In distribution, relationships are the heart of the business — meaning that top-notch service is founded on seamless communication and a good customer experience. For Carrier Enterprise, a key player in the HVAC distribution space, constantly navigating the influx of calls while juggling business tasks made communicating efficiently a major undertaking.
That was until Sales Center Manager, Mark O’Hare, implemented Prokeep, to revolutionize their communication, workflow, and customer service.
Who is Carrier Enterprise?
Carrier Enterprise is a specialized unit within Watsco, the largest HVAC distribution network globally. With a variety of products from well-known brands like Carrier, Bryant, and Payne, they serve both residential and commercial HVAC needs. Their mission is to provide everything from parts and equipment to service and maintenance for HVAC systems of all sizes.
“We are a small business unit within a huge organization,” Mark shared. “[we do] everything that you would need from, you know, ground up to install, service, maintain, and modify, retrofit an air conditioning system from a miniature tiny home up to a giant commercial industrial space. So you've got parts for those. You're going to come get them here.”
Challenges Before Prokeep:
With a lean team, Mark and his colleagues had to maximize their bandwidth to keep up with the demands of both field technicians and contractors. This meant finding a way to juggle multiple communication channels without sacrificing service quality. Some of the barriers they faced were:
- Inefficient communication
- Difficulty multitasking
- Prioritizing sales calls over informational calls
- Challenges sharing documents
- Difficult internal collaboration
- Inaccuracies in orders due to miscommunication
- A heavy reliance on personal cell phones
The Prokeep Solution
Faced with these hurdles, Mark introduced Prokeep — a centralized conversation hub that seamlessly connects text, email, web chat, and fax to one easy-to-use dashboard — as a way to cut down call volume, eliminate miscommunications, and make doing business easier than ever. And the impact was striking.
Instant Communication
“It's very easy. It's fast, just like a text.” Mark said. “The thing about Prokeep that's nice is you don't have to rely on one single guy or gal to have their phone at the ready.” With Prokeep’s seamless conversation hub, getting an answer from yourcustomer is as simple as sending a text.
Enhanced Multitasking
“Prokeep gives me the ability to focus on many things simultaneously, you know? And I can kind of almost like a short-order cook.” By connecting all communication channels to one workspace, Prokeep allowed Mark to handle up to 10 conversations simultaneously. This was a huge step up from relying on the phone and allowed his team to respond in a fraction of the time.
Effective Prioritization:
“It makes it a little bit more constructive with the use of phone time. Whereas if I'm using the phone for every single call, a lot of them are just informational or they're requests.” Prokeep’s ability to manage multiple threads enabled Mark to discern urgent sales calls from those that could wait until later, allowing him to better prioritize tasks and navigate his day-to-day functions.
Easy Transfers of Documents
When sending documents, with Prokeep Mark is now able to tell customers; “I will send you a PDF file over Prokeep….That saved us a bunch of times, you know because I could easily go and send it in an email, but it's actually fewer mouse clicks for me to save it to my desktop and then save it in an email and send it off in a PDF in an email.” What was once a cumbersome task now takes just a press of a button.
Stronger Team Collaboration
“When Prokeep came into play, it was just another tool that made it easier for us to keep in communication with our people,” Mark shared. With Prokeep, team members could access and respond to messages, and just as easily share information with each other. This way, nothing fell through the cracks.
No More Miscommunications
“You could be dealing with a huge system that has four different types of motors on it. And a guy will say, well, I don't know which one it is. Is it the left-hand side?... Then they say, look, let me send you the wiring diagram.” What once needed a lengthy phone conversation to clarify, can now be relayed with a quick snap of a picture, thanks to Prokeep.
Better Work-Life Balance
“If I can limit the communications with my customers to Prokeep, then I don't have to worry. And they know, hey, when it's after hours, Prokeep lets them know, we're closed right now. And I see those messages.” Mark said. “I check them first thing in the morning. And it gives me a good work-life balance.”
Not only did Prokeep eliminate after-hours calls from customers but it also let team members rest assured they could get to it in the morning. Whatever messages were received outside business hours, were kept in Prokeep right there waiting for them as soon as they got in the next day.
Prokeep’s Impact on Carrier Enterprise
Since implementing Prokeep, Carrier Enterprise has transformed operations, streamlined communication, and boosted efficiency. “Without Prokeep, I would be working around the clock on my own phone.” Mark explained. Prokeep proved to be a game-changer, facilitating faster and more effective communication both internally and externally, ultimately driving Carrier Enterprise’s mission to provide top-notch service.
Conclusion:
Providing quality service through efficient communication doesn’t need to be a tough challenge. With Prokeep’s centralization of text, email, web chat, and fax, your team will no longer be tethered to personal phones, or struggling to keep up.
A communication tool makes for a better workflow, allowing you to manage tasks effectively, communicate with ease, and create the work-life balance you deserve. For businesses like Carrier Enterprise, who value providing a strong customer experience, Prokeep makes all the difference.
Whether you’re a business leader or counter rep, empower your team to see the value in communication — so you can work smarter, provide industry-leading service, and create a stronger balance in your life.
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