How to provide superior customer experience in your rental business

How to provide superior customer experience in your rental business

The rental industry has been taking off in recent years and it has become an outstanding alternative for companies to practice a more sustainable way of doing business while appealing to a new generation of consumers that have very differentiated needs.

Rental businesses are based on the philosophy of product rotation, so items are used as much as possible before their lifecycle is over while reducing the need for non-renewable resources. Millennials and Gen Z, currently considered the world’s most powerful consumers, have actually been found to seamlessly fit this narrative.

Though having a superior spending power, these generations seem to be ever more conscious when it comes to their consumer habits. In fact, 53% of Gen Z and Millennials say that sustainability is important when making purchase decisions, while 68% of them want more information to help make better sustainable choices.

It’s safe to say that having a rental business is half way through the journey of getting closer to this powerful generation of consumers. So how can you go from there and provide superior customer experience (CX)? Let’s take a look.

1. Focus on a smoother approach

Remember that generations such as Millennials and Gen Z are tech-savvy, meaning they usually prefer to handle operations in a digital manner that doesn’t include commuting. Their main concern is to make the job as simple as possible. In addition to performing payment and ID verification in-store, in case you meet customers face to face, it’s important to also enable these features online. Rental software is globally available to help you handle online payments and digital ID verification, so you can collect all the data you need without having to meet customers in-person. Renting can sometimes be a complex process filled with bureaucracy and it’s up to you to find the right tool to help you make the experience as smooth as possible.

2. Do not neglect your online presence

As an extension, your online presence is not only about customers being able to handle operations digitally but also how they can easily find and reach out to you, whenever they need to. So remember to have all your contact information up to date, such as address, e-mail, phone number and other. These contact details should be an efficient channel in case renters are in need of customer support. Additionally, the online universe also provides you with the chance of building your own catalog or store, so renters can easily browse through your offers and find what they’re looking for, no matter the time or the place. In short, you should reflect on what medium you have at your disposal so you can service your customers in a more timely and personalized manner.

3. Fluctuate your prices accordingly

Renting comes with quite a lot of flexibility in terms of pricing, mainly due to two factors: seasonality and days of rental. On the one hand, you can raise or lower your prices according to time of year. If you’re renting out tourism-related products, such as surf boards or camping tents, naturally customers will find them cheaper during winter time when their usage is not so common. On the other hand, you can also set lower prices for higher days of rental — say, for example, a drone can cost 100€/day for five days of rental, while coming down to 80€/day for six or more days of rental. This provides clients the chance to actually choose how much money they want to spend, depending on how long they rent the product for.

4. Add whatever services needed

Rental isn’t just about providing an item for short-term usage and relying on the customer to perform the pick up and delivery. Some extra resources might be necessary to ensure the entire process goes smoothly. Depending on the kind of inventory you provide or where you clients are based, you might wanna think of including services such as transportation, cleaning, deposit and others you might see fit. For example, if you’re renting out party equipment, you’ll have to make sure it stays intact and polished, client after client. This means you might have to charge your customers above the go-to rental price in order to ensure your products are clean, safe and ready to use every single time.

5. Trust one tool to do it all

Relying on one single platform will be beneficial for both you and your clients. As a business owner, you’ll be able to manage all your client data base, inventory and bookings in one single place, reducing time and effort needed to make your business thrive. On the other hand, your customers will also find they spend less time and effort in renting from you. As they are already familiar with your catalog or store and you have all their data stored in the software, a returning customer will find it much easier to go ahead with new rentals. Having one single rental software is the best option to provide a seamless experience for all parties involved that will help you focus on superior customer satisfaction.

In case you’re thinking about managing your rental business online, Flecto might just be what you’re looking for. As the platform that makes businesses thrive in the circular economy, Flecto unlocks your rental operations by centralizing everything you need in a single platform.

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