5 MORE Things AI Says Your Rental Software Needs To Do

This is a follow-up blog to “5 Things Your Rental Software Needs To Do, According To AI”.

By now you’re familiar with a lot of the things your rental software ought to be doing for you – or at least what ChatGPT believes it ought to do. You know to look for an ability to make reservations/bookings, eCommerce solutions, mobile compatibility, a good user interface, and the ability to handle the unique pricing structure that rental businesses use.

But there are a few more things to consider, so let’s get to ‘em. (If you’d rather listen/see than read, you can download the recording of our webinar here.)

1. Inventory Management.

Your inventory is a critical part of your success. You can’t rent the items you can’t find, after all. Your rental software should provide robust inventory management capabilities, allowing you to track and manage your rental assets efficiently. This includes features like barcode scanning, item categorization, availability tracking, and automated alerts for maintenance and repairs.

Why it’s important: Barcode and RFID scan functionality makes it easy to count items quickly and accurately and determine where they are with fewer opportunities for human error. Automated alerts for maintenance and repairs help keep your inventory available to rent, not in the repair bay. And by tracking availability, you’re better able to make smart decisions about what inventory your business will carry in the future.

2. Customer Relationship Management (CRM).

The only thing as important as managing your inventory is managing your customer relationships. A CRM module is essential for maintaining a comprehensive customer database. It should store customer details, their rental history, contact information, and any relevant notes for personalized customer service and marketing campaigns. (Note: We’ve done a webinar dedicated to CRM as well!)

Why it’s important: When you’re able to track your customers’ interactions and experiences with your company, your interactions become easier, driving customer retention and loyalty. You’re able to see what happened last time you worked with them. It’s easier to ask about the projects they’ve worked on. And it’s easier to see who hasn’t connected with you in a while so you can market to them, as well.

3. Reporting & Analytics.

Comprehensive reporting and analytics features are necessary for all companies to assess their business performance, but your rental software should be able to handle that for you, too. The software should provide detailed reports on revenue, utilization rates, inventory turnover, customer trends, and other key metrics.

Why it’s important: You can collect all the data in the world, but it doesn’t do you any good if you’re not able to analyze, interpret, and act on that data. Having accurate and readable reporting and analytics unlocks operational efficiencies and allows you to forecast and plan better for the future, giving you a competitive advantage. You’ll also be able to identify customer insights, like when customers rent seasonal items each year, so you can proactively reach out as that season comes up. You’re even able to evaluate your team’s performance – from mechanics to your sales team – and identify areas of improvement.

4. Security & Data Protection.

Rental company software should prioritize data security and protection. It should employ robust encryption measures, regular data backups, user access controls, and comply with relevant data privacy regulations like GDPR or CCPA.

Why it’s important: When you’re keeping a lot of data, it’s your responsibility to maintain it safely. That includes eliminating and mitigating threats by limiting user access and complying with government regulations, backing up your data securely and protecting customer information. This will not only help you avoid fines and penalties, but it’ll help you keep your business running smoothly and maintain your customers’ trust. Your rental software can give you the power to manage your team’s access levels and can help you manage your data so you’re never caught with your proverbial pants down.

5. Scalability & Customization.

Your rental software should be scalable to accommodate your rental company’s growth, allowing for a future addition of new locations, users, and inventory. It should also provide customization options to tailor the software to the unique needs of your rental business.

Why it’s important: To paraphrase a famous quote – if you’re not getting better, you’re getting worse. And as you’re working to get better, your software needs to accommodate that. Ideally, your software will have features that you can expand into as you add pieces to your business. It’ll be built on current code, so that functionality will be available to you in the future. And it’ll integrate with other software – like accounting, GPS, tax management software, etc. to bring all your information into one place.

If you’re keeping those five (and our first five) things in mind when you’re rental software shopping, you’re on a path to find rental software that’s going to help your business grow and keep your team and customers happy.

Now it’s time for your natural intelligence to take over: Bring your key stakeholders in to check out any demos provided by a software company to get their opinions, and see which software suits you best while delivering the features you need.

If you’re ready to see how Point of Rental handles some of these challenges, watch our past webinars. And if you’d like to see how we’d handle some of the challenges you and your team face, fill out the form below to tell us what you’d like help with.