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Why You Need a Mobile Strategy for Your Equipment Distribution Business 2 Table of Contents Introduction 2 Design a Strategy for Mobility 3 Benefits 3 Employees who Benefit 4 Field Service Technicians 4 Sales 5 Finance 5 Future Workforce 5 Integration is Key 5 Mobile and your ERP System 6 Types of Mobile Technology 6 Sales Force Automation 6 Field Service Solutions 7 Equipment Telemetry 8 Summary 9 Introduction Within our private lives today, there is no question that mobile technology is making everyday functions easier and faster; where would we be without smartphones, for example, to coordinate family activities? Business life is no different, especially as the shift to customer-centric operations demands real-time service delivery vastly improved by the transfer of data on mobile devices. Yet not every equipment dealer has taken advantage of all that mobile technology enables for maximum efficiencies and profitability somewhat ironic as there can be few other industries as well suited to mobility as equipment distribution! One of your most consistent realities, for example, is that virtually every transaction occurs at the customer s site from sales, services and maintenance, to rental drop-offs and pick-ups, and fleet management. Certain software programs allow for quick exchange of information between your office and the job site; for example, if equipment requirements change unexpectedly, mobility means you can react immediately and give your customer insight into that data. Time spent phoning, faxing and/or emailing information back and forth is dramatically reduced, or eliminated. Improved productivity equals greater profitability, and who doesn t want that? Imagine your world if, for example, actual equipment hours for a job were always captured in both a timely and accurate manner?
Why You Need a Mobile Strategy for Your Equipment Distribution Business 3 Not every equipment dealer has taken advantage of all that mobile technology enables for efficiency and profitability. Yet, ironically, there can be few industries as well suited to mobility as equipment distribution! It is an exciting, albeit disruptive, time moving from clipboard-and-pencil mode to handheld devices and online data transmission. It is a big leap for many equipment distributors, but don t let that stop you. Developing and implementing a mobile strategy is a highly efficient way to fast-track your business growth past your competitors. Since a plethora of mobile applications and best practices exists in the marketplace, your first step is to develop a strategy for investing in, and using, mobile technology at your equipment distribution business. This white paper intends to address this need, and walk you through the questions you should ask along the way. Develop a Mobility Strategy The term, mobility, applies to any portable electronic device smartphone, handheld tablet, forklift-mounted tablet, laptop, electronic onboard recording device, electronic notepad, etc. that transfers data from one location to another via the Internet, cellular network or wireless (Wi-Fi) connection. The need for a mobility strategy emerges once you realize just how many mobile software and technology solutions exist for the workplace! Which ones to purchase, which ones will integrate easily with each other and with your overall business system that is where the need for a mobile strategy really comes in. You will need to take the time to create an effective strategy to get the most out of your investment in mobile technology, either on your own or with the assistance of technology consultants such as the company that provides your business software system, such as ERP. Obviously you don t want to get left behind as your competitors put their own mobile strategies into play, improving their customer service and raising retention rates and new customer wins! Let s discuss the benefits of a mobile strategy, since we know you are (rightly) thinking how do you make mobile technology contribute positively to the bottom line? Benefits Some of the tangible benefits of developing and implementing a mobile technology strategy for your equipment distribution business include: Improved Customer Satisfaction Faster delivery of equipment, parts and servicing. Real time access to all data warranties, equipment history, before/after repair photos, etc. Information delivered to your field technicians and sales people when and where they need it most on-site with the customer. Cost Savings Maximize fuel efficiencies. Route optimization. Reduced use of paper due to automation. Lower phone bills. Improved Workforce Productivity Reduction in human error. Less time wasted e.g. driving to the office to fill out paperwork, emailing, phoning, faxing.
Why You Need a Mobile Strategy for Your Equipment Distribution Business 4 Information needs to be delivered to your team where they need it most at the point of service, and at the point of sale Removal of duplicate data entry, i.e.. handwritten or typed notes re-entered into business software system. Streamlined Operations Real-time quotes and billing. Increase billable hours per technician. Timekeeping and electronic payrolls streamline payroll workflow. Drive More Business With increased productivity per employee resulting from the mobile strategy, your business is freed up to pursue more customers and more revenue-per-customer scenarios. Early Revenue Catcher With online access to information about the equipment, your technicians would have a faster response to the need for repair/maintenance work, i.e. they look at the PM yield report on their mobile device and generate a service work order right away. Equipment and Asset Management Deep historical insight via mobile devices into upcoming requirements for equipment, its utilization history; submit its operating and idle time, etc. Managing the equipment lifecycle through its useful life in the new and used fleet, as well as rental fleet, is critical to ensure your business gets the most financial benefits out of every asset. Workforce So, which employees at your company can benefit from today s mobile technologies? Don t limit your thinking to just field service workers your mobile strategy should improve the working lives of other employees, too, as outlined here; let s start with the obvious: Field Service Technicians Since the lion s share of your profits likely lies in the area of servicing whether that s for new or used equipment you sell or rent, or fleets that you manage you need to squeeze the most efficiencies out of your servicing department. And given that most of your servicing work is done out in the field, the ability to maintain contact with workers data and interactions on the road is crucial. For example, since technicians are most often billable by the hour, the exact time at which a service technician arrives on a job can be logged within the system. When your service technicians are online, they see a new work order in real time, with visibility to customer history, inventory, troubleshooting tools virtually everything they need to get the job done is at their fingertips. Creating work orders, charging materials, handling expenses, and looking up equipment and customer information is in the system; all these tasks and many others are simplified and accelerated with the use of mobile technology.
Why You Need a Mobile Strategy for Your Equipment Distribution Business 5 Technology is getting easier for the average person to understand and use all the time; this is no different in mobility applications Sales Team Sales people today are highly mobile, so their business tools must be, too. You cannot afford to drop the ball when it comes to keeping your sales force connected, informed, and updated. Some of the competitive advantages gained by sales people using mobile devices integrated with their company s business system include: Shortening the cycles for Lead to order Order to cash Contract to cash Point-of-service delivery: presenting invoices, contracts, warranties and all other necessary documentation at the customer s site. Optimizing their routes to get the most productivity out of a day on the road. Dynamically scheduling and planning calls and follow up. Checking the history of equipment and customers in real time to be able to quote efficiently and as quickly as possible (ahead of the competition!) Finance On-site, real-time billing is possible with mobile technologies and your administration department couldn t be happier about it! Gone are the days when Net 10 is really Net 30 because you re waiting on paperwork to be submitted, reviewed, posted and then billed. Your field service technicians are billing right on the spot, on the customer s site! This speeds up cash flow process and benefits both your business and your customer s operations. Future Workforce As a manager or owner of an equipment dealership, you would be remiss not to contemplate what your near-future workforce will look like and what tools they will expect, and need, to perform at their peak. As Guy Blissett writes in his 2010 book for the National Wholesalers-Distributors (NAW), Facing the Forces of Change, already, U.S. teenagers tomorrow s distributor sales force send and receive an average of 2,272 text messages a month. Working from your mobile devices is fast becoming the norm; soon any other way of conducting business will no doubt seem archaic. Integration is Key Like with all technology, a well thought-out, fully integrated mobile strategy will yield the most benefits for your business. If you purchase a mobile solution that really is little more than a standalone system, you could be simply transferring former paperbased activities into electronic activities. While that is an improvement over clipboardand-pencil, it is nowhere near as efficient as integrating a mobile solution into your entire business software system that touches all departments and all functions across the company. With integration, you are not duplicating any efforts between various mobile applications; everything is centralized in business software such as an enterprise resource planning (ERP) system.
Why You Need a Mobile Strategy for Your Equipment Distribution Business 6 40% of distributors plan ERP investment between now and 2015 information technology is an essential component of a distributor s business - Guy Blissett, wholesale distribution industry expert at IBM, author of Facing the Forces of Change: Decisive Actions for an Uncertain Economy, 2010 Mobile and ERP If you have a legacy software system that doesn t integrate with today s mobile solutions then you have another reason to look at getting a new ERP system! Be sure to talk to all the ERP vendors about what kind of mobile strategy they have in place for their technology; ask questions such as: Which software partners do you work with who offer various types of mobile technology not as stand-alone systems, but fully integrated into the ERP system. Do you have any customer references who will talk about their mobile applications integrated with your ERP system? What do you see as the key issues facing the equipment distributor today where mobile technology can help, and how does your ERP system help deliver that? 40% of distributors plan ERP investment between now and 2015, writes Guy Blissett, a wholesale distribution industry expert at IBM, in his 2010 book, Facing the Forces of Change: Decisive Actions for an Uncertain Economy. He also notes that information technology is an essential component of a distributor s business. The importance of a sound IT framework is being recognized, as is its tight link to analytics, human capital, e-commerce, and collaboration. Types of Mobile Technology The common denominator in all types of mobility applications is the act of taking technology to the point where it is being delivered. The following are some of the areas of mobile technology as they apply to the equipment distribution market today: Web service is key in today s mobile technology, and in the IT field in general. Any technology you re investing in today should be accessible via the Internet using any operating system whether that s Windows Mobile, ios, Android or Blackberry on any device, from a smartphone, Surface or ipad tablet, forklift mounted tablet, handheld device, laptop, to a desktop computer. Technology is getting easier for the average person to understand and use all the time; this is no different in mobility applications. For example, MobileFrame, offers a crossdevice mobile application development platform that requires no custom coding to develop, deploy and remotely manage enterprise-level mobile apps. MobileFrame also has the advantage of integrating with ERP systems, such as Microsoft Dynamics and Equip-Soft. Sales Force Automation Also known as field sales automation, this burgeoning area of technology enhances customer communications, workflow and opportunity management all of tremendous importance in the business of equipment rentals and servicing. Other terminologies you ll hear in this area include: Field Sales Automation same as Sales Force Automation (SFA) Opportunity Management (OM) ensure sales team spends time with key customers,
Why You Need a Mobile Strategy for Your Equipment Distribution Business 7 For both CRM and SFA investments, mobility-related functionality and the ability to integrate with other applications, such as the company s ERP application, are top considerations - Guy Blissett, wholesale distribution industry expert at IBM, author of Facing the Forces of Change: Decisive Actions for an Uncertain Economy, 2010 and that sales forecasts are accurate. Campaign Management (CM) Customer Relationship Management (CRM) a larger system that integrates all or several of these pieces of technology. Large vendors of CRM include Microsoft Dynamics. Regardless of what you call it, the goal is the same greater intelligence at the point of sale resulting in substantial revenue growth for your business. For both CRM and SFA investments, mobility-related functionality and the ability to integrate with other applications, such as the company s ERP application, are top considerations, says author and distribution specialist Guy Blissett. He also notes that assessing sales force productivity is a key metric that should be an outcome of using SFA technology. Some of the benefits of using Sales Force Automation include: Instant access to customer and work order histories, parts availability, and delivery schedules. Automatic integration of contact information to smartphones so there is no lag time in contacting prospects and customers. Sales management has immediate visibility into sales activities to make faster, better decisions. Field Service Solutions This area of mobile technology, as the name denotes, applies to any and all servicing tasks to be done out in the field. Field Service functionality improves the working lives of: Technicians Access mobile work orders, customizable, coded PM, parts and inventory tracking, warranty tracking, timekeeping, customer data, today s schedule, etc. Dispatchers Work orders create, assign, review, update based on status, date, location, technician, customer. Easy scheduling drag and drop for reassigning and organizing. GPS tracking view technicians in real time, as well as customers, warehouses and service vans on the road. Service Management Instant insight to facilitate critical decision making about field service. Capture performance data of employees service time, tasks, expenses, etc. Automated alerts can be set up e.g. status of a work order. For Parts and Warehouse Employees Searchable parts list includes quantity of inventory on hand and on order. More accurate data, better inventory management with real-time or batch part-level visibility.
Why You Need a Mobile Strategy for Your Equipment Distribution Business 8 Equipment Telemetry Leaving behind your employees for a moment, let s turn our attention to the equipment you distribute. Mobile technology, specifically telemetry, provides a way for you to manage and control forklifts and other equipment. A small monitor is fitted to the equipment, and an online tool sends activity of the equipment (hours run, miles driven, events, etc.) via cellular to the Internet. Now, rather than your technician plugging his laptop into the console of a piece of equipment in order to transfer the data into his computer, the data is transferred online, from anywhere the equipment resides to any location of your employee needing the information. Equipment managers can log onto the Internet to get equipment reports and activity or automated emails. Telemetry can also be twoway communication, with your staff send performance commands (e.g. fuel consumption) to the various pieces of the equipment via online access. Telemetry providers such as SpeedShield, with its Fleet Online product, offer this functionality. It should be noted that any telemetry device accessed via web service can, and should, be integrated into your ERP system for full functionality. An ERP system, such as Microsoft Dynamics-powered industry-specific Equip-Soft, will integrate the data from telemetry to help augment Equipment and Asset Management, with cradle to grave visibility of new, used, rental and customer owned equipment. Benefits of using Equipment Telemetry devices include: PM contracts can be more accurately drawn up based on equipment data collection through the online telemetry system. Route optimization and logistics are enabled since online telemetry such as global positioning systems (GPS) can access the physical location of the people moving the equipment. Real time delivery status is available to the distributor. Safety is enhanced by the recording of data such as maximum lift height, speed of the forklift driven, etc. Hour/meter readings probably the biggest piece of data collected on equipment telemetry. Geo-fencing: Find out if a piece of equipment has been used/driven outside of a designated area, to assess if the equipment is meeting the service contract and warranties.
Summary Of course, mobile technology itself is not the point; the ultimate goal is to help you deliver information to your employees where and when they need it most: on-site with the customer, whether that s sales, rentals, servicing or fleet management. As owners, operators and management at equipment dealerships, you have a responsibility and crucial role in the acceleration of business benefits resulting from technology such as field service management, sales force automation, and equipment telemetry tools. Strategic investment in, and adoption of, mobility has long-term as well as immediate payoff for your customers, your dealership, and our industry at large. ADDITIONAL RESOURCES Equip-Soft customer case study Cardinal Carryor/Cardinal Integrated Systems www.equip-soft.com/sem/cardinal-carryor.aspx Equip-Soft community Blog latest updates about dynamics, Equip-Soft best practices, and news in the equipment distribution industry www.equip-soft.com/blog.aspx Equip-Soft Whitepaper Next Steps for Getting Off your Legacy System www.equip-soft.com/sem/leaving-legacy-software.aspx Contact Equip-Soft at: info@equip-soft.com 866.788.1086 Technology partners of Equip-Soft include MobileFrame, SpeedShield and other telemetry and mobile applications to enhance the productivity of workers on the road. Equip-Soft is the only Microsoft Dynamics NAV partner that has formally integrated the ERP system with MobileFrame technology. Equip-Soft blog Equip-Soft @Twitter