Technology Help Small to Mid Size Companies Achieve Their Financial Goals

Today, IT solutions are aiding small and mid-sized companies alike, as they compete with Fortune 500 companies for a piece of the pie. We live in an age of fierce competitiveness, fiscal concern, and global turmoil and uncertainty. Companies are working hard to continually improve operational efficiency. Many are looking to IT (information technology) to reduce operating costs and increase efficiency by automating and streamlining existing business processes.

Smart companies are achieving their business and financial goals by embracing and making technology work for them. Porcelain Patch is one such small company that has embraced Internet Technology to help improve the bottom line while enhancing customer service. Since 1938, Porcelain Patch and Glaze has prided itself on offering the finest electrostatic painting and porcelain reglazing services to homeowners, office managers and building managers all over New England. Porcelain Patch can point to over a half-century of experience and a long list of satisfied customers. At this time, the company employs 12 field technicians, 2 full time sales people and 2 customer service/marketing representatives. They have been in Watertown, MA since the mid 1960's.

As the president and owner of Porcelain Patch, Jonathan Gleason is always looking for ways to further gain efficiency and maintain customer loyalty, while keeping operating costs down. He is a technology buff and a true believer in utilizing IT to gain a competitive edge. As a starting point, Jonathan recognized long ago that in today's Internet-driven business environment, a strong web presence is not only mandatory, but also it is the most valuable marketing tool that can set him apart from his competitors. He also understood that a web site can ONLY be effective if it is keeps up with the dynamic nature of the Internet and provides up-to-date information to its visitors. This, he realized, was the major challenge - one that required a lot of resources.

To make the web site an effective marketing tool, Jonathan commissioned Blue Robin Inc., to build a new web infrastructure for Porcelain Patch - one that can be organic. The new platform was built with a powerful Content Management System (CMS) through which authorized personnel can update the content of the site on-the-fly.

With its EZedit(TM), Blue Robin focused to deliver a robust, full-featured Content Management System to Porcelain Patch with a user-friendly environment that can accommodate multiple users at the company, with varying skill levels. The CMS provides Porcelain Patch with an easy-to-use, multi-level authenticated text and HTML editor with similar features and functionalities of popular word processing applications, which their employees were already familiar with using. The company took to the implementation of the new web site with its CMS, like a duck takes to water.

As a result, in 2007, the company's website has turned into one of the most cost effective and important lead generators and image builder. In such a short time frame, Porcelain Patch has transformed its marketing from using a full page in their local Yellow Pages book to a cyber-based strategy to increase revenue by generating more traffic to its web site.

Another item that Jonathan had identified as a cost area was his company's traditional phone system. Beyond the cost, the phone system was posing all kinds of problems that impacted customer service and created a bottle neck. Jonathan wanted a sophisticated phone system similar to the one used by the fortune 500 companies, without the high price tag. Jonathan began looking into Voice Over IP technology (VoIP) and did a significant amount of research into what companies could provide the most useful and cost effective solutions, before committing again to Blue Robin, Inc.'s Enterprise Voip(TM) phone system.
The most important benefit of VoIP is its cost savings for Porcelain patch. Blue Robin's Enterprise VoIP(TM) has offered significant cost savings while providing numerous new features.

Jonathan had long ago understood that to compete effectively in the eWorld, his business infrastructure must have two essential components: A High-speed Internet connection and a sophisticated phone system. The arrival of VoIP technology makes it possible to say goodbye to traditional phone and PBX phone systems as well as the high cost associated with multiple phone lines. As a matter of record, the #1 reason Porcelain Patch adopted a VoIP phone system was cost, cost and cost. The Enterprise Voip(TM) system from Blue Robin is much less expensive to deploy than a traditional PBX and it has been far cheaper month-to-month than paying the large phone bills Porcelain Patch used to have. In addition to the reduced monthly cost of the Enterprise Voip(TM) phone system, the company also looked to keep the initial and any recurring charges down, as well as ensuring ease of implementation and use. Blue Robin was able to successfully meet and exceed all of Porcelain Patch's requirements.

Like many corporations today, Porcelain Patch is experiencing the advantages of IT first hand as a key component of its business strategies. Jonathan will continue to use new technology to drastically change their business functions and to shift cost structures resulting in what some call the, "information based organization." Implementing today's new technologies shows how a business can successfully grow from within, creating a cycle of cost control, leading to better products and services, leading to more growth.