California Moving Systems

For California Moving Systems, there were various factors contributing to the overall business pressures it was experiencing. Most of the efforts had been focused on garnering business manually. The survey team was driving long distances to get to customer locations, and the sales team was out networking and knocking on doors.

Since this methodology required travel time and fuel, customer acquisition costs were high. As a company that traditionally went into the customers’ homes to conduct a move survey, it became especially difficult for CMS when COVID-19 hit because CMS couldn’t conduct onsite surveys for a prolonged period of time. If CMS couldn’t find an alternative method of surveying, CMS would experience a big hit to the business.

After receiving a call from Yembo, CMS was curious to learn more about how Yembo would allow it to expand its surveying options, especially using AI technology. Once CMS started using Yembo, CMS experienced the following results:

More virtual surveys were conducted than in-person surveys, and CMS utilized more virtual surveys than it originally thought it would
The cost of goods sold dropped so surveyors can complete more surveys per week
Yembo became an indispensable tool that is used by the CMS team on a daily basis

When it came to generating business, the CMS team’s process was very manual. The Sacramento area itself is very spread out, and the sales team was actively developing business the traditional way, both out in the field and in the office. This primarily consisted of inbound phone calls, knocking on doors, referrals, and
leveraging its network to generate leads. CMS virtually did very little advertising outside of its website, and everything was done in person or by phone.

Driving long distances was the norm but not an ideal situation for CMS. Sometimes, surveyors were driving out more than 50 miles to complete one survey. This would take hours out of the day and a quick survey turnaround was difficult to achieve. The cost of getting customers was becoming relatively expensive
and the costs of selling to the customer were even higher because of fuel consumption and time.

California Moving Systems had also been experiencing pressure from different directions. The overall seasonality of the business, economic factors, and certain California laws had been difficult to deal with all at once. Branching out into different areas downplayed some of the seasonality effects; however, CMS needed a longer-term solution to help alleviate the ongoing pressure. In 2020, COVID-19 added additional stress because CMS couldn’t rely on onsite surveys due to COVID-related restrictions. Customers didn’t feel comfortable letting surveyors come into their homes to do onsite surveys, and CMS also didn’t want to
put its surveyors at risk either. There wasn’t another survey option in place at the time, and to survive the storm, CMS knew it needed to find another way to still do surveys without physically stepping into a customer’s home.

With these challenges looming over CMS, CMS needed to take swift action and transition to a different surveying approach to keep up with business demands and offer more surveying options for customers who preferred a different approach than onsite surveying.

California Moving Systems discovered Yembo when a Yembo representative reached out. After some initial discussions, CMS learned more about Yembo’s AI technology and how it could use Yembo to move towards a virtual survey model.

Yembo checked the box in terms of offering CMS a new method of surveying, and CMS knew Yembo was something it needed to try because Yembo would fit into what CMS was trying to accomplish. Now, CMS offers both virtual and onsite surveys to all its customers.

One of the key changes CMS made was using its website for more advertising opportunities, specifically advertising how it offers virtual survey options. CMS started off by heavily incorporating Yembo onto its own website and making the site more mobile-friendly. The updates CMS incorporated onto its website created different access points for Yembo surveys by giving potential customers the ability to conduct a self-survey and request a quote. CMS saw people were visiting the website and trying out Yembo surveys even before speaking with a sales representative.

Another big change CMS made was limiting how far out surveyors would have to travel for jobs. To ensure that the surveyors aren’t going out too far, CMS only sends surveyors out for jobs that are within 50 miles of the office. For jobs over 50 miles out, CMS suggests either a Yembo Self-Survey or Smart Consult as virtual survey options to the customer. By making this change, CMS saw its monthly spending cut in half, and the cost of goods sold dropped because of the ability to acquire services and sell to customers without going to their homes.

The factors that led to Park’s decision to move forward with Yembo were attributed to three things: timing, technology, and customer service.

From a timing perspective, Park needed to grow without adding extra headcount and wanted to get things up and running. They were ready for the change, and getting a solution in place was a top priority. With the help of their customer success manager, the entire team was trained on how to use Yembo’s surveys in
no time, diving into the specifics of how the platform could transform the way they managed different parts of the business.

Yembo serves as a phenomenal tool for CMS because it can take care of moves where it doesn’t have to send its surveyors to customer sites. Smart Consult guided surveys allowed CMS to develop a better interface between the surveyor and customers because customers can still get face-to-face interaction without leaving their homes.

CMS always recommends a virtual survey to customers first because virtual surveys are the preferred method. If customers prefer onsite surveys, then CMS sends a surveyor out if the location is within bounds, and surveyors will still use Yembo to conduct onsite surveys.

With Yembo, CMS was able to give customers options based on customer preferences. CMS saw the younger generation preferred the virtual survey options while the older generation preferred in-home surveys. Demand has been consistent and CMS can better serve its customers and their needs. The survey team is completing more surveys per week because the team analyzes surveys quickly and generates accurate estimates. Prior to Yembo, CMS was completing approximately 20 surveys per week whereas now, it is completing 30-35 surveys per week. Yembo created an easier way for CMS to interface with its customers and now, Yembo is a tool that is consistently used by CMS to ensure great moving experiences.

Moving Case Study:

California Moving Systems Increased Efficiency

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The Company

Summary

The Challenge

The Solution

The Results