NEWSLETTERS - NEW PODCAST: TRDA closes conference with education, networking

TRDA closes conference with education, networking

Tennessee rental dealers from across the state rounded out a day's worth of motivational and educational presentations Tuesday to close the annual 2008 meeting of the Tennessee Rental Dealers Association in Nashville.

PODCAST: Click here for podcast with TRDA Vice President Chris Bolin.

Dr. Larry Helms, a nationally recognized expert in industrial psychology and personal development programs, kicked off the day's events with his talk entitled: "Running with scissors: why smart people do dumb things."

Helms urged dealers to apply both logic and intuition to their everyday business practices and warned against the dangers of overly "rigid" thinking that blocks out new ways of looking at the world, business and customers.

"You can't judge people by a single criteria," Helms said. "But once your brain locks into a thinking pattern, it become rigid and averse to change. Are you constantly looking for new opportunities to learn, or are you a non-learner?"

Helms is a featured speaker at the upcoming 2008 APRO Convention in St. Louis August 11-14.

Ed Winn III.

APRO Legal Counsel, Ed Winn III, informed dealers on a number of topics from recommended business practices to pending legislative issues.

Winn cautioned against the "improvident extension of credit" -- an argument used last year in a high profile $120 million court case against a rent-to-own company. Care must be taken when writing multiple contracts with customers of limited means, Winn said.

"If you rent too much stuff to a customer," Winn said, "you run some risk."

Class action lawsuits have cost the rent-to-own industry $350 million over the last several years, Winn said.

Mary Stanley, an independent associate with Pre-Paid Legal Services, wrapped up the conference with a talk on the high cost of identity theft and new Federal Trade Commission laws that kick in November 1. The laws will could affect the rent-to-own industry when dealers run background checks on employees or keep credit card records on file, she said.

Winn will cover the issue in depth in the upcoming June-July issue of Progressive Rentals Magazine.

TRDA President Larry Goad was pleased with conference overall, but said getting more dealers to join the association and next year's show will continue to rank highly on his list of goals.

Scott Hogan, center, and son, Michael, right, of ColorTyme.

"Our goals for next year are the same as last year," Goad said, "to unite more dealers in Tennessee and show them the cost value of being a member. We share information like no other industry. In my mind a state association is like the National Guard, when you need it, it's good to know it's there, strong and ready."

Scott Hogan is one dealer at the conference who left convinced.

Hogan, owner of a ColorTyme store in Gallatin, Tennessee, said the value of one dealer helping another was without parallel.

"The most valuable thing for me was getting together with other dealers and talking about best practices and sharing advice," Hogan said. "It's a wake up call to hear about these lawsuits and to learn what we can do to keep rent-to-own alive and kicking in the state of Tennessee."

APRO photo gallery of the event.

Chris Bolin podcast.

mevans@rtohq.org