Plumbing Company Shares Why You Should Make the Jump to Successware Mobile

Benjamin Franklin Plumbing in North Branch, MN has been in business for over 20 years and currently has three plumbers and one trainee on staff. Michael Mueller, the General Manager and Owner of this location, has been using Successware since 1999. Kim Phipps, Warehouse Manager, has been with this location for three years and works in the back office.

This Benjamin Franklin Plumbing location once operated as an all-paper business. Kim filled us in on why Mike decided to migrate his business from all-paper to Successware. The main reason was efficiency. “A big thing for plumbers is history, and if it were on paper, you’d have to try and go back and figure out how you filed it,” said Kim. Moving to Successware and Successware Mobile allowed this Benjamin Franklin Plumbing to ditch the paper and find a more streamlined way to organize and locate customer records.

They started to use Successware Mobile, our mobile app, about a year ago and haven’t looked back since. Successware Mobile was just what this location was looking for. “Our plumbers like the history at their fingertips. They like the ability to lookup prices without having to flip through a pricebook,” Kim shared.

Before Successware Mobile, when their plumbers were out in the field they would have to call into the office to get customer history. Sometimes, the back-office staff would have to sort through the old paper files to find the needed information. They would also have to physically print pricebooks for their plumbers to carry in the field, which would often become outdated as soon as they were printed.

Successware Mobile has eliminated this and provided the plumbers in the field with more efficiency. They can see customer history and pricebook while on a job site and not waste time phoning the back-office.

When this location decided to switch to Successware Mobile, they had a few plumbers who were reluctant to change from their current paper system. After some training, Kim said, “they are now comfortable with it and accept the benefits of using Successware Mobile over paper. Fewer things to carry into the customer’s house, and they look more efficient and professional to the customer.”

A few other things their plumbers love about using Successware Mobile are how easy it is to type notes into the customer record about the job or future opportunities, the pricebook, and the ability to accept credit card payment directly through the app. Kim knows their customers are incredibly pleased with the payment feature because they know it is safe and secure.

Their plumbers also love the ability to send their customers an invoice electronically right from the job site. Their customers no longer need to wait for the back office to print and mail an invoice, as they now receive it immediately.

When asked to give advice to other customers who may be on the fence about adding Successware Mobile, Kim says she understands people may not be hyped on technology but knowing there are no longer boxes and boxes of job invoices and customers records taking up space is great.

Having everything digital and in Successware Mobile means it is easier for their plumbers to refer back to any options they present to customers. They no longer have to worry about losing paperwork, spilling coffee on it, or leaving it in their trucks.

Kim says this location plans to start using the Inventory Manager module in Successware Office soon. She is excited to get this up and running because right now, their plumbers will use product and write on a piece of paper that they need a restock or get it from the warehouse themselves, making it hard to keep track of all the inventory they have.

Kim knows the Inventory Module will help them not have to make emergency part runs that take away time from jobs and in the office. She is also looking forward to this module allowing them to control costs because they won’t be buying unnecessary parts and will be able to find and manage all the inventory they have.

Kim also takes advantage of the training classes that Successware offers. These courses are great refreshers for her and allow her the ability to sit and take notes for tasks she may not be as familiar with, which she can then share with the rest of the office.

Kim is also very pleased with all the new features and enhancements that have come out for both Successware and Successware Mobile. “The leaps and bounds I have seen Successware make, I am astonished, and it has been phenomenal what they have done in helping to make our job easier and more efficient.”

As a final note, Kim said, “Business has been up. I think maybe it’s because the way we do the work with the tablets and Successware Mobile. People are very happy they don’t have to sign paperwork, and it is definitely more efficient. We don’t ever want to go back to all-paper!”

This location was ecstatic to hit and pass their 2021 goal and is hoping to add one or two more plumbers and trucks to their staff in 2022.