Goodman Manufacturing Case Study

Leading Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning Manufacturer Builds Web and Mobile App in One Month with Alpha Anywhere

Business Challenge

Goodman Global Group has been expanding extremely quickly, and its existing sales systems couldn’t keep up with the company’s growth. Goodman’s heating and cooling system are sold by independent contractors, Distributors and Co-Distributors. Contractors needed ways to become more efficient in tracking leads and sales. If Goodman could provide that, the company believed, it would make it more likely that contractors would recommend and install Goodman’s products rather than those of competitors.

Goodman also needed to better track data that could help it price its products properly. Goodman’s executives didn’t have easy, up-to-date access to much of its sales and related data.

"We wanted to build a modern system that would help us keep up with our growth and even accelerate it," says Daniel Santucci, Division Pricing Director. "Because our contractor partners are often in the field, we needed to build a mobile app for them. For our executives, we needed a web app that gives fast access to our enterprise data. And we needed to build it all fast."

Solution

Daniel Santucci has experience with .NET programming, but felt the technology could not give him the capabilities he wanted. His job is in sales, not in IT, so he also needed a tool that would let him build a solution without having to write a lot of code. 

"I needed something that could give me more power than .NET, that would allow me to develop the apps much more quickly, and that supports both mobile and the web. I also needed a platform that could allow me to add the functionality important to sales staff and executives, such as tapping into enterprise sales data." 

He compared several development tools, and was immediately impressed by Alpha Anywhere and its ability to build manufacturing apps. 

"When I saw a demo of it, it absolutely blew me away," he says. "It had all the power and capabilities I needed, had the hooks to the environment I needed to connect to, and was clearly designed for rapid application development. The people at Alpha Software were also incredibly helpful, as were Alpha’s tutorials, including videos." 

Using Alpha Anywhere, Daniel Santucci was able to build a mobile app in a month's time to help his contractors better track and fulfill sales. He also built a web app so Goodman executives could tap into enterprise sales information.

Results/Benefits

Goodman received considerable benefits from Alpha Software, including significantly faster time to market, fast access to current sales data, and a mobile app for iOS and Android that increases customer loyalty and sales. 

"In a .NET environment, it would have taken me six months to build everything. With other low-code products I would have had to sacrifice functionality. With Alpha Anywhere, I developed a fully functioning, rich mobile and web app in just a month." 

Goodman provides the mobile app for free to its partner contractors in the field who fix or install HVAC systems. Typically, contractors track their work and leads on paper, which makes it difficult for them to capture all the information about a house or business, the kind of work that is needed, and their HVAC requirements. With the mobile app, contractors track all leads, from when they are first contacted, to visits to the home or business, and to the final sale. It includes contact information, email address, and technical information about the potential installation. They never lose data, or face the problem of having inaccurate data. This makes it far easier for the contractors to follow up on leads, make sales and do the installations. 

The contractors are not Goodman employees, and they have the choice of using HVAC equipment from a variety of different suppliers. But because the Goodman app makes them more productive, they are more likely to sell Goodman equipment. 

"It’s a tough market, and contractors can sell from multiple companies," Daniel Santucci says. "But the app we give them has helped us generate and retain business tenfold, because we’re providing contractors with a solution at no charge that can help them grow and manage their businesses. In return we get their loyalty. It’s given us a significant competitive edge. And we’ve done it because of Alpha Anywhere." 

In addition to the customer-facing app, Daniel Santucci also built an internal one that tracks sales. It can be used on either mobile devices or desktops, and lets executives see sales information on a daily, weekly, monthly, and quarterly basis. It includes charting capabilities and vital sales data such as customer attrition rates, success rates, and more. Senior management uses it to track sales in real time. It helps them fine-tune their sales strategies, get a better sense of future sales, and grow the company. 

Recently, Daniel Santucci was promoted to Division Pricing Director, in part due to his success mobilizing the sales organization. Alpha Anywhere will play a significant part in his new role, allowing Daniel Santucci to help multiple regions around the country manage, track and promote better sales programs. He is currently in the process of building a secured web solution to help Goodman mange the sales organization’s pricing and proposal process. 

"Because of Alpha Anywhere, we’re in a great position to be aggressive with our growth plans and future product rollouts," Daniel Santucci says. "We know we can build exactly what we need, and do it quickly and at little cost. It’s a big part of our future."