What’s Working Now?!?

Old is new again!

Back in the “old days,” most things were bought with cash, but if you didn’t have the cash to buy, retailers came up with a system called a layaway plan. The retailer held the goods, and you made payments on them. When you were done paying the full price, you got your furniture, dishwasher or whatever. Christmas layaway assured gifts for the kids.

Over the years, the plan morphed into giving you the item at the point of purchase and making payments. Then someone got the bright idea to charge interest, and once that took off, credit cards began. Soon, merchants were making more on their financing charges than the sale of goods (GE Capital), and the world of credit was born, perhaps to all our chagrin.

History has a way of repeating itself, and during this economic downturn, the layaway plan has made a comeback in various forms and from unusual sources. Who would have ever thought a music festival would be sold that way?

The Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Califorina, offered a layaway plan this year for the first time in its 10-year history. Customers had the option of buying tickets over several months by putting 10 percent down and the balance over two additional months, with the final payment due prior to the event.

The payment plan was adopted because other festivals have had to cancel their events this year due to sluggish sales. The plan has been working. The organizer was quoted having said, “Without the layaway option, we wouldn’t have done so well.” Like any good idea, it is also already being adopted at other festivals in Tennessee, New Jersey and Arizona.

The NFL also now uses a similar payment plan for its season tickets. You start paying right after the end of the last season and get paid up before the new season begins.

We use a layaway option in our own business. The Ultimate Celebrity Branding Experience™ payments are spread out over 12 months; franchise legal work and business consulting are all extended over at least 12 months, instead of charging the full fee or requiring the total to be put on a credit card and the client getting killed by interest. We are convinced it has made a tremendous difference in everything we do and why our business is growing rapidly even in this economy.

We aren’t alone, and several of our clients, including orthodontist Donna Galante and Paul Cater (www.CGBraces.com), have added monthly payment programs to their standard pricing. Clearly, others should consider doing the same no matter what their business.

If you adopt a variation of the layaway plan in your practice, we encourage you not to add interest. All of us are very serious about our dislike of interest payments right now, and we all would love to avoid paying it when we can. You will make more sales by not charging interest, and that alone will increase your bottom line.

JW Dicks, Esq. is an attorney, best selling author, entrepreneur and business strategist. He has spent his entire 35-year career building successful businesses for himself and his clients bringing his golden touch to the marketing and sales of over $500 million of products and services. His professional versatility affords him a unique insight into the opportunities available for today’s business owners along with the knowledge of how to structure and position a business to take advantage of them.

He is the senior partner of Dicks & Nanton P.A.: The Business Growth Lawyers™, representing clients in the growth of their business using franchises, area exclusive licensing, coaching, idea licensing, info-marketing, joint ventures, syndications and explosion marketing to accomplish their goals. Jack has worked with a diverse set of clients ranging from an Inc. 500 fastest growing company with sales over $250 Million, public companies, down to a small start up that made fishing lures. He loves the challenge and excitement of them all.

In addition to coaching and consulting with clients nationwide, Jack is also a successful entrepreneur. He has built his own businesses, with annual sales over $35 Million, developed real estate in excess of $200 Million and both created, and sold intellectual property rights for as much as $1.8 Million.

Jack has led national conferences and conventions and has spoken to over 150,000 business leaders on venture capital formation, syndication, investing, and business growth strategies. He is the best-selling author of numerous legal and financial books including the 50 Volume set, How to Start a Corporation and Operate in Any State, Moonlight Investing, The Florida Investor, Mutual Fund Investing Strategies, The Small Business Legal Kit, The 100 best Investments For Your Retirement, Financial CPR, Operation Financial Freedom, and How to Buy and Sell Real Estate .

In addition to his Juris Doctorate degree, Jack holds securities licenses, 22, 7, 65, and 24. He is also a registered securities principal, registered investment advisor, and real estate broker. Although technically proficient in several professions, his clients consider his greatest attributes to be his innate creativity, visionary focus and ability to design and implement multi-layered profit centers for companies and individuals seeking long-term financial growth and protection.

Jack is a graduate of the University of Florida and George Mason College of Law. He is a member of the American Bar Association, NASD, National Association of Realtors, the Florida Bar and the Virginia Bar.

Jack’s business address is Orlando and his play address is at his beach house where he spends as much time as he can with his wife, Linda, of 32 years, two daughters, two son-in-laws, and two Yorkies. His major hobby is fishing although the fish are rumored to be safe.

As Seen In:

Join Our Mailing List