and security issues.  In the April issue, already out in print and digital form, a number of the non-security related answers were published as excerpts.  In May, she plans to write another article focused entirely on credit card security.  Here is the full text of our responses to Whitney’s questions.

————————————————————————————————————————————————–

Carnahan:  What should rental stores look for in payment applications for software?

Ross: Nothing has changed more in the rental world than credit card payment processing.  The retail world in general has been rocked by a string of credit card frauds and breaches that have affected even the largest and most secure institutions.  In response, new PCI security regulations have been issued frequently in the last few years, making compliance a moving target for everybody involved.

Many rental stores are facing more and more frequent audits as well as surcharges and penalties for non-compliance.  They have been required to upgrade software and even hardware– especially routers and devices that control networks across multiple stores.  The PA-DSS questionnaires for merchants ask increasingly sophisticated questions requiring IT skills and implying liability for inaccurate answers.  Meantime, the PCI Board continues to make new rulings in response to new breaches.

Carnahan:  From a security perspective, what should rental stores look for in payment processing applications?

Ross: First, it is important to understand that ‘best practices’ start at the rental counter.  Regardless of the software you use, you need to make sure your staff is not ‘keeping notes’ of credit card numbers and associated information in unsecure places.  Secondly, if your software allows you or anyone in your organization (regardless of password level) to see all 16 digits of any credit card, your software is now obsolete and needs to be upgraded.  (Only the last four digits may be viewed in their human-readable form.)

If you process cards separately (on a physical terminal provided by your bank or processor), you simply need to find out if the hardware device(s) are up-to-date.  If you have an integrated (PCI-Compliant) credit card system, ideally, it should not store cards in any form on your computer system, so your store has the maximum protection with the least amount of regulation of your physical network.  State-of-the-art systems from industry leaders are the best bet in today’s environment.  (For example, Alert uses PAYware Connect from Verifone, which only stores cards in a secure ‘Cloud’ environment.  Verifone is the world’s largest payment processor.)  Companies like Verifone have the resources and technology to keep up with ever-increasing security requirements.

Carnahan:  How can software impact a rental store’s bottom line? How can it help them get paid?

Ross: The ‘real cost’ of payment processing charges are often complicated and difficult to assess.  One thing is certain:  any savings or overcharges go right to the bottom line.  The most important thing to do is to add up all your charges and divide into the total amount of all your credit card transactions.  This will tell you your ‘effective rate’ vs. the rate you pay for ‘qualifying’ charges.  Inevitably, the effective rate is more representative of your real cost (and much higher).  We also recommend that you periodically get a second opinion from an expert or consult with a broker for multiple competing payment systems.  There is no one right answer, in part because every store will experience a different mix of cards and types of transactions.  (There can be differences in even the most subtle ways:  How are fees credited for refunds, for example?)

With respect to your software vendor, it is important to know if you are free to choose any processor, or if you are restricted to a particular vendor.  Common sense tells you that you want to have the most competitive environment possible for your business.  It is also fair to know if there will be recurring support and upgrade charges.

Although allowing your customers to pay their accounts receivable balance via credit card can be costly, many stores are switching as much of their A/R business to credit card as possible, as a way to improve their aging, increase cash and lower collection costs, especially for smaller accounts.  Your software system should help you set goals and measure your progress, so you can assess the financial results of this strategy.  Again, there is no single right strategy.

Carnahan:  Many rental stores I have talked to say their customers’ credit card information is not stored on their computers. Is that true?  What kind of encryption do they need for secure information?

Ross: As discussed above, it will be increasingly difficult for small businesses of any kind to justify the risk and regulatory hassles of maintaining credit card information on their own computer systems, particularly now that there are ultra-safe, low cost ‘cloud-based’ alternatives (such as PAYware Connect) available.  After all, even major institutions with the latest encryption technology have been victimized by credit card fraud.  The ultimate peace-of-mind comes from knowing you cannot be targeted because you simply do not store any credit card information.

Leave a Comment;

Every rental business needs to track missed rentals in order to know when it makes sense to buy additional equipment.

In years past, rental Stores had to use paper and pencil in order to try to keep track of missed rental opportunities.  With today’s modern rental software, missed rental reports are built into the system.  The key is training to make certain that your employees are recording all the missed rental opportunities as they happen.

The most profitable rental operators make this a priority discipline.  They know that when they see a repeated loss of revenue due to a lack of certain piece of rental equipment, it generally makes sense to purchase more inventory.  In most cases, when the demand is clear, more inventory translates to more revenues and more profits.  It’s also a great way to ensure that your competitors don’t gain a foothold with your customers.  Finally, having the proper levels of inventory will reduce the need to use profit-sapping sub rentals.

The most profitable operators also find these missed rental reports to be very important when it comes time to develop their shopping lists for the next ARA Trade Show.

Call your rental software company to learn how you can start using missed rentals reports today.  It will mean more revenue and more profits while also helping to ensure you keep the loyalty of your most important customers.

Leave a Comment;

Local Market Data Now Available at Very Low Cost

According to IHS Global Insight, the world’s leading economic forecasting authority, the United States Equipment Rental Business is expected to see a steep increase in revenues over the next several years.  After bottoming out at about $26.8 billion in 2010, revenues are expected to grow 7.0% in 2012 and to reach $49.6 billion by 2016.

Global Insights Forecasting 7.0% Growth for the Rental Industry in 2012

Source:   January 27, 2012, Forecast Update by IHS Global Insights

Growth of the major rental revenue sectors is forecast as follows:

  • Construction and Industrial Equipment Rental revenue will grow 7.6% in 2012 and 81.4.0% by 2016.
  • General Tool Rental revenue will grow 6.8% in 2012 and 73.0% by 2016.
  • Party & Event Rental revenue will grow 2.5% in 2012 and 17.4% by 2016

Local Metro Area Data now inexpensively available through the ARA.

Alert Management Systems recommends that rental store owners purchase this New local market data through the American Rental Association (ARA).

We believe this local data, which is updated and provided online each quarter, is critical for putting together realistic business plans for 2012 and beyond. After all, it is impossible to set realistic goals without knowing the environment in which a company competes.  For each Metro area, the following data is provided for 2008-2015:

  • Construction and Industrial Equipment Rental Revenue
  • General Tool Rental Revenue
  • Party & Event Rental Revenue
  • Total Rental Revenue
  • Real Gross Metro Product
  • Real Total Construction Revenue
  • Residential Construction Revenue
  • Non-residential Construction Revenue
  • Total Retail Sales
  • Population Ages 25-54 and 55-64
  • Total Employment
  • Construction Natural Resources and Mining Employment
  • Manufacturing Employment

For $100 per year ARA members can purchase the national data.  The cost for your first local metro area is an additional $50 which includes all three segments.  Additional metro areas can be added for $50 for one rental segment, $75 for two or $100 for all three. Additional discounts apply when multiple metro areas are purchased.

This information is available through ARA’s State of the Equipment Rental Industry Outlook 2009-2016 online Market Monitor, compiled by IHS Global Insight.  For more information, go to www.ARArental.org/go/research or contact Tracy Johannsen at tracy.johannsen@ararental.org or 800-334-2177, ext. 270.

(Note:  This is one of a series of blog articles that will appear here frequently.  All the blog articles focus on ways to improve rental operators’ profitability.  All the ideas are based upon the proven experience of our most profitable rental operators.  Return here often for additional proven business enhancing ideas.  We welcome your comments.)

Leave a Comment;

If you have been thinking about social media as a big distraction, you are not alone.  I have been guilty of the same thing.

Like it or not, however, social media is here to stay and we ignore its potential only at our own great peril.  This article will explain why social media is becoming so important to the rental industry.  It will also provide some ideas on how to get started on the right foot.

Evidence of the Importance of Social Media.

The four big players are Facebook, Twitter, You Tube and Goggle+.

All four of these social media outlets have experienced exponential growth over recent years, and predictions for 2012 show that this trend is set to continue. In January 2010, Facebook reported 350 million users, and just one year later this figure rose to over 500 million. In January 2010, Twitter reported 75 million active users. By 2011 the company experienced a 250-percent growth, with over 175 million users. Google+ is still a relatively new platform and one that is growing rapidly.  By the end of this year Goggle+ is predicted to have over 400 million users.

Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Google+: Four huge players, but which one is right for your rental company?

If you are new to social media, it is a good idea to create personal accounts on all four platforms prior to launching your rental company’s campaign. Get comfortable and confident using this technology. Learn how to monitor, post, and interact with other users.

All four platforms are worthwhile avenues for exploration. Twitter and Facebook are great places to start because they are easily accessible via smart phones and other mobile devices and very easy to monitor. Twitter is very effective for posting quick links and product information updates.

United Rentals, Inc. is a noteworthy rental company currently using all aspects of social media to their advantage.

United Rentals, Inc. has been working with the award-winning television show Extreme Makeover: Home Edition for over four years. They regularly use Facebook and YouTube to post snippets of the show to keep their followers engaged and to also showcase the heart of the company to their customers. Undoubtedly, United Rentals is in a position of considerable leverage, but this example of using social media to show the human side of a rental operation can, with some creative thinking, be adapted to your own online marketing campaign.

Manufacturers are also creating viral video – see JCB’s dancing diggers video that helped bring new enthusiasm into the brand. See http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uFBAzRc5vXE

Currently, the number of rental companies using Google+ is rather insignificant, and those that currently have a presence there are not making it the focus of their marketing efforts. This is expected to change.  Marketing experts predict that the Goggle+ audience will grow significantly. Once it does, it will be interesting to see how rental companies use this new audience to their advantage.

The First Step

Before you launch your social media campaign, investigate how your peers are using it to their advantage. This does not mean strictly limiting your research to peers in our particular field. Take a look at a range of innovative companies you admire and examine how they are approaching the challenge of engagement, interaction and ultimately, increasing conversions. Pay special attention to design and tone of voice. You will note that a number of high-end organizations actually use a conversational voice and with good reason, the essence of social media is interaction and a conversational tone inspires users to interact.

Create Something Worth Sharing

Social media is more than just a marketing platform. A common mistake for a company new to social media is to use the platform to only list their operations and products. Instead of simply announcing a new machine or product to your fleet, interact with your customers and focus attention on the solutions the new item can provide.

For example, if you specialize in the special events industry and you are adding a new tent to your fleet, time the announcement to take place during graduation season and pose a stimulating question. For example, “How many graduates do you think you it is possible to fit into this tent?” If you follow this up by answering the question with an infographic or a humorous viral video of graduates trying to cram into the tent, you have content that potentially will be shared throughout the social media community and ultimately drive more business to your operation.

What about the Down Side of Social Media?

Some rental companies refrain from using social media because they are concerned with the fact that it provides a platform for potentially negative comments and questions regarding their business. But it is universal opinion in the public relations field that it is better to know what your detractors are saying than being unaware of your faults.

If you receive some negative feedback, find unique and compelling ways to resolve any dissatisfaction or complaints you may receive. If you address any issues regarding your service or quality in a unique and honest way, you will find that you will actually gain the respect of the detractor rather than losing any additional clientele.

Become more actively involved in the rental industry

Social media does not have to exclusively revolve around a client base. Many rental companies are using social media to keep up to date with the rental industry as a whole. Following new projects, trends and other industry insiders, will give you valuable information that you can use to engage your client base.

Reaching out to your suppliers can also help you stay abreast of their latest product launches, promotions and improve your business relationship. Actively involving yourself in your suppliers’ social media can also give you the opportunity to discover what products your competition is using and how successful their endeavors are.

“Liking” your rental suppliers on their own social media sites can involve you in conversations as an authoritative resource and give you the opportunity to answer any relevant questions their customers may have about products you currently use. Gaining you respect from your peers and new potential customers.

Real Time Marketing

People involved in social media demand real time interaction, so be aware of this before you launch your social media campaign. A well-executed campaign can do more than simply show the face of your company; it can also show your heart. But if you do not allocate a reasonable amount of time to your social media endeavors, a social media presence can actually do you more harm than good. People expect immediate answers to questions and queries and if a customer has to wait days for a response from you on a social media platform, this will most likely lose you business.

Leave a Comment;

A recent survey conducted by Hubspot, compiled using data from the US Census Bureau, PEW research and Blogher, shows with convincing evidence, just how powerful a business blog can truly be.

This article will provide you with both compelling proof that you need to add a blog to your website as well as several thought-starter content ideas that you can consider putting into your blog.

Why is a Business Blog so Valuable to a Rental Company?

Search engines value fresh content:

Higher search engine rankings generate increased conversions and new leads interested in your products and services. Fresh content updated on a regular basis will consistently lead to higher rankings than competitors with older content.

Furthermore, when search engines see that content is being added frequently to your website, they will be more likely to return on a regular basis and index your new content into the search engines at a faster rate.

The business blog statistics are impressive:

*Businesses that blog 20 times per month, generate 5X more traffic and 4X more leads than those who blog infrequently.

*B2B businesses that generate a blog attract 67% more leads every month than those who do not.

*65% of Internet users read a blog

*46% of Internet users read more than one blog a day

(Source: 100 awesome marketing stats, charts and graphs hubspot.com)

You can easily syndicate and share within your Industry:

Because many blogs, including this one, can be subscribed to via RSS feed and email, you have the opportunity to share valuable information immediately amongst your peers and your clientele. Search engine algorithms utilize sharing, views and content popularity as essential components in determining the ranking of your business blog. Creating engaging information will naturally lead itself to being shared and receiving inbound links. Social media also plays a vital role in this sharing process.

*Blog posts shared on twitter get 113% more inbound links than those not shared on any social media platform.

*Blog posts shared on Facebook and Twitter receive 149% more inbound links than those not shared on any social media platform.

(Source: 100 awesome marketing stats, charts and graphs hubspot.com)

What Should You Put into Your Blog?

Your blog is an opportunity to indirectly sell your products and services by providing helpful information to your customers and prospects. Your customers and prospects expect you to be touting the advantages of your products and services throughout the rest of your website. Your blog is your opportunity to be truly helpful to your customers and thereby gain the most important thing of all – their trust and confidence.

For example, your blog can include articles on how to do certain repair or construction jobs. In the Party/Event world you could include ideas on how to make your customers party the talk of the neighborhood.

Your blog can also include articles on how to judge the effectiveness of certain tools or equipment.

Similarly, your blog can include articles on how certain tools can make jobs easier to complete successfully.

The possibilities are endless all you need to do is start with your customers needs and lack of knowledge and then provide them with solutions they will value.

We would love to see the articles you include in your blog and learn about the success they have brought you.

Engage and Interact With Your Readers

Having the facility to allow your readers to comment on your blog platform grants you the opportunity to hear the voice of your customers, answer their questions and provide clarification. Future visitors will see that you are invested in these discussions and perceive you as a savvy business owner who cares about their customers.

But allowing comments from readers can potentially invite web spam to your business blog. If you are using WordPress, arguably the industry’s most popular blogging platform, there are plugins, such as Akismet, that allow you to monitor comments and manually approve them. This is a recommended tactic, because a business blog that is riddled with spam comments will quickly lose all authority.

Have you noticed a significant ROI since launching a business blog? Have you successfully generated new leads from comments and views?
Tell us your stories here.

Leave a Comment;

Alert Invites its Users’ Group to
Catch the Next Wave!

Whether you’re surfing in Maui, or running a successful business, you know what it feels like to Catch the Next Wave: The positive results are exhilarating, refreshing, and effortless. If you miss it… the consequences can be deadly. (Shark Bait!)

Alert Management Systems recently announced the agenda for the 2011 Annual IAUA Profitability Conference to be held November 10-12, 2011, at the Antlers Hilton Hotel in Colorado Springs. This year’s Hawaiian-themed event also includes a

dream give-away to a lucky attendee: 2 free airline tickets to Hawaii! (For registration information, visit the Alert web site at www.alertms.com.)

2011 marks the organization’s 26th consecutive annual conference. The IAUA is the rental industry’s largest and longest-running association of computer system users, led by its own elected Advisory Board.

In addition to networking with other successful rental business operators during the 3-day program, IAUA members will enjoy a packed agenda of educational seminars and round-tables focused on improving revenue and profits in today’s difficult economic climate. The schedule also includes voting for software improvements and participation in Advisory Councils by market segment, including a council just for party rental specialists.

This year’s Keynote Speech, titled “Catching the Next Wave in E-Marketing” will be delivered by Dennis Masella, CEO of WSI Internet Associates. Dennis will cover how to incorporate e-mail, social media, mobile devices, and other trends into your e-marketing.

About Alert Management Systems (www.alertms.com, Colorado Springs, CO): Alert is a premier supplier of Windows® certified rental management software across North America and several other countries. Alert is also the leading supplier of event/party rental software.

Leave a Comment;

Every CEO knows that there is nothing more important than his relationship with his current customers. Considering the cost of acquiring new customers, repeat business is by far the most profitable business we have. And our best customers are also are best salesmen. Nothing is more important for new business than strong referrals.

But how can we be sure that our relationships with current customers are as strong as they need to be? The surest and best way is to do a regular monthly survey among all your current customers. We send an email to all our customers each month. In the email is a link to a simple five question survey that is provided by a service called Zoomerang. Zoomerang does all the work and provides useful summary reports. Their fees are very reasonable (less than $25 per month for hundreds of surveys).

You can also use this same monthly email to provide helpful advice or announce a special promotion.

The mere fact that your customers receive your survey tells them you care. The responses to the survey tell you exactly where you are strong and where you need to do some remedial work. Sometimes you’ll get rave reviews and nice notes. Post these on your bulletin board to reinforce the behavior you want from your associates. Post the complete results on your website and your customers will know you are serious about taking care of your customers needs. We post updated results every quarter.

Ask your rental software company to help you get started with an email list from your own records.

1 Comment

Thinking of buying some new equipment for your rental fleet?

Check out Auction Equipment first. The internet is loaded with listings for equipment being offered at auction. According to our clients who have taken advantage of equipment offered for sale at auction, like-new equipment can be purchased at dramatic savings. All it takes is a little research.

Here’s the address of one website that offers scores of auction sites throughout the United States: http://www.rockanddirt.com/

Happy shopping!



Tom Ross
Chairman’s Corner
Alert Management Systems
719-359-0944
tross@alertms.com

Leave a Comment;

Revenue Forecast Update:
Global Insights Forecasting 5.6% Growth for the Rental Industry in 2011
Local Market Data Now Available at Very Low Cost

According to IHS Global Insight, the world’s leading economic forecasting authority, the United States Equipment Rental Business is expected to see a steep increase in revenues over the next several years. After bottoming out at about $26.6 billion in 2010, revenues are expected to grow 5.6% in 2011 and to reach $44.5 billion by 2015.



Source: April 7, 2011 Forecast Update by IHS Global Insights

According to IHS Global Insights’ latest forecasts, total U.S. Equipment Rental Revenue will grow 5.6% in 2011 and 67.3% by 2015. Growth of the major rental revenue sectors is forecast as follows:

• Construction and Industrial Equipment Rental revenue will grow 6.8% in 2011 and 73.0% by 2015.

• General Tool Rental revenue will grow 3.1% in 2011 and 68.5% by 2015.

• Party & Event Rental revenue will grow 4.4% in 2011 and 13.0% by 2015

Local Metro Area Data now inexpensively available through the ARA. Alert Management Systems recommends that rental store owners purchase this New local market data through the American Rental Association (ARA).

We believe this local data, which is updated and provided online each quarter, is critical for putting together realistic business plans for 2011 and beyond. After all, it is impossible to set realistic goals without knowing the environment in which a company competes. For each Metro area, the following data is provided for 2008-2015:

• Construction and Industrial Equipment Rental Revenue
• General Tool Rental Revenue
• Party & Event Rental Revenue
• Total Rental Revenue
• Real Gross Metro Product
• Real Total Construction Revenue
• Residential Construction Revenue
• Non-residential Construction Revenue
• Total Retail Sales
• Population Ages 25-54 and 55-64
• Total Employment
• Construction Natural Resources and Mining Employment
• Manufacturing Employment

For $100 per year ARA members can purchase the national data. The cost for your first local metro area is an additional $50 which includes all three segments. Additional metro areas can be added for $50 for one rental segment, $75 for two or $100 for all three. Additional discounts apply when multiple metro areas are purchased.

This information is available through ARA’s State of the Equipment Rental Industry Outlook 2009-2014 online Market Monitor, compiled by IHS Global Insight. For more information, go to www.ARArental.org/go/research or call ARA at 800-334-2177, ext 282.

(Note: This is one of a series of blog articles that will appear here frequently. All the blog articles focus on ways to improve rental operators’ profitability. All the ideas are based upon the proven experience of our most profitable rental operators. Return here often for additional proven business enhancing ideas. We welcome your comments.)

Leave a Comment;