InTents April/May 2021 - 20

SERVING USERS

A

lert Rental, a Colorado Springs, Colo., rental software company,
believes that users drive its offerings, and to foster that, it has hosted an

Here's a training session for users of software from Alert Rental, Colorado Springs,
Colo. Such companies often seek input
from users as they improve their software.
Photo courtesy of Alert Rental.

This event was staged by Legacy Events &
Rentals near Zion National Park, Utah. Owner
Jeffrey Hall uses Goodshuffle Pro software,
and is especially enamored with a feature
that integrates his inventory with his website.
Photo courtesy of Legacy Events & Rentals.

20 intents

0421IT_16_33.indd 20

annual users conference for the past 40 years.
" Their sole focus is service, 'How do you need us to evolve to better
support your company?' " says Jennifer Rodriguez, general manager
of Marianne's Rentals in Oklahoma City, Okla., one of Alert's longtime
customers. " At the conference, you can get training, join committees, and talk
with owners and support staff, as well as programmers. "
Part of the attraction to Rodriguez is that users get to vote on what features
they want in the next couple of revisions. " You get to know what's coming
around the corner and have a voice. That's very unique. "

sell it. Some vendors may be concerned
with sticker shock, because the most
expensive can surprise those looking
into the subject for the ϐirst time and
can lead to a quick exit from the website.
But because most rental software
is tailored to each rental company's
needs-very few are totally off-the-shelf
and those are very basic-the sellers
would prefer to determine a company's
speciϐic requirements before quoting an
exact price. Besides, that gives potential
buyers a much clearer picture of what
they might be getting.
That's why most companies offering
rental software offer demo versions,
which give potential buyers a much
clearer picture of what they might be
getting into and how much it's going to
cost. Just as importantly though, it can
give customers an idea of how responsive
the company is, and how easy or difϐicult
the software is to use. " I am not techsavvy at all, " says Rixon. " So I need
something that was super easy to use. "
Beaudry prefers a different
perspective: " I want to compare rental
software to cheeseburgers for this,
because I'm a big fan of both. Regardless
of where you go to grab a cheeseburger,
you're generally going to get a bun,

cheese and a beef patty, and even a
bad one tastes better than nothing.
Depending on what you value-price,
location, ϐlavor, etc.-you'll prefer one
cheeseburger or another.
" The same goes for rental software, "
he says. " Regardless of who you go with,
you're generally going to get the same
basic features. But the comparison
stops there because rental software
is a much deeper, longer-lasting
product than a burger. You're buying
one rental software, hopefully, for the
rest of your time running a business.
That means you're valuing things
like scalability, innovation, reliability,
relationship, etc. And those are the
values rental software companies are
largely competing on. It's not just about
handling the basics; it's about providing
both the best version of the basics
and an overall great experience. "
Jeff Moravec is a freelance writer based in
Brooklyn Park, Minn.

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InTents April/May 2021

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