The equipment rental industry has been making strides for quite some time now. With technology infiltrating the business world, this industry has ventured into new domains. Major rental companies are featuring new customer portals to streamline the rental process, enabling renters to reserve, schedule, browse, quote and pay for equipment through an equipment rental app.
It is apparent that the number of smartphones users is only going to increase with time. With the rising popularity of online shopping, consumers have become accustomed to ordering everything swiftly using apps, whether it be a new dress or office furniture. It isn’t surprising that equipment rental companies too, are tapping into their consumers’ increased tech consumption and using apps to provide an improved user experience.
Equipment rental apps are a game-changer for both the customers and the employees of a rental business. While they simplify the renting process for the customer, they also help service staff stay on top of their orders, enabling them to compare all customer queries with real-time data for swift problem resolution. This further improves the customer experience.
Let’s explore the ways rental apps can make renting easier for your customers and ultimately increase sales and revenue for you.
Read More: The Complete EZRentOut Mobile App Guide
1. Online reservations and payment simplified
Let your customers pay online quickly and securely.
Equipment rental apps provide customers with greater control by enabling them to view and book equipment with only a couple of thumb taps. Customers can easily view item catalogs, check prices and stock availability, and even make reservations beforehand on the app. For instance, if your customer requires a DSLR for a promotional event, they can reserve it ahead of time to ensure availability.
The app sets the checkout and check-in date for each customer, preventing any double bookings and ensuring timely retrievals, in turn helping you provide customers with better service. An app that offers a wide range of functionality enables your customers to make decisions quickly and while on the move.
You can also enable customers to make payments on the spot using their credit card. Most robust online rental apps would support major payment gateways. This adds convenience for customers enabling them to pay online if they are not able to come physically into the store.
You get instant secure payment and customers do not have to drive over or will always find it more convenient to pay online rather than standing in long queues at stores, and that’s a win-win!
Read More: Charge payments in EZRentOut with Stripe | PayPal | Payflow | Square | Braintree | Authorize.net | Moneris | Plug’n Pay
2. Prompt service and response times
A fast and timely response to customer queries is critical to business success. If you want to establish your reputation as a customer-centric company, it is important for you to respond quickly and efficiently to customers.
A robust rental app enables sales representatives to can offer speedy responses on the availability of equipment as the list of updated equipment is available at all times on the app. They can also easily reserve equipment directly on their mobile device and send a quote.
An equipment rental app can also be used to provide renters with any necessary information regarding the equipment in question. Remember, renters appreciate information pertaining to the condition of the equipment or even any special tips for usage. In addition to this, you can also attach handy rental agreements and invoices right from your mobile phone or tablet. Streamlined communication such as this can really improve the customer experience, and at no cost to you.
3. Self-service shopping experience
Allow your customers to browse through your products and rent them online.
Consumers today demand more efficiency and expect better communication from the providers they deal with. Renting is much the same. An equipment rental app empowers customers without rental business owners having to compromise any control over their operations. When you provide your customers with the ability to view available equipment, schedule deliveries, compare rates, and receive equipment without having to visit your store, you essentially make things easier for yourself, while at the same time granting customers greater control over their rental experience. They can choose rental dates, payment, and delivery options, and if needed, they can use a live chat or call for further assistance.
Customers demand to be empowered. Spending hours away from work just to fetch the necessary rental equipment could cost a construction worker a day’s worth of work. Saving them from this hassle only means more business for you.
4. Discounts, bundles, and promotions
All companies strive to maximize the ROI from their assets and focus their sales efforts on the right opportunities. Retaining customers and pulling in new ones are both equally important. This is why companies concentrate their efforts on achieving both of these goals. If you have any recurring customers, it is important to provide them with benefits so they remain loyal to your brand. Discounts, bundles, and promotions serve this purpose well.
Equipment rental companies can engage their loyal customers with frequency points and promotional bundles right through their app. You can also make things easier for your customers, especially in the case of repeat orders, by offering discounts to them. Some apps even have handy customer categories that flag up ‘gold’ category customers when they order something from your store!
5. Improving performance and scheduling
Customer satisfaction is at the heart of a company’s success. Customer experience revolves around how a customer is exposed to your equipment and your staff. After all, customers won’t be coming back if your equipment is down half the time or if the customer service team is not prompt in its responses. Therefore, it is important to know how each team member and each piece of equipment is benefiting your company.
By running analytics for different time spans, you can know how much revenue each part of your company is bringing in. Stocking idle inventory and employing idle service staff is extremely expensive for any company. This data will help you right-size your staff and inventory by cross-checking them with the amount and quality of work performed.
Using a rental app, managers can also schedule tasks like maintenance checks, regular repairs, and replacements, and replacements, and assign them to respective staff members. Keeping all the repairs and services piled up for technicians at the end of the quarter is going to be costly. On the other hand, scheduling tasks on a regular basis will keep your equipment in good shape, allowing you to get the most out of it.
Conclusion
Equipment rental apps are revolutionizing the rental industry. Gone are the days when business representatives had to spend considerable time and effort in choosing the right vendor and painstakingly negotiating rental terms. Along with enhancing customer experience, rental apps have brought much-needed transparency to the scene.
With how quickly things are advancing, it won’t be wrong to say that user expectations are only expected to increase. Thus, rental companies will have to keep exploring ways to further facilitate the renting process and keep their customers at the heart of all modifications.
About EZRentOut
We’re EZRentOut, an equipment rental app used by hundreds of organizations and businesses to manage customers, orders, and payments from one centralized location.
For more assistance, drop us an email at support@ezo.io.
