RETAILER ASK THE HOW DO YOU PROMOTE YOUR PRO-AUDIO RENTALS?
“My advice would be to make your pro-audio rental rates and requirements clear to customers on your website so you don’t have to answer those questions on the phone repeatedly. Have a detailed [rental] check-in and check-out process that helps guarantee the item performs the way it should. Have the cus - tomer initial each line item they’re renting to avoid complaints and excuses about why rental systems don’t return in full. Stick to your policies on your rentals. Don’t make exceptions or special accommodations. There is money to be made in rentals, but you have to do it on your terms and in a way that doesn’t interfere with your retail business. We recently raised our rates by 20% or so to see if we could curb demand. It’s not slowing down the rental flow yet, but we’re now making enough from the rentals that it feels like it’s worth doing.” Jake Tamura, Customer Service Representative Easy Music Center Honolulu
“Everything depends on word-of-mouth. I’m working on getting new sections for home recording sets because we do a lot of rentals for B&O, and I’m now working on getting more pro-audio rental visibility that will hopefully kick in this fall or early next year.”
Serj Kersanov, Ted Brown Music Pro-Audio Buyer Tacoma, Washington
“Our manufacturers are a great source of business, so by just alert- ing them that we rent out their gear, they can refer business our way when someone reaches out to them in our area. This probably goes without saying, but we make sure we’re visible on Google through a dedicated web page and targeted ads, too.” Sharon Bechor, CEO Rock and Soul New York City
“Besides building a web page that showcases our equipment and packages, Pitbull Audio has become very reliant on our customer base for much of the promotional aspects for our pro-audio rentals. We participate closely with our customers and organizations who provide a positive, or at times, an educational outlet to our San Diego community. We also collaborate with event organizers, wedding planners and other businesses related to the event industry and offer them special discounts or incentives for referring clients to our rental services.” Calvin Lee, CEO & Owner Pitbull Audio National City, California
62 I MUSIC INC. I AUGUST 2024
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