26 February 2020

How Can an Equipment Rental Portal Help You Serve Your Customers Better?

Equipment Rental Portal

The whole world is online, seeking answers to any subject they want to learn about. Right from personal inputs (health, fashion, etc.) to business inputs (service, FAQs, product details), we seek answers online.

The equipment rental customers are no different;   they need information, and they need it now, especially when they are on the work site. They would rather not wait to call customer support to get the details they want. Customers today need help 24/7 and in easily accessible ways.

The equipment rental industry is striving to make changes to the way they meet customer’s needs, and one of the ways they have done this is by creating an equipment rental portal and mobile applications. 

For instance, if a customer wants to learn how to maximize the productivity of the complicated machinery they have rented, they can access the information through the equipment rental portal. Or if they want to return the equipment before the end of the rental period, they can find information about the charges due.

Let’s take a look at the role an equipment rental portal can play in streamlining the way your company interacts with customers.

Equipment Rental Portal

What is an equipment rental portal app?

An equipment rental portal, by its very definition, is a portal or a forum where customers can visit, login, and get the information they require about various aspects of their equipment rental transactions.  In many instances, customers and their teams spend much time waiting for operating instructions.

A rental portal will have a set of information and instructions based on different pieces of equipment that customers can access with ease for self-service.

How does an equipment rental portal help meet customer needs?

A rental portal offers customer support that is easy to access and use without intervention or help from the equipment rental company’s team.

Take, for example, a piece of complicated machinery that a customer has rented out but is having trouble operating it. A visit to the rental portal can clear many of the doubts they have on the operation of the machinery and even provide some tips on the proper care of the machinery when it is not in use. The equipment documentation and safety instructions can easily be downloaded.

The rental portal can not only operate as a user manual but can also be used to update location details, share vital information, offer safety information, and overall, ease the rental process for the rental company as well as the customer.

Pro-actively inform customers about their utilization of their rented equipment:

A customer rental portal should be able to provide inside in usage/telemetry of the equipment. As we all know a high % of the equipment that is rented is standing still on the work site. A rental portal should actively inform the customer about this and help him make decisions on the spot like off-hiring equipment instead of keeping it standing still on the yard.

 What information can the equipment rental portal offer?

The possibilities for the usage of the equipment rental are endless and you will find that once the portal is on, the information it is capable of sharing is infinite. However, a good starting point is to start with the essential details.

These could include the following:

Work site data Rented equipment details Equipment details
  • Project details
  • Customer details
  • Work location
  • Rental period
  • Rental status (ongoing, closed, etc.)
  • Rental transaction details with order number
  • Rental type
  • Fleet number
  • Safety instructions
  • Other documentation
Insights Financial details Other information
  • On-time delivery
  • Late delivery
  • Pending rentals
  • Past rentals
  •  Current rentals
  • Invoice information
  • Payment due details
  • Off-hire equipment
  • Request new equipment
  • Report damage
  • Request exchange

With this information, an equipment rental customer can easily keep track of the equipment they have rented, the actions required from their end, and get quick help as and when needed.

Here are some of the main benefits of an equipment rental portal

As your equipment rental ERP software enables you to build an equipment rental portal, you will find that the possibilities that such a portal offers, as well as the benefits, are numerous. Today, businesses are struggling to make their mark in the market.

One of the factors that can create a significant difference in the way your company is perceived is by improving the customer experience. An equipment rental portal can help you in this aspect. We give here some of the main benefits of an equipment rental portal.

Ease of customer interaction and support around the clock

While many businesses provide around-the-clock contact centers to support customer queries, it may not always be viable to do so due to economic and operational reasons. A rental portal can mitigate the issue of support 24/7; what is more, it also allows self-service, which means customers do not have to wait for someone to answer their queries.

Since the update and sync of the portal with your equipment rental software is in real-time, customers will be able to access the latest information from the portal to solve their immediate queries.

Improved equipment usage and payment tracking

When renting sophisticated equipment, customers often have doubts about the KPIs they need to track and the actions they need to avoid. This type of issue can be addressed with ease via the equipment rental portal.

You can offer dashboards, tips, and list out FAQs in anticipation of customer queries based on past experience. Another crucial aspect that equipment rental portals can help you with billing and payment tracking and reminders.

Two-way sharing of vital information on rental equipment

With the equipment rental portal not only do you get insights on the matters that customers worry and care about, but it also provides you the means to communicate with them easily. The rental portal offers you a way to guide customers on the way they can maximize from the machinery they rent, get into payment routines, and follow other best practices.

Would you like to learn more about equipment rental portals and the way they can help you improve your business? Keep watching this space for more updates from us!

Learn how a state-of-the-art rental portal can empower customers to manage rental equipment effectively

Rental-Customer-Portal-solution
Michiel Toppers,
Michiel Toppers,
Senior Director of Product Management

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