 APRO: The Official Voice of the Rent to Own Industry
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 Rent-to-own News
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Rent-to-own News - Consumer electronics sales outpacing projectionsThe Associated Press recently reported that the rapid sales of new gadgets such as Apple's iPad and Amazon.com's Kindle have prompted an industry trade group to raise its projections for sales to retailers to $174.9 billion.
The Consumer Electronics Association said Thursday that revenue for electronics manufacturers is projected to grow 3 percent over last year, up from its previous estimate of growth of 0.3 percent. The new forecast is $9 billion higher than the previous one. Industry shipment revenue is expected to hit a new high of more than $182 billion by 2011.
Shoppers are responding to new products such as tablet computers and 3D displays, said trade group president and CEO Gary Shapiro. Other hot categories include smartphones, Blu-ray players and e-readers.
The group raised its forecast because the new categories of products are growing so quickly, said Steve Koenig, director of industry analysis.
"We see a stronger second half demand unfolding, and we anticipate a robust holiday quarter," he said in a news release.
Mobile computing is expected to lead the industry by 2011. The category, which includes laptops, tablets and netbooks but not smartphones, will reach more than $26 billion in shipment revenue by next year. Much of that growth will come from tablets such as the iPad as more companies try to duplicate its success.
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2012 APRO Dave Egan
Legislative Conference
April 17-19, Washington, D.C.
Mark your calendars!
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RTOHQ: The Magazine
RTOHQ: The Magazine is the Association of Progressive Rental Organizations' award-winning rent-to-own industry magazine, and it's available here. | |||
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CLICK HERE FOR OUR DIGITAL RTOHQ: THE MAGAZINE
RTOHQ: The Magazine’s upgraded digital format APRO's new, mobile-ready magazine is now available in addition to our print edition. The digital format provides the same informative content as our printed magazine, but also offers tools to make the reading experience more enriching. Access the table of contents page with one click or tap. Get additional information from advertisers by clicking on the links in their ads. The interface is easy to navigate and requires no special app—read our magazine on your computer, digital table or smartphone. Click here to access the digital version of RTOHQ: The Magazine November-December 2011.
Marketing Matters This year marks the launch of a marketing campaign initiated by APRO to build the rent-to-own customer base. It will be a multi-year endeavor employing multiple strategies. In this and upcoming issues of our magazine, we will address the many facets of marketing that affect our industry.
Striving for an A with the BBB by William E. Freeland Consumers often refer to the Better Business Bureau's ratings to help them make rental and purchasing decisions. National Rent-to-Own's human resource manager outlines the steps every RTO company should pursue to help earn an A+ from the BBB.
Creating an Extraordinary Customer Experience by Bill Keese Apple does it. Southwest Airlines does it. Can the rent-to-own industry also garner a national reputation for exceptional service and, in the process, attract new customers?
BB and BBQ on Beale Street Memphis' reputation for tremendous food, groundbreaking music and Southern charm is well deserved. It's not too early to start planning your trip there next July for APRO's 2012 Rent-to-Own Convention and Trade Show.
Card Talk by Ed Winn III Credit and debit card payments are on the rise in rent-to-own. So are the risks in keeping such transactions secure.
Rent-to-Own Families, Part VI by Kristen Card No, you're not seeing double, or are you? Our latest profiles of kindred colleagues include two sets of twins-the Botkins and the Kimbles. And in Kansas, a son and daughter help their dad keep business running Strong.
Future issues of APRO's magazine will be available in this same new format. Click here to access past issues that are not yet archived in the new interface.
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Association of Progressive Rental Organizations 1504 Robin Hood Trail Austin, Texas 78703 800/204-2776, ext. 103 Fax 512/794-0097 |