If you want to understand what it takes to create a successful business look no further than Rick Harrison, owner of the Gold & Silver Pawn Shop in Las Vegas and star of the History Channel show Pawn Stars. Harrison was recently interviewed in The CPA Journal where he revealed that a lot of the momentum for his success comes from investing in his team.
Most pawn shops in Las Vegas are owned by large corporations, but Harrison has been able to successfully compete against them by having the right team in place. According to Harrison, his employees know ten times as much as the best trained employees in other pawn shops, and that’s because he is constantly training and coaching them.
His team buys into his vision to create the best experience possible for customers, and that motivates his employees to have the cleanest store with responsive customer service. Harrison’s vision also emphasizes having high ethical standards when dealing with customers. And it’s a long history of happy customers and employees that has helped generate internal referrals and repeat business.
Harrison is also savvy with creating good publicity. He started with positive stories in newspapers followed a few years later with a documentary on public television and now the popular series on the History Channel. He is a big proponent of Twitter and Facebook which he feels are great ways to get the word out about your business.
Even though owning a pawn shop is different than owning a dental practice, many of the tenets of success are similar. Find the right team and help them grow with coaching and training. Treat your team as you expect to get treated and your happy employees will help create a memorable patient experience. And find ways to make potential new patients aware of your practice. You may not get your own TV show, but the right type of marketing will make your phone ring.