Frequently Asked Questions

While we can't provide partner names, we can share some success stats from a case study we did jointly with a partner. PhoneX Storefront helped this partner: Triple customers Increase margins by 30%-40% Reduce sales reps from 5 to 2 Bring sellable inventory turns to more than once a week Improve overall profitability from about $2M a year to $8M a year Some of the largest players in the industry use PhoneX, and billions of dollars in devices have moved through the platform.

PhoneX works with some of the largest players in the industry, but we don't disclose our partners because of our commitment to privacy and confidentiality agreements. Selling through an online Stock List is the standard in this industry, because it so closely maps to the existing selling process.

We have worked with numerous partners while developing this software, and made it very configurable. Most of the key aspects of the software can be configured to meet your needs. That includes choices ranging from your shipping methods and logo, to the way you sync your data and other systems to PhoneX.

All of the benefits that your customers enjoy when they buy from you will still be there. PhoneX Storefront simply enables you to do all of your value-add activities more efficiently, save time for your sales people, and service more of your customers. But your company will still have the same value proposition. PhoneX provides a B2B selling platform to our industry that helps maximize profits, but it can only enhance the value proposition that you already provide to your customers. Think about it this way: If you don’t use a platform while others in the industry do, wouldn’t you be at a disadvantage? This is no different from two businesses in a different industry both having a website. In most industries, everyone has a website, but that doesn't mean their businesses are the same. What will differentiate you is your testing, grading, customer service, and your supply. The key is not to be the only company without an online presence.

This makes sense. Many of our partners felt the same way before they started using PhoneX Storefront. We have found that many customers quickly adopt the platform. You can also expect your largest customers to still call you, and that’s great. This is a relationship-driven business, and the relationships you have with your large customers are important. The key is that you focus your time talking to these customers and let the smaller companies self serve. Here are some key ways PhoneX Storefront helps you focus on your most important relationships. Because your inventory is refreshed immediately (either through an API or spreadsheet upload) customers can get access to inventory immediately and don't have to get in touch with their reps to find out what inventory you have. Customers can set alerts on inventory to find out the second it hits your shelves. So even if some customers don't want to buy online, they will all start monitoring your inventory online. We have also found was that this process doesn't replace your current process. You can still communicate with your large customers on WhatsApp or the phone. The difference is that now, you just get them to put their offers into your Storefront after you speak with them. This way you have all of your data in one place, and you can evaluate all of your offers. You can put offers in for your buyers, too. We have seen our partners push their smaller buyers to add offers themselves, and then give “white glove" service to their larger buyers. You will be surprised how many of your larger buyers actually like using the system and find it easier than contacting you every time they need something.

Many companies in this position worry that enabling their customers to negotiate will result in lower selling prices. We have found, though, that by allowing customers to offer, you ensure that you never lose a deal because of price. In this industry, it's difficult to find a perfect price for each SKU, because buyers have different abilities to pay, and you don’t want to lose a deal because you are off on price by a couple dollars. Getting offer data also tells you a lot about the market price, so you can set the list price more intelligently.

This is an important question. Here's how we ensure your data is fully encrypted and not accessible by anyone but you. The platform is fully encrypted, similar to the way WhatsApp messages are encrypted. We have built our systems so that you will sync or upload your own customer information, and no one at PhoneX, not even the CTO, will ever have access to your data. You are also contractually protected from anyone at PhoneX ever accessing your data. We work with a well-respected third-party auditor that certifies that we have not attempted to circumvent any of data-access controls. If you want more information about this security measure, please contact us. Data security and privacy are key to our business model. Keeping every partner's data safe will help ensure our future as a company, so we take it as seriously as you do.

Here is why we don't think it's worth it to try to replicate what we have built. PhoneX invested 7 years and over $25M developing this platform specifically for the pre-owned device wholesale industry. We have partnered with major players in the industry to build industry-specific software that takes care of all of the complications that arise in this industry. Billions of dollars in used phones have moved through the platform. In the past 5 years, we have dealt with every scenario and every quirk of this business - and it's all built into the platform. You could invest all the time and money to replicate this, or you can start generating more profits tomorrow with no upfront investment.

You already know that the least expensive solution is not always the best solution. These platforms don't drive a higher price. PhoneX Storefront has been proven to increase margins by 3%-5% while freeing up cash flow and time for you and your sales people.

Here's how PhoneX solutions are fundamentally different from marketplaces: When you work with marketplaces, you are selling on their system, and you are building their brand. PhoneX is technology that enables you to build your own website and build your own brand. We charge significantly less than a marketplace does. You have control over selling your own inventory, so you are less subject to changes in fees or policies that the marketplaces may make. It makes sense, at times, to use marketplaces, but it shouldn't be your main strategy if you want to build long-term relationships with your customers and the long-term value of your business.

Netsuite eCommerce is a typical eCommerce website. You set a list price, and buyers can buy at that list price and go through a typical eCommerce checkout process. We have found that this does not work in our industry. It is very difficult to manage pricing across hundreds of individual SKUs daily, especially when the market price fluctuates the way it does in this business. We have found that companies that use regular eCommerce sites like this either lose customers because of price or the customers end up calling them on the phone anyway to negotiate, which eliminates all of the value of having an automated system.

It doesn't have to take any investment or extra work to get started with PhoneX. For example, you can get up and running with PhoneX Connect in as little as a few days. There are three ways to connect your systems with PhoneX Storefront. Each of them has a different timeline and investment level, depending on how you want to connect your inventory: Use PhoneX Storefront as your system of record for inventory and orders. Upload spreadsheets to PhoneX Storefront to connect your inventory. Connect your ERP via API to PhoneX Storefront for real-time syncing of data between your systems. If you want to connect by API, we will provide you with documentation and can connect you with a third party that can help you write this code, unless you have your own resources. To learn more about what is best for you, contact us.

The idea of PhoneX is to enable you to serve more customers with fewer employees. For example, one of our partners was able to reduce their sales force while tripling their customer base. This contributed heavily to its increase in profitability. You will likely need to have one person, which can be a sales rep, to manage clearing offers. This function can replace multiple sales reps and put a lot more control in your hands.

A lot of customers we have spoken to underestimate their own value. If 50% of your time was freed up, would you be able to spend this time making more money for the business? It's easy to lose sight of the cost of spending all day dealing with headaches, but if you had more time, it's likely you could use it to make more money for the business.

PhoneX Storefront doesn't replace your ERP. It is a selling and analytics platform that can sync in real time with your ERP. It does provide some basic ERP functionality, such as being able to upload inventory and add SKUs, but it is not an accounting software.

PhoneX Storefront is purely a technology solution, but in many ways, it makes marketing easier. Here are some ways it enables marketing: If your marketing agency needs to put tags on the website to track campaigns, we can enable that. Many of our partners use the system for their email marketing campaigns. They filter down to a specific unit or group of units that they want to sell, and then paste that link into a marketing email. Their buyers can go right to that device and buy it. PhoneX Storefront also has an alerts feature where buyers can sign up for alerts the second you get specific products. Buyers can subscribe to a daily report that shows them all your available inventory. You will no longer have to send out lists to your customer base. We have also found that customers are able to make more margin from the buyers that they already have. Because many companies don't have enough time in the day to service all customers, they spend all their time focusing on selling to their largest buyers. Not servicing smaller buyers leaves significant money on the table, and that is exactly what PhoneX Storefront helps you do.

No, customer support is included.

Yes, PhoneX has written standard APIs that you can connect to. The main areas where the systems need to connect are syncing inventory, orders, and order statuses. If you don't have any in-house development resources or third-party development resources, we can connect you with a third party that can do the integration work for you. This would be an additional cost but would be paid directly to the third party, not to PhoneX. In general, this work shouldn't take more than a couple weeks.

Yes, many of our partners use Quickbooks. We have built standard APIs that our customers can write to, and this can be done whether you are using Quickbooks or another ERP.

PhoneX will provide any training necessary for your team to get up to speed. There is no extra charge for this. However, we have found that the platform is intuitive and it requires very little training.