In this article, I am going to cover a recent addition to version 4.4 of our RQ Retail Management solution: the “What if? Widget."

What if? Widget

One of the most interesting new items added in RQ4.4 is the “What if? Widget.” This Widget allows your sales associates to view the commissions they stand to make on a sale. To fully utilize the What if? Widget, there is some setup involved. In order to get the Features and Accessories tabs to populate, you'll need to ensure that your Features are linked to Rate Plan Compatibility, and Accessories are linked to Phone Compatibility.

a) Compatibility setup
If you are not using compatibility, the instructions on how to set this up are below. When using compatibility in your database, during a phone sale, the Phone Activation Wizard will pop up 2 more screens. The first screen will prompt a list of features for employees to choose from and the second will prompt a list of accessories to choose from, based on Rate Plan and Phone compatibility. Compatibility not only allows the “What if? Widget” to function fully, but will increase speed at the point of sale.

 You can do this through the Rate Plan (add feature) or the Phone (add accessory) or through the Feature (tell it which rate plan it works with) or the Accessory (tell it which phone it should be sold with). Please note: There is no way to tell the system when a particular phone AND rate plan are sold on an invoice, then make this particular accessory or feature available to sell.

a.1.    To set compatibility from the Phone or Rate Plan, go into any rate plan/phone, go to the Compatibility tab and then choose the Accessories or Features to populate when this Phone or Rate Plan is sold, making sure to put a checkmark on Suggested sell.

Example of a phone's compatibility list:

a.2.    To set cross-compatibility from the Accessory or Feature, go into any accessory or feature, go to the Compatibility tab, then choose Cross Compatibility and choose the Phones and Rate Plans that this item should be added to, making sure to put a checkmark on Suggested sell.

Example of an accessory’s cross-compatibility:

b) Widget Locking

To lock a widget to the employee's home screen, you will want to go into Settings >> Human Resources >> Role Management, choose the employee level, then click the Widgets Tab, add the Widget and lock them in place.

Related help files:

• Compatibility
• Cross Compatibility
• Widgets

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For more RQ4 Tips and other iQmetrix Support materials, check out the iQmetrix Support & Community site

The Support & Community site puts all the RQ4 support and community discussions in one place. It consolidates our RQ4 help files, client suggestions and discussion forums into a single system, making it easy for users to find the information they need.

To access the new Support & Community site:

• First-time login: You must go through RQ4 to access the Support & Community site.
• Go to the Support tab in the upper-right corner and click on Community & Support.
• After that: You can access the Support & Community site from any device, using the following URL: http://support.iQmetrix.com

If you have any questions, please contact your CSM directly.

Employee theft is a growing concern across all retail industries, in terms of both time and attendance fraud (buddy punching), as well as inventory shrink.

According to the 2010 NRF Security Survey, the leading factor contributing to retail shrinkage was employee theft, accounting for 43.7% of retail losses, and a total loss of $16.2 billion dollars. For retailers to ensure they are protected against theft, they need a way to hold their employees accountable.

Exclusively compatible with DigitalPersona U.are.U devices, RQ4 Biometric Authentication is the only way to ensure that passwords aren’t being shared among their employees, or worse yet, stolen.

Support for the U.are.U 4500 stand-alone fingerprint reader and U.are.U 4500 Keyboard with integrated fingerprint reader is tightly integrated into your RQ4 application and is easily implemented into your business to seamlessly provide users with a reliable means of holding employees accountable. Fingerprint biometrics gives you the peace of mind of knowing your business is protected against employee fraud and theft.

Digital Persona Fingerprints can be setup in RQ4 in 3 easy steps:

1. Download drivers from the iQmetrix Support Site.
2. Plug in the USB U.are.U Device.
3. Enroll employee fingerprints in RQ4.

After instituting Biometric Authentication in their stores, Brennan Salassi, IT Manager for Prime Communications said, “The combined DigitalPersona and iQmetrix solution enables us to drive down our labor costs by reducing buddy punching. The U.are.U solution has proven very rugged and reliable. The devices are quick to recognize fingerprint scans."

In this edition, we will highlight several hidden features within the RQ4 reports module: Customizing and Sharing.

Did you know? Almost all of the RQ4 reports can be customized and modified based on the way you wish to view the report. You can also modify it to any other group that you wish to share it with. You decide how the report should look and who has access to these customizations. Other users are allowed to view the reports you have customized, but don’t have to spend the time to create it.

Drag and drop the Freeze Columns marker to easily freeze any column to the left of the marker. This is very helpful for reports that may have many columns.

Use the Configure Columns wheel to format your report based on certain criteria, such as <, >, = or search and format for a specific number or word.

Now the report is customized in a way that makes sense for you... Have you ever wanted to share these customized reports with other groups? Now you can.

Once a report has been customized to your specs, it can be saved along with its special formatting by selecting “Add To Custom Reports.”

Create a customized report name and description for your report. Use the default date range to easily run the customized report for a specific date range each time the report is opened.

SHARE the report with members of any other HR role!

Access your custom reports from the “Custom Reports” section in the reports module. You can also see what reports have been shared and with what roles.

As a wireless retailer, you obviously train your staff on the devices and plans you offer. Salespeople are scripted on what to say in any in-store scenario.

But what about what they don't say?

Retail Minded's Nicole Reyhle recently wrote a blog post about the importance of salespeople's body language and non-verbal communication.

"We've all heard the expression 'She looks like a (fill in the blank here)' and in the case of retail, you want that blank only to pertain to positive attributes," she writes. "If it’s not, it’s time to do some role playing to help strengthen the 'appearance' of your actions."

These tips are a good refresher for any staff serving customers face-to-face.

Reyhle offers the following three tips:

1. Stand Openly. "Get out from behind your cash wrap or desk, avoid crossing your arms or leaning on something, and stand up straight and tall."
2. Use Positive Facial Expressions. Smiling and nodding in agreement go a long way in terms of establishing rapport and trust. They also help to reinforce the customer's conclusions when trying to choose a product or service.
3. Avoid Dominant Gestures."Anything too extreme in your body language can scare a customer off," she writes. Respect the customer's personal space. Let the customer finish speaking before you interject, to not appear rushed or scripted. And avoid staring. The key is to make the customer feel at ease.

While these may seem like common sense, a lot of people's natural body language is subconscious. They may not realize the way they stand inside the store is actually uninviting, or that they tend to scowl when bored, etc.

If anything, tips like these are a good refresher for any staff serving customers face-to-face. It's good to be aware that their non-verbal cues might be conveying mixed signals.

The first two weeks of March are typically the Spring Break period for U.S. colleges. Given that students are among the biggest consumers of prepaid minutes, it's a great time for wireless retailers to sell ePins.

And with the recent launch of AT&T and Verizon’s real-time replenishment (RTR) prepaid integration, selling eprepaid minutes just got a lot easier.

Previously, it was simple enough to use the integrated ePin service -- sell a SKU, print a pin. But since the RTR update, we've been getting great feedback from clients about how it works.

Sign up today to start selling real-time prepaid minutes by the following business day. Contact your CSM for more details.

The integrated RTR service means an almost instant posting of minutes to the appropriate account for a prepaid subscriber’s service. When clients were deciding if they wanted to invest time in trying something new, the questions that came out were common across the board:

• And what if they put it on the wrong number? Answer: Error message if that number doesn’t exist with that carrier.
• And what if it’s postpaid account? Answer: Error message if it’s not a valid account.
• And what if it’s the wrong carrier? Answer: Error message if it’s not a valid account. 

“You would be surprised how often someone buys an AT&T pin only to realize that they are T-Mobile or Verizon.  Sometimes they are even post-paid,”  said one of our clients.

Another client told us, “We currently have a problem with reps selling ePins to customers that are actually postpaid subscribers."

• By entering in the phone number into this system, if the customer is on postpaid, will the system prompt the rep that the customer is not a prepaid customer? It sure will.

It seemed like such a small thing, but as more and more clients inquired about the new functionality, we realized it was really going to solve a number of pain points. 

It’s amazing the difference a small automated step can make for customer experience.

Did You Know? You can ensure that a coupon you have set to be sold on an invoice more than once has a security setting to ensure the criteria for the coupon are met more than once in order for it to apply.

This helps with not allowing the coupon to be abused on an invoice if it is able to be used more than once.

When setting up a coupon's criteria, you would check off the Allow this coupon to appear on a single invoice multiple times checkbox.

This will then allow you to see the hidden security setting of Limit coupon multiples to match criteria exactly.

Now this means that while this coupon can be used multiple times on an invoice, the criteria must be fully met for each coupon used!

For more information on this or other RQ4 features, please feel free to contact your CSM directly.

iQmetrix’s newest partner, Chatterspot, is a technology and marketing company whose software will soon be integrated into RQ4 (slated for RQ4 v4.13). This integration will grant retailers access to an innovative solution that allows your company to easily and continuously engage with customers throughout their wireless life cycle.

Who is Chatterspot?

Chatterspot is a division of TEGA Technologies, a California-based marketing automation software company founded in 2003. Chatterspot is dedicated to developing marketing solutions specifically for wireless retail. Why wireless? It’s what we know and love! Our team understands the unique landscape of wireless retail and is committed to developing solutions to help you grow your business.

“Chatterspot helps me take ownership of my customers and stay one step ahead of my competitors.” – Rory Kelly, Cellular Only

Digital lifecycle marketing at your fingertips.

Chatterspot understands the need to grow and adapt in order to stay relevant in this lightning-fast paced industry. They also realize it’s difficult for wireless retailers to find time to focus on lead generation, customer retention, customer follow up, consumer engagement and innovative marketing strategies.

In the wireless industry, it simply makes sense to connect with customers on their mobile devices. Chatterspot’s SMS and email marketing solutions give your customers more personal attention while requiring less attention from you.

• Consistently connect with customers according to their needs and interests with targeted automated messaging.
• Create on demand targeted marketing campaigns in just minutes.
• Automatically notify customers of upgrade eligibility
• Automatically follow up with surveys, tips & tricks, app recommendations, offers and more.
• Realize additional profit from existing customers.
• Accurately track marketing ROI.
• Leverage customer relationships as a competitive advantage.
• Promote each individual location through an enterprise solution.
• Cut through the marketing clutter with a 94% SMS read rate.

“Nobody understands our marketing needs better than Chatterspot. Their technology and consultative approach make them our #1 resource for connecting with customers.” – Kevin Tupy, Z Wireless

RQ4 Integration: Coming soon!

The v4.13 RQ4 integration with Chatterspot will provide customized enrollment forms within RQ4 to turn customers into preferred members. Upon registration, the customer will be labeled a “member” within RQ4, and will immediately receive a welcome text and/or email message. The data collected during enrollment will then automatically trigger unique targeted, personalized messages via text and email.

Check out this quick video about Chatterspot and contact your CSM for more information!

Creating tests within your RQ4 Intranet is a great way to make sure that your employees are up to date on product and industry knowledge. You can set a passing grade, view who has taken a test and view the grades received by your staff. If you have the HR Scheduling Module, you will then have the Intranet.

Create a Test

• Within your RQ4 Intranet click on Training, then Create New Test.

• Create your Test Name and Description. Each question can have up to 6 multiple choice answers.
• Once you are done your creating your test, Save and then Preview and finally Publish.
• Your test will now show up under Tests.

• Click on Assign to assign the test to your employees.

Test Results

• Click on Results to view the Test Results.

For more info, check out the Intranet Tests Help File on the iQmetrix Support & Community site.

During a power or Internet outage, you will still need to be able to process sales transactions within your stores. In order to help you prepare for these situations, we have created a list of items you should have in an "emergency box" in case of emergency situations.

Items you should have in your store's emergency box include:

RQ4 Phone Pricing Grid (print out): If your power or Internet isn’t working, then RQ4 isn’t working either. Unless your employees have the phone prices memorized, you should print off a new grid after each price change, so that your employees have the phone prices available in case of an outage.

• To print this off, go to Inventory – Tools – Update Carrier Pricing sheet.
• Open your pricing sheet up.
• Go to the Hardware Prices and Equipment Rebates tab.
• Export it to Excel, remove the Equipment Rebates column (if necessary).
• Print this grid off.

Manual Invoices: Each store should have an invoice book, so that staff can create customer invoices in case of emergency.

Calculator: Employees always use the calculator on their computer to do any math. In case of a power outage, it is a good idea to have a calculator in the box for times when their computer is down.

Manual credit card swipes, card paper and the phone numbers for Phone Authorization. This is essential if you are using Integrated Payment Processing within RQ4 -- if the Internet is down, you will not be able to process RQ4 Invoices or take credit card payments. Manual credit card swipes allow you to take an imprint of the customer credit card.

Physical contracts from your carrier along with phone numbers for manual contract processing. You will still need to process Activations during an Internet outage, so having physical contracts available for your customers to sign will ensure your sales staff can still process Activations.

After you receive power/Internet again:

Depending on your carrier, your employees may have to enter each Activation into the Carriers Activation Portal. (Some don’t accept physical contracts but are OK with you using a physical contract in emergency situations, as long as it is manually entered afterwards.)

Processing Transactions into RQ4:

For any Cash Transactions, you can process these as a normal RQ4 transaction.

For any Credit Card Transactions (if you are using Integrated Payment Processing), you will need to take the following steps:

• Process the sale through as Normal.
• When the Swipe card dialogue box comes up, choose Manual Entry.
• Manual Entry allows you to process a credit card in RQ4 without processing a 2^nd charge to the card.

By Kelly Young, Marketing Coordinator, OFFWIRE

In today’s economy, the cost of doing business continues to rise—shipping costs, product costs, rent and advertising expenses all affect the bottom line. All of this contributes to lower or decreased margins. Partner with OFFWIRE to experience real significant growth.

A Training Manager from Canton, MI says, “Since we started using this model, our profit per handset has gone up $23 and our accessory profit per handset has increased $8.13. This is an awesome program and if used properly, other clients of OFFWIRE’s will benefit greatly.”

Power50 Key Benefits:

• Power50 – Inventory Management Program - A uniquely collaborative and opportunistic partnership.
  Power50 is an easy and profitable program designed to help wireless companies increase enhancement accessory sales beyond the more common case, screen protector, and charger, or as we call it, “The Suit.” With diverse training, seeding, and promotion program, Power50 will help your sales staff think outside “The Suit” and successfully attach more phone-enhancement products and increase profit per opportunity, thereby adding increased profit to the company’s bottom line. In other words, OFFWIREtransforms your sales associates from simply selling “The Suit” to successfully selling “The Powersuit” which can be attached to all devices walking out of the door.

Since we started using this model, our profit per handset has gone up $23 and our accessory profit per handset has increased $8.13.

• Flexibility & Time Saving - Design your own inventory plan and save time.
  Power50 permits you the flexibility to design your own custom inventory plan. You decide and control what products to carry and the quantity levels available in all retail locations. Save time as OFFWIRE generates your purchase orders with accuracy and reliability. No more inconvenient, open purchase orders in your point-of-sale system.
   
• Training & Seeding - Give your sales associates the skills they want and need to sell more accessories.
  Power50 offers a unique variety of product and sales training courses hosted within our proprietary JumpStart Certification Program. JumpStart consists of well over 20 online courses designed to teach your staff the skills needed to understand the wireless industry, provide them with up-to-date information on new products and trends, and help increase sales. Training valued at $300 along with $100 in free product seeding.

This is an awesome program and if used properly, other clients of OFFWIRE’s will benefit greatly.

• Promotions - Reward and motivate your sales associates with exciting and practical incentives.
  OFFWIRE will collaboratively sanction quarterly sales promotions to motivate your associates with competitions while rewarding them with prizes and complementary products. In turn, this consistently provides them with necessary product knowledge to help you collectively move more products and increase profit per opportunity.
   
• Product Positioning - Provide hands-on training from OFFWIRE and vendor partners to your entire staff.
  Receive complementary, bi-annual product positioning training for your entire staff and management with face-to-face training and seeding with OFFWIRE and vendor partners.
   
• BI-Annual Planning -Executive meeting to review and evolve our collaborative Power50 program and partnership.
  OFFWIRE will visit bi-annually to propose and discuss the following 6-month Power50 planning. OFFWIRE will deliver a customized 6-month plan and work together to maximize enhancement accessory sales.

For more information on this new program, please call iQmetrix Support (1.888.888.8170) or contact your CSM directly.

There are many great aspects of attending iQmetrix events, such as the Summit or Retail Success Workshops.

For us… the best part is getting to meet our clients face-to-face!

For the clients that attend such events… we overwhelmingly hear that their favorite parts are meeting iQmetrix staff face-to-face (awww shucks… you’re making us blush!) and getting the chance to meet and network with their peers in the wireless industry –- sharing processes and best practices, comparing concerns and issues and having a few laughs together along the way. It’s exhilarating and enlightening for all involved… and we’re so happy we can be a part of it.

So, let’s keep the conversations going!

The iQmetrix Support & Community site has discussion forums for just that! Users of iQmetrix software can interact with each other on the site, as well as with iQmetrix staff.

Questions Section: Ask a question, add your thoughts to a discussion or provide a solution for someone else’s query. This section was created so that any user of iQmetrix software can ask a question and then get some different views and possible solutions to consider.

Some tricks for the iQmetrix Support Community Questions Section:

• Search questions to see if someone has already posted the same question… and then see what kind of responses are already available for that question.
• Show your support for a question that hasn’t been answered yet by clicking the ‘Me Too’ button.
• Sort questions by Most Asked, Recent, Needs Answer or Answered depending on what you want to contribute to the conversation.

How do you access the iQmetrix Support Community?

• First-time login: You must go through RQ4 to access the Support & Community site.
• Go to the Support tab in the upper-right corner and click on Community & Support.
• After that: You can access the Support & Community site from any device, using the following URL: http://support.iQmetrix.com

One of the best things RQ has to offer is the ability to take pieces of different modules and tie the info together.

A great example of this is the productivity graph in the Executive Dashboard. This combines your scheduled hours in RQ4 with your sales and non-customer activity. The intention is to help you staff your stores based on customer demand and other duties required by a sales associate.

RQ lets you take pieces of different modules and tie the info together.

At a glance, the productivity graph will show you hour-by-hour the customer activity (sales, refunds etc) and non-customer activity (receiving a PO, transfer, etc.) versus your scheduled man hours for all stores combined.

Here’s the tip: To get even better more detailed info, click on the productivity link that will bring up a new report called “Hourly Productivity Report.” You’ll notice it defaults to your entire company. Narrow it down to a single store and a single day (no date range). In this example, I’m looking at the Broadway location on June 24^th (which happens to be a Monday).

This is important: Click the 'Analyze' button.

This is important: Click the 'Analyze' button. What this button does is take the date of the week you have selected (e.g. Monday) and the location you have selected (e.g. Broadway) and it will compare productivity over the last four Mondays.

This will help you make faster better staffing decisions. Looking at the previous four-week comparison will help you ensure you are staffing appropriately -- based on the amount of customers in your store who are buying. And when no customers are in your store, you should see a spike in non-customer activity.

When no customers are in your store, you should see a spike in non-customer activity.

Should you stay open later? Should you really be starting an extra shift at 11 a.m. if your busy time doesn’t start until 2 p.m.? Why have 3 people on hand until 9 p.m. when you see a decrease in activity at 7 p.m.? Let RQ4 help you make those decisions with the data to back it up!

A highly anticipated feature has been added to version 4.14 following a large response at last year’s iQmetrix Retail Summit. This feature is the addition of a setting which will provide you with the tools to prevent duplicate IMEIs from being added across any regular product.

With the addition of a setting for used inventory it is no longer necessary to adjust serial numbers which was prone to cause errors.

Why are we doing this now?

1. At last year's Retail Summit this was voted as being a very important change that people wanted to have applied to RQ.
2. In the past some clients had to adjust serial numbers between separate SKUs in order to distinguish new and used inventory. With the addition of a setting for used inventory it is no longer necessary to adjust serial numbers which was prone to cause these errors.
3. There are fraudulent situations where duplicate serial numbers could be used to hide a device that was then stolen from inventory. This will become impossible with the activation of the new setting.

What is changing?

In the Settings Console > Inventory > Miscellaneous a setting has been added to activate duplicate detection on any serial number that is being brought into inventory. This will only apply to serialized regular products which are currently in inventory in any status.

How will this duplicate detection work?

Duplicate detection will be applied anywhere that an item can be brought into inventory. Rather than only checking for a duplicate in the same SKU, a comparison will be made against all serial numbers in inventory for any regular product. This will affect the following product areas so that the duplicate is prevented from entering the system.

• Receiving Purchase Orders
• Completing RMAs
• POS – Refunding into Inventory

What if there has been an actual mistake that I need to correct?

An employee with access to make an Inventory Quantity Adjustment or Correct Receiving Invoices will have the ability to correct any duplicate situation manually using this tool. In the event that there is a duplicate that would be created because of an adjustment a notification will appear to provide details on any SKUs which are duplicated. This will allow them to begin an investigation on the reason behind the duplication and make the necessary adjustments to correct the situation.

When will this change happen?

This change is already part of the 4.14 version which is available upon request.

New phone announcements create tremendous opportunity for businesses to increase revenue by transforming that customers excitement into Sales. RQ allows for deposits from customer Activations without having to have the serial number of the phone.

To set this up:

• Create your new phone like normal, and add it to the pricing sheet.
• Within the Settings Console, click on: General Settings - Location Setup - Sales Setup. Then check off Launch PAW on sales orders.  Do NOT check off Force serial # entry on Sales Orders.  You will need to do this for each location that reserve sales will be performed at.
• All workstations will need to be logged out of RQ for these changes to take effect.
• This will allow your employees to take a deposit from customers on a Sales Order and then start the activation process, giving the customer a feeling that they purchased their phone and not just that they have placed a deposit on a phone.
• Employees need to create a Sales Order at the point of original sale with the customer.
  o    Creating a Sales Order Help file http://support.iqmetrix.com/entries/502105?challenge=koek4002qo3co2h
  o    Updating a Sales Order Help file http://support.iqmetrix.com/entries/502106

• When you receive those phones in on Purchase Order, RQ will alert you that you have Open Sales Orders for these Phones.

• Clicking YES will open the Products Committed on Sales Orders Report. You can then see which customers are waiting for these phones and have your staff call to inform them that their device has arrived.

So, with just a few simple settings in RQ you’ll be all set to increase customer satisfaction, reduce customer churn and better control your inventory of new devices!

The holiday season is in full swing and companies are strategizing to improve margins and boost revenue during this busy time. As a part of your holiday strategy, there is great opportunity to focus on handset protection revenue.

A good handset protection attachment ratio is 40%.

Operating below the ideal handset protection attachment rate poses a challenge and an opportunity for dealers to realize substantial increases in revenue. A good handset protection attachment ratio is 40%. An outstanding ratio is 60%.  We have a number of clients who reach a 60% attachment rate, including the stores involved in our recent Project Retail consultation.

We are committed to the success of our retailers and, as such, we have created a list of steps you can take to increase your own handset protection attachment rate.

If you have any ideas of your own, not listed here, please feel free to share those ideas with me.

• Talk to your handset protection provider and ask for refresher training for all employees. Your provider will be equipped with ideas and materials that will make the selling process easier and more intuitive. They will provide ways to overcome common objections and, in some cases, have a formal training program your employees can take.
• Stress the importance of focusing on handset protection at all levels of the organization. Make sure the message is clear and consistent. Involve managers and district managers in the process to ensure the training is collaborative, meaningful and important at all levels of the organization.

Your CSM has tools available to assess your company's handset protection revenue potential.

• Consider an increase in employee compensation for handset protection sales. Perform a cost-benefit analysis to weigh the benefits of increased revenue versus the time and resources it will take to train and properly incentivize employees. Note that even one hour of effective employee training can easily be made up with the potential increase in handset protection sales.

• Set up milestones in RQ with an extra bonus awarded for outstanding performance. Use the re-training process in tandem with this to further engage employees during the training process.

• Talk to your CSM! We have the tools available to look at your particular handset protection attachment rate and we will do the math to see how much revenue potential you have! 

If you are not currently integrated with one of our handset protection partners, please reach out to your CSM. We can discuss the options available to you.

Happy selling!

Did you know that you can report shrinkage and inventory adjustments in your general ledger based on the reason for the adjustment? 

You already have inventory adjustment reason codes that you are using every time you process an adjustment. You can take that to the next level by mapping general ledger expense accounts directly to those reason codes. Instead of just seeing a total amount of adjustments or shrinkage, you can see totals by theft, write off, price protection, PO receiving error, etc.

To set this up, first create new expense accounts in the G/L Account Setup screen under Settings / Company Settings / Finance.

Then go to Settings / Company Settings / Inventory / Inventory Adjustment Reason Code Setup. You can select a G/L Account for each reason code, or you can pick and choose which ones report to a specific account. If no account is mapped, then the inventory corrections account selected on the product SKU will be used.

This is a great way to customize your financial reporting. 

If you have any questions about this feature or RQ in general, please contact your Account Manager directly.

iQmetrix sat down with OFFWIRE Founder & CEO (now Brightstar's Head of Accessories, U.S. region) John Lund to talk about the recent acquision of his company by Brightstar Corp.

iQ: How long was this deal in the making?
JL: It’s been in the works for over a year. There was a little bit of talk and then there were negotiations over the past five months.

Very little has changed on the service level or in terms of the client experience.

iQ: And how did it originally come about?
JL: They had reached out to me. They were interested in learning about my business. Their interest was primarily what we’ve become known for: our Vendor Managed Inventory program (and our ties to iQ, really).

They were also interested in our Training, Seeding and Promotion program: Brightstar wanted to expand that approach to the Sprint channel and to other channels as well.

iQ: Looking at your website, OFFWIRE.com is now completely rebranded as Brightstar. Can you give us a general overview of what’s changed from a client (i.e. a wireless retailer’s) perspective?
JL: Very little has changed on the service level or in terms of the client experience. Basically all clients will notice is a different color on our website and a different company name over the phone.

We're very excited about Speck, Case-Mate, Foxconn, Harmon Kardon/JBL and several more OEM relationships coming soon.

The big advantage for all clients is the purchasing power of Brightstar, both in terms of pricing and bringing on many new brands.

We’re very excited about Speck, Case-Mate, Foxconn, Harmon Kardon/JBL and several more OEM relationships that are coming soon.

We’re hiring 30 people right now, to grow the business and grow the service level. We’ll have some more people, more trainers out in the field, which is a big advantage for dealers.

iQ: How does this affect the iQmetrix-OFFWIRE partnership?Besides the brand-name change, will our mutual clients notice anything different?
JL: I think it just gets stronger. We’re working very closely with iQmetrix on a number of projects. I think you’re just going to see more of the Brightstar brand in the channel. It’s similar to how another iQmetrix partner, eSecuritel, was acquired by Brightstar. The company is naturally expanding its offerings across the dealer channel.

The idea for us is to offer a dealer value in terms of time management and supply chain volume.

It all works hand in hand, a full cycle of the mobile phone sales process that Brightstar is able to handle.

I think you're just going to see more of the Brightstar brand in the (dealer) channel.

iQ: Has this always been a dream of yours, to be bought out by a larger corporation?
JL: My plan was always to sell at some point, this just came earlier than expected.

iQ: What has the reaction been like, by your staff, in and around the office?
JL: I think was pretty standard. There were definitely nerves and anxiety at first. Change is always a little bit scary for some people. But then we announced a number of hirings. We’re an 80-person company that’s about to hire 30 – that took a lot of the anxiety away. Of course there have been some changes, but to be able to grow by almost 50% is very exciting.

iQ: What excites you about being part of Brightstar, as a company?
JL: Brightstar, even though they’re very large, they have a very entrepreneurial mindset. They move quickly. They have a very involved approach, serving wireless dealers, making things easier for them.

In the next 3-5 years, the growth will be spectacular and the value creation we can offer clients will be amazing.

As OFFWIRE, our mission statement was very much like that of Brightstar –- to serve dealers and facilitate their sales, stocking and replenishment processes –- it was just a difference in scale.

iQ: What’s your outlook on the future of your company and of Brightstar as a whole?
JL: It’s really exciting. Brightstar is already the world leader for distribution of mobile devices. It’s only going to get more exciting in the next 3-5 years. The growth will be spectacular and the value creation we’ll be able to offer clients will be amazing.

iQmetrix handset protection partner ProtectCELL was featured in a WIRED review a few months ago (March 18).

Author Michael S. Lasky agreed to test out the ProtectCELL service, which involved him dropping his phone into a blender at CES 2014 and having ProtectCELL handle the rest.

Lasky said while the "data backup and restore service (via ProtectCELL's "Digital Leash" cloud service) was so-so, the real value is in device replacement."

ProtectCELL's data backup offering is so-so; the real value is in device replacement.Michael S. Lasky, WIRED

He noted that annual protection plans vary in price, based on whether you want to simply protect your data (and replace the hardware yourself) or of you're willing to pay more for exact-model device replacement.

Lasky pointed out services like iCloud or Google data backup already protect users' data for free so device replacement, again, is where ProtectCELL shines.

"Replacing the hardware yourself is more costly (than data replacement), and usually requires purchasing an insurance plan from the manufacturer, or from your carrier," Lasky wrote. "It’s in this scenario that ProtectCell presents a better deal — but again, whether the cost is worth it depends on which phone you have and who your carrier is."

High-end devices nowadays are pricey and prone to damage/theft. Device replacement insurance is worth it.

In today's wireless market, where the cost of replacing your high-end device outright is typically around $600 AND because these devices are so prone to damage, smashed screens, theft and more -- device replacement insurance is worth it.

"If you’re prone to dropping expensive things into the toilet, the (ProtectCELL)’s service seems like a worthy investment for anybody who likes to carry the latest (and most costly) hardware," Lasky concludes.