What is new in your software and technology?
Morley: We’re meeting rental businesses where they’re working - which is everywhere.
We’ve added a ton of mobile functionality - we’ve replaced rent-ready tags, the ubiquitous little tags throughout the industry, with a digital version in Ready Tag. This digitizes the entire item-return-to-rent-ready process, so anyone can see which items are ready without having to walkie-talkie, text, or walk out to the lot themselves to see which items have been inspected and deemed rentable.
Work Orders allow technicians to quickly diagnose and document problems in the field, speeding up the parts acquisition (and overall repair) process. This works both with internal equipment and customer-owned equipment. QuikLink speeds up ecommerce processes; you send a link to a contract, and your customer is able to see the contract details, sign electronically, manage payments, and even see documentation for the items they’ve rented.
We’ve overhauled Essentials’ ecommerce processes, bringing them in-line with B2C giants’ processes. It’s easier than ever for consumers to find items, order items, add additional items, and even check out. Our early users are reporting a 40 percent lift in add-on sales so far, so it’s had a pretty big impact.
We acquired Record360, the world’s leading inspection software, and have started integrating it into our RMSes, so people can see their item inspection histories. Those integrations will continue to deepen, and we’d like to integrate Record360 with non-Point of Rental RMSes as well - it’s a great tool and we believe renters should have this technology regardless of what rental platform they’re using.
And finally, everyone loves talking AI: Record360 is using AI to help with its blur detection system, which will help ensure you’re only getting clear photos and video for your inspection records. We’re empowering people to use AI in creating unique, engaging product descriptions on their websites - just enter the product manufacturer and item name and let it write a description for you. This’ll help website SEO and your customers to understand more about what you have to offer.
What effects has AI had on your software and technology and what potential do you see going forward?
Morley: AI has exploded the number of opportunities available for adding functionality to software and accelerated the ability (and expectation) to build those features. We’re taking a bifurcated approach with AI:
First, we’re focusing on our customers’ current needs and building tools that can make an immediate impact for them in three areas.
· Increase quality: Record360’s AI Blur detection helps ensure that inspections are meeting standards BEFORE an issue arises.
· Increase revenue: We’re using historic purchasing trends on our ecommerce sites to suggest relevant items to consumers, allowing rental stores using Point of Rental to provide an Amazon-like experience.
· Increase awareness: Most rental stores don’t have professional product description writers on staff. Consumers are more likely to select items when they understand what they’re getting. Our AI allows users to build out professional descriptions that drive online rentals.
Second, we’re exploring long-term, big-impact solutions. We hold hackathon events, where our developers can set aside present obligations to focus on new features that can build what the future of rental looks like. We’re always looking at how we can enhance customer experience, optimize inventory management, provide better analytics and insights, and automate processes, and now AI is a tool we have at the ready.
How important is integration of all of your systems?
Morley: We strive to be the best software available for managing rental operations. But there are a ton of great software solutions out there for accounting, for example. For payments. For customer relationship management. For telematics. For managing tax rates.
That’s why we do our best, with a public API, to integrate with leaders in those other aspects of business, because that gives our customers the ability to have the best of all worlds when they’re managing their business.
What new trends in technology do you expect in the foreseeable future?
Morley: The easy-to-see trends are the ones that have already started. AI and machine learning have almost infinite possibilities, from predicting equipment failures to demand forecasting. Telematics and IOT are only going to be further engineered into products, enhancing tracking and monitoring to assure safety, efficiency, and productivity.
Augmented and virtual realities will become more widespread and help make training, remote operations, etc. easier to implement for more businesses. We’ll continue to be more mobile-centric as we expect to do more and more away from a desk or counter.
With all this technology, we’ll also see a renewed focus on cybersecurity and privacy. As we’ve seen recently with Microsoft 365 going down, we’re putting a lot of value into these platforms and it’ll be even more critical to ensure we’re protected.
What are the most important contributions telematics makes to a rental company and how challenging is it to integrate telematics with a rental management operating system?
Morley: The most important thing is that it lets you know what’s happening with your inventory so you’re making informed decisions. Telematics lets you know where your equipment is and if it’s being used appropriately and allows you to maximize your inventory and lifecycle management. And if you’re ever audited, it helps you ensure you’re complying with relevant regulations, which opens up more opportunities for you - most often with government contracts.
For a rental business, there are two big challenges for integrating telematics with rental software: First is with rental software; because data formats and compatibility aren’t standardized, your rental software may only integrate with some manufacturers or providers. The second is cost; telematics companies aren’t charities and implementing new technology that gives you all this valuable data can be expensive, particularly when you have a lot of inventory.
What are the main concerns and issues customers in the rental industry are asking about in terms of software being able to solve their problems and help them operate more efficiently? Anything in particular that rental staff are asking for?
Morley: In our talks with customers at trade shows, conferences, customer feedback sessions, etc., customer issues generally boil down into two main pots:
Reducing down/non-productive time for their assets and people. Almost every feature we develop aims at trimming wasted time, from realtime updates to ecommerce to mobile features.
- Delivering great customer service. Rental businesses need to deliver an exceptional experience, not just compete on price. Whether it’s via e-commerce or informing rental staff about what’s important to that customer via preferences, history, etc., optimizing those processes is critical.
What are the most important contributions telematics can make to rental companies?
Morley: What’s most important to a rental company depends on their business and the challenges they’re facing now. We mentioned the main ways it brings value above; our goal is to ensure that the information rental stores are getting from their telematics devices (and software) gets to their rental management software.
Having all that data in one place is what’s going to allow rental companies to act quickly to resolve issues and make the best decisions possible when it comes to buying, selling, and overall re-fleeting.
