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This is a sponsored post by Cents. Find out what Cents can do for your laundry business here. All reviews and opinions expressed in this post are based on my personal view.
Right now is one of the best opportunities for laundromat owners to grow their businesses and expand the radius of potential business for their laundromats. There is a revolution, of sorts, going on in our world right now where people are opting to pay for convenience more. This value placed on convenience and the sharing culture is creating the biggest opportunity for laundromat owners, maybe ever. That opportunity is to add a laundry pick-up and deliver (PUD) service to their self-service laundromat.
At the core of any quality PUD service is a software platform that helps the owner manage the business, keep track of employees, serve customers well, and run an efficient operation. Choosing the right PUD software is essential. Let’s talk about what you should be looking for in a laundry pick-up and delivery software.
Essential Qualities and Features of a Great Laundry Pick-up and Delivery Software.
I made a video that outlines the pick-up and delivery process from start to finish. Understanding the process that needs to take place to run a profitable PUD business will help you see why having a great software to help you manage your business is absolutely necessary. You can watch that video below.
Ok, let’s explore what a laundry pick-up and delivery software needs to include in order to help you build the best business possible.
1. A top-notch development team
I say this all the time on the Laundromat Resource Podcast, “When you work with the best, you become one of the best.” It’s true. When you’re choosing a software to work with, you’re not only choosing which software to use, you’re also partnering with the people who created it and who are managing it. Whenever possible, have conversations with people in the company before actually choosing a software. For example, you can get a live demo of Cents and interact with a Cents rep to get to know the software and the people building it.
Another great place to get to know the people building some of these software solutions is by listening to my interviews with them on the Laundromat Resource Podcast. I have had many of them on the show.
2. Top-notch support
This is related to number 1, but if you’re going to build a business on the back of a platform, you want to know that if (when) things go wrong or you have a question, you’re going to get fast, responsive support from the company. Nothing is worse than having your business be down because of a software issue. Watching money pass right by you as you helplessly wait for support to solve your issue is the worst feeling. So when you’re talking with a software company, ask about what support they offer you as the laundromat owner.
Related to support, you want to ensure that the software is continually being updated. As the company receives feedback from owners, they should be constantly improving it. Ask what improvements have been made to the software based on owner feedback.
3. Simple, yet complete
As the owner, you will be using the software to help you run and manage your business. But, so will your attendants, your drivers, your managers, and anyone else on your team. Because of that, the software needs to be simple enough to navigate for everyone. If your attendant can’t figure out how to use it, they won’t use it. Obviously, you want your software to improve and simplify your business, not make it more complicated.
However, the software needs simplicity without giving up the necessary features, processes, and capabilities. Simple means intuitive and easy to use, not a lack of depth. Make sure your software is simplifying management and execution without leaving anything off the table.
4. Necessary features
So what features do we need to confirm haven’t been sacrificed? Here are a few to make sure are included.
- It needs the ability to integrate with a POS system that is able to be configured for a laundry business.
- It must have a driver route management feature. Money can be earned or lost in the efficient or inefficient deployment of drivers
- Inter-team communication. It must have a way for the team to communicate with one another so customer orders are followed exactly, clothes aren’t lost or mixed up, and everyone knows what to do, when to do it, and how to do it.
- Marketing features. The ability to send automated (and manual) emails and texts to customers to let them know the progress of their laundry and also to remind them to use your services again is HUGELY important. That follow-up and follow-through are what separates the pros from the amateurs.
- Reporting. Robust reporting options help you determine the health of the business, opportunities for growth, and potential money leaks to plug. Reporting data will help you take your business to a whole new level.
5. The ability to grow with your business
This concept works on both ends of the business spectrum. You need your software to allow you to work small when you’re just starting out. For example, maybe you want to start a laundry pick-up and delivery service but you don’t have the ability to purchase a vehicle and hire a driver yet. Having a software that can integrate with 3rd party drivers, such as Uber, to help you with that part of the business until you can scale enough to take it over yourself is crucial. Cents, for example, integrates with 3rd party drivers to help you manage your pick-up and delivery business without the whole business of picking up and delivering the clothes!
On the other end of the spectrum, it would be a nightmare to scale up your PUD business only to find out that your software no longer meets your needs. You’d then be tasked with running a large PUD business while transferring your systems, processes, and employees to a new software system. So make sure the PUD software you choose can grow with your business and scale to as large as you want to scale.
If you’re looking for a great software to help you manage your laundry pick-up and delivery business, Cents checks all of the boxes. You can get to know one of the founders, Alex Jekowsky, in his podcast interview in the video below. And you can book a demo to see how the software works and what they have to offer through it.
