Sometimes the most valuable software for your business isn’t the first one you implement. You’ve probably tried or tested tons of management tools, mobile apps, or document management solutions that were close but not quite what you need.
Then you find it. Maybe it’s highly recommended, or it’s one that’s lingered out there as an option for a while. You adopt the contracting software and move forward with a small handful of users on your team to test the water.
However, you know the real value shows itself when you expand this software across a larger group of team members. Whether it’s to organize a punch list or daily project management reporting, having more team members utilize this software will better connect all areas of your company.
But that choice to expand the use of this new, critical piece of software is likely not an overnight decision.
ClearlyAmazing Chief Operating Officer Rob Greenblatt knows all about these decisions.
For him and his team, expanding their CompanyCam users started at the beginning of 2022. An acquisition, a meeting at a trade show, and a need to increase efficiency led Greenblatt and ClearlyAmazing to move from a user count of 3 to 7 on CompanyCam to more than 80 users today.
Acquisition to Expansion
The initial discovery of CompanyCam was unique.
“We discovered CompanyCam because we acquired a company that was using it, but we had not been on the platform,” Greenblatt said. “During the due diligence, we saw it — it was an added feature, but it was not something we took to [immediately].”
“After absorbing the company and integrating it into our operations, we saw that they had 1,200 homes, and at that point we realized, okay, let’s really dig deep on this because there are some operational benefits.
“That company had all of their technicians and crew leaders on [CompanyCam] as well as their sales reps. So they had about anywhere from two to seven [users], depending on the time of year.”
Specializing in residential and commercial exterior cleaning services, ClearlyAmazing is represented in double-digit states around the country. Having everyone on the same page over long distances is big for the business.
“For us, it was the communication,” Greenblatt said.
“It made communication from our ops team to our sales team easier, frankly, for what they see in the field. We’re using it now for estimating as well for job completion.”
The More Users, the Merrier
After the acquisition, ClearlyAmazing decided to go all-in with CompanyCam as a business solution.
Greenblatt said the decision to go from under ten users to more than 80 was based on several factors.
With the employees using personal phones for work and spread all around the country, efficient and cost-effective communication was of the utmost importance.
“We had different formats and methods [of sharing photos] coming in,” Greenblatt explained. “We didn’t have one place to put all this information in, and that was another benefit of using the [CompanyCam] system … everybody was using the same language and the same platform around the country.
“We operate in 12 states. Having the common language around the country for us was critical.”
Getting your team to adopt new software is never easy, but having a leader on the team showcasing the benefits of a new tool can be hugely beneficial. Greenblatt says that was the case with his team members and CompanyCam.
“Getting one leader, if you will, to buy in and have his team [using CompanyCam], then using that data, made that transition easier,” Greenblatt said.
“You’ve got to crawl before you can walk, walk before you can run … so the first thing I did was tell every service manager to go out and create a project [in CompanyCam].
“This is part of the training. So I’d recommend doing it that way — where you just start slow and build up. I think we’ve added 300 or 400 projects this week alone. Now it’s just a matter of playing — seeing what we can build on and go from there.”
Real Job Site Results Matter
A great tool produces results, whether it’s a wrench or business software.
For Greenblatt, the payoff of CompanyCam is already revealing itself.
“We’re starting to see some sales result from upsells being done in the field,” Greenblatt said about CompanyCam’s effect on ClearlyAmazing’s business. “They’re seeing an opportunity, and we’re able to capitalize on that and really monetize that.”
The business results also come from a better-connected team, from the office to the job site.
“It just makes it easier because our sales team is in the office primarily,” Greenblatt said. “So they weren’t able to see the onsite conditions.
“Now they have better pictures than what’s on Google Earth or Google Maps or whatever they were using previously. That makes it a little bit easier for them to understand the other opportunities.”
With members of the ClearlyAmazing team grabbing valuable photos all around a home for a project, their sales team has a better idea of what they can offer that would help the customer from A to Z — or, should we say, front to back.
“We’ve seen a couple of job sites where you know our sales team didn’t know they had, for example, a back deck,” Greenblatt illustrated.
“So they can offer additional services, and because we’re having the crews take pictures all around the house, that’s opening eyes to the sales team to say, ‘Oh, we can sell additional services.’”
“Hopefully, we’re going to be able to modify that by having that knowledge that we didn’t have before, without the platform [CompanyCam].”
“They’re not going to get up on the ladder, for example, to see if their gutters are clean. But we can show them the picture and say, ‘Here’s your gutter.’ The customer appreciates the worth of the photos — seeing their own house and gutters in this example makes a difference.”
More CompanyCam Users Equals More Customer Clarity
Beyond better communication with the internal teams, increasing CompanyCam users for the ClearlyAmazing team has meant better ways for customers to see the details. Those project details aren’t the type of looks they will get on their own.
“They’re not going to get up on the ladder, for example, to see if their gutters are clean,” Greenblatt said about how photos help customers see the project progress. “But we can show them the picture and say, ‘Here’s your gutter.’”
Something as simple as a photo example from a specialty contractor builds trust between the company and the customer when the results are front and center. Visual communication goes a long way to developing understanding.
“Being able to show the pictures to the homeowner, after the job, to prove that we’ve done the work. The customer appreciates the worth of the photos — seeing their own house and gutters in this example makes a difference.”
