A Win-Win Result for Franchisor and Franchisees

Prior to working with Insight Direct, Professional Carpet Systems (PCS) had hired a software company that went bankrupt and actually locked the franchisees out of their own software systems. Determined not to make the same mistake again, PCS chose Insight Direct and ServiceCEO to resolve their software Chalenges and bring their franchisees into the 21st century with cutting edge technology. Now the PCS franchise is achieving greater company and revenue growth with renewed confidence in their software system.

Company Overview

Professional Carpet Systems is the world's largest flooring specialty service company offering a full range of cleaning services, including carpet repair, dyeing, water damage restoration, and carpet replacement. PCS also handles four different market segments - insurance, residential high-end referral business, property management and commercial business.

Size: 62 locations throughout North America, roughly 300 employees
Year Founded: 1978
Headquarters: Raleigh, NC
Decision-Maker: Fritz Thompson, President

PCS's Challenges

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In 1998 Thompson took over PCS franchise, which was in a state of disrepair
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Franchisees needed to be brought into 21st century with cutting edge technology
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Hired small software start-up that did not follow-through on promises of customized technology Solutions for PCS. A year later the software company went bankrupt, and franchisees were "locked out" of software, including bookkeeping and payrolls systems
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Management and franchisees were frustrated and hesitant to trust another software company

PCS'S Solution

Thompson began a second search for a reputable software product/company. This time he turned to some of his most tech savvy franchisees to help him with the research process.

PCS's Criteria for Software Company

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Solid financial ground and proven track record
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Follow-through on commitments
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Quick and/or reasonable turnaround on requests and customized projects
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Dedicated to future software investments, improvements and upgrades
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Strong technical support with reliable team of in-house software developers
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Cutting edge company that remains ahead of the competition

PCS's Criteria for Software Product

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Robust software that grows with PCS - meets needs now and in the future
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Ability to meet the demands of 4 different market segments and 15 services
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Ability to manage growing franchises with average yearly revenues of $500,000
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Cutting edge software product
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Help franchises manage and schedule service appointments
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Help franchises manage finances and marketing efforts
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Flexible - you don't have to change the way you run your business to use software

Final Decision
ServiceCEO and Insight Direct met all of PCS's criteria. According to Thompson, although ServiceCEO's initial learning curve might have been longer, its long term benefits were greater. Thompson was also impressed with Insight Direct's talent pool. While most software companies might have 1 or 2 developers at best (some even outsource), Insight Direct had 6 dedicated developers (14 as of 2005).

Implementation Timeline

August to
December 2002
Ran test-versions of software at select franchise offices
December 2002
Signed contract with Insight Direct for ServiceCEO license
February 2003
Officially introduced and released ServiceCEO to franchisees at the annual PCS convention

Overall Business Impact

Implementing ServiceCEO was a win-win result for both franchisor and franchisees.

Franchisor Benefits:
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Confidence and trust reestablished with franchisees
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Able to focus time and energy back into managing franchisees
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Stronger reporting and understanding of how franchisees are performing
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Greater company and revenue growth

Franchisee Benefits:
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Growing their businesses faster and more efficiently
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Achieving higher profits
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More efficient job scheduling
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Improved customer service
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Enhanced professionalism
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Increased organization with customer documents

Professional Carpet Systems has 62 franchise locations throughout the U.S. and is the world's largest flooring specialty service company