Four apps to rule them all. In this article, we tackle how we managed to solve operational and management issues for our client, as well as increase business efficiency by creating an all-encompassing digital solution - The CleanCat app. B2B business only.
About the Client
Our client is a cleaning service company based in Norway with over 40 employees and 150+ growing clients. To run their business, our client was using 4+ different apps and systems that not only were outdated but also could not communicate with each other. The issues described below morphed into a bigger business idea.
The Challenge
Our client’s business takes pride in providing professional and high-quality services, but as it started to grow, it also encountered several operational difficulties that required quick resolution. There are many different aspects of the challenges, including:
Operational complexity: handling client requests and developing customized offers got more difficult as the number of clients increased, each with their own schedules and needs. The company found itself juggling a lot of phone calls, emails, and paper documents, which frequently resulted in misunderstandings and possible mistakes when providing services.
Difficulties with appointment scheduling: Effective appointment scheduling is essential to the success of any business. However, the staff was under more stress because they had to manually resolve scheduling conflicts and double bookings due to the outdated methods they were using. This caused frustration for both the clients and the staff.
Employee assignment and skills matching - Matching skills and assigning the appropriate workers to each cleaning task is essential to upholding high standards. However, it turned out to be a difficult task to make sure that workers with the necessary abilities and availability were assigned to the right appointments. It was difficult to regularly satisfy client expectations in the absence of a well-functioning system.
The Solution
After understanding the company's challenges, it was quite easy to see what the optimal solution was - a custom-made application that could be used in every step of the process.
CleanCat was born as an innovative application developed to address the specific challenges faced by our client.
It is very important to mention that we divided the solution into four smaller apps that work seamlessly together or independently, providing a tailored experience for each user group within the organization and enhancing overall efficiency. Now let’s break them down.
The app breakdown
The Price Engine App
This component of CleanCat is primarily designed to support our client’s sales team in creating customized offers for their clients. Key features include:
- Simplified offer creation with customizable pricing
- Comprehensive service selection and scheduling options
- Instant access to client history and preferences
By using this segment of the app, the company’s sales team can respond quickly to client inquiries, ensuring accuracy and consistency in the offers they provide.
The Scheduler App:
This section is the backbone of the administrative operations. We are talking about project management, appointment scheduling, and employee assignment. Key features include:
- Project creation based on won offers
- Efficient appointment scheduling with real-time availability
- Assignment of cleaners to appointments based on skills and availability
These features allow the administrative department to maintain precise control over the whole work structure, eliminating scheduling conflicts and enhancing productivity.
The Worker App:
The Worker App is designed with the company’s employees in mind. It offers a user-friendly interface that allows cleaners to access their daily work assignments quickly and conveniently. Key features include:
- Real-time access to appointment details, including addresses and client instructions
- Seamless communication with the administration
- Timesheet submission and job completion status updates
This section of the app allows the company’s cleaning staff to deliver top-quality service by providing them with all the necessary information at their fingertips.
The Customer App:
As any business knows, the clients are at the heart of their business. So the Customer App is created to enhance the customer experience. Here, Clients can log in to the app to access all data related to their appointments, contracts, and more. Key features include:
- Viewing appointment details, including dates, times, and cleaner information
- Access to important documents and contracts
- Direct communication with the customer support team
The Customer App ensures transparency and convenience for CleanCat’s clients, strengthening their client relationships and trust.
Although we presented them as four separate apps, they are interconnected and work seamlessly to create a unified and efficient system. However, each app can also function independently, providing flexibility to users based on their roles and responsibilities.
Apps Used
To power our apps we have used:
- Make.com - An online automation platform that enables organizations to optimize processes, reduce manual tasks, and achieve greater efficiency.
- Bubble.io - A powerful and intuitive no-code development platform that empowers individuals and businesses to create custom web applications without the need for traditional coding expertise.
- Sendgrid - A leading cloud-based email delivery platform trusted by businesses and developers to efficiently send, manage, and track emails.
- PDF Monkey - a user-friendly online tool designed to simplify and enhance PDF document management experience.
Client testimonial?
What challenges did our team solve for your business?
Before CleanCat, we were running 4 different systems for calculations, invoicing, and offers, that did not talk between each other. We tried to find a market-ready solution but failed to find one, so we created our own - an all-in-one app in the form of a cloud-based solution.
Your team helped us with the biggest issue we had: TIME. But also portability, and usability.
And for our clients, it is easy to make them offers, anywhere, anytime, since you can take the app with you - since it's cloud-based.
How would you describe our collaboration?
We quickly established a good relationship through trust. I feel you guys are solution-oriented, available, and always open to finding the best solutions. The makeitfuture team came up with suggestions that were in many cases better than what we thought about.
I feel safe, I feel I don’t doubt the competence of the people on the team. I feel you know what you are doing.
How accountable did you find the team members when working on your project?
I think you have proven many times that we can trust you, and I think you are very accountable.
How would you appreciate our tech skills?
Having a background in IT myself, I feel your tech skills are excellent, and the tools that you use, you master very well. The team has also been set up very cleverly. You are good at using different people’s strengths to help each other.
Would you recommend our services to others and if so, why?
Yes, I would recommend you. The economic side is one aspect but more importantly, because you are serious, competent, trustworthy, and accountable. All of the people in your company take pride and personal responsibility for their tasks.
If you say you are doing something, it’s done.
Developer Feedback
My experience during the development of CleanCat was quite a journey. I can say that it was something like an emotional rollercoaster, it had its ups and downs because of its complexity and scale.
This will probably be one of the most memorable projects that I have worked on. I have started CleanCat from the ground up, building it from the first page until the current version.
Building this application pushed me to expand my technical skills and delve into areas I hadn't explored before. I now have a deeper understanding of Bubble.io and complex logic, which I can apply to future projects.
In conclusion, this journey has been a challenging one, but it has been immensely rewarding.
I am excited to see how this application evolves and grows, and I am eager to tackle even more challenging projects in the future.
Issues during development
During development, we encountered a number of difficulties, some that came from Bubble's limitations, and some from implementing features while keeping performance at peak levels.
One of those issues was about creating a large number of appointments for a client because Bubble takes some time when creating a large amount of data and the backend workflow uses a lot of workload units, so we had to use make.com to make this a lot more efficient and time-saving.
Another difficulty was creating a robust architecture to efficiently transfer data between apps without endangering security.
One of the key factors in using an app to manage your entire operation is time-saving, and because of this, we had to invest a lot of quality time into optimisation and load testing so that performance is at peak levels.
Another important factor that made us rethink a lot of the features and design was the interface - which needed to be intuitive and customised for four distinct user groups (the sales team, the administration team, the clients, and the workers).
Results:
CleanCat app is now the app that drives the entire company - from registering a new
customer, creating individualised offers with complex workload calculations, adding appointments in a neat and dynamic calendar or just viewing daily tasks with all the necessary information, everything is just made simple.
Time was also greatly improved for all four groups of users, a lot more efficiency with scheduling, more precise prices on offers, and a lot more happier customers.
Not only this, CleanCat is currently used by many other cleaning companies in Norway, as a central hub for their business and clients. The app successfully transitioned from an internal solution to a market-ready product.
In Conclusion
The CleanCat app stands as a testament to our team’s commitment to innovation and excellence. What began as a solution to address operational challenges has evolved into a transformative force, reshaping the way our clients conduct business and interact with their clients and employees.
As we move forward, CleanCat will continue to adapt and grow, aligning with the company's expansion and the evolving needs of its clients.
At makeitfuture, we continue the journey to develop and implement transformative digital solutions, marked by dedication, teamwork, and curiosity.
If you are looking for a way to take your business to the next level, contact our expert team for a free discovery call.
