“Cash Flow a Problem?
The Right Tools Can Help You Fix That Problem
– And Much, Much More.”
 “If
a person’s trying to make money, especially grow a business, I think
Axon’s really more of a tool than it is an expense."
“With Axon, within two
months you’ll have good results, within six months you’ll be
extremely happy, and within a year you’ll wonder how you ever lived
without it.”
Danny Tuttle, Nexcor
Consulting company Nexcor LLC of Tulsa,
Oklahoma, helps companies by analyzing their financial needs and
assisting them with refinancing as well as setting up their IT
systems, including accounting software. The search for software for
one of their trucking clients led them to Axon. Nexcor founder,
Danny Tuttle, spoke to us about their Axon Experience.
Danny, how did you begin working with Axon
trucking software?
“Most of my clients come to me asking what program they should
use to automate their company. We analyze their current systems to
determine their deficiencies. We evaluated and compared a number of
programs that solved those deficiencies and created a top five list,
and Axon surfaced on the top of that list.
“One thing that was super important was real-time
data. There were some good programs, but Axon beat them out because
of its real-time capabilities.
“And the fact is that Axon just outperforms the
other ones, and when we became aware of that, it was kind of an ‘aha
moment’ that pushed us over the edge.”
What were some of the major problems that your
client was facing at the time?
“With every business, cash flow is always a
problem, and most trucking businesses don’t manage their cash flow on a
day-to-day basis.
“The client didn’t have a system that would track
cash flow. They were using an EDI system that was capturing data in
two locations, and the data wasn’t compiled, so there was no way to
pull an AR report. That was problem number one.
“It was just a kind of a compilation of problems,
really – a lack of automation – including everything from Dispatch
to Accounts Receivable to Accounts Payable to tracking Driver
Settlements, all the way through. Nothing was cohesive in their
system, and most of it was manual.
“Axon really streamlined their Accounts
Receivable activity and gave them reporting that could be
reconciled, which was an important step. That gave them the reports
and the ability to actually see what loads were being paid, what
loads were being shorted, that kind of thing. So that really helped
on that end.
“The system was an enormous change for this
client. It actually captured all the data for the first time and in
one location in a digital format. Before, they had to actually touch
everything by hand after the billing was sent out via the EDI
module, so with Axon it brought everything together.
“Now you can actually look at that load
generation and see how and where it was dispatched, and you can
track that all the way through the business cycle.”
This was a big change for your client.
“It was challenging because it was such a big step for this
client, so I was surprised at how easy it was for the dispatch
people to use. They literally picked it up within weeks and were
inputting meaningful data, and so I was real impressed with that.
“The program’s very organized, and it caused
quite a bit of internal change within the company, which I think has
been very positive for the company. It’s been challenging but
positive.
“When comparing Axon to any other program,
especially programs like QuickBooks® and so on, it’s just as easy to
use. Especially the accounting functions; it’s very easy to use.
“And one of Axon’s best strengths is how you can
manage Order activity. It does it very well.
“As we got it implemented, we discovered that
even with all the detail that needed to be captured because of the
short duration of the load and having multiple drops per load, Axon
was able to handle all of that very easily.
“I think that came as a pleasant surprise to all
of us, because when you go into a project you’re never really sure
how the software is going to capture all of the information, and in
this case it did it very, very well.”
Would you recommend Axon for other
transportation clients?
“Absolutely. In fact, I would like to walk into many
transportation companies and recommend it. It’s hands down one of
the best programs that we’ve found.”
What would you say to a manager who’s
undecided about investing in Axon or in XYZ programs that might be
half the cost?
“That’s an easy question to answer. In my business I create
performance analytics for businesses. Axon gives the manager an
opportunity to export data into Excel or any other software tools,
to create your own reports.
“The best part about it is that the data’s
real-time, so you can create whatever analytics you need to run your
business on a day-to-day basis, and I don’t think any other program
does it as well.
“So if a person’s trying to make money,
especially grow a business, I think Axon’s really more of a tool
than it is an expense. And even if it was triple the cost, whether
they have 30 trucks or even as few as five trucks, I think it pays
for itself within a matter of months.
“You know, I could just go through the program
and show you each feature and what it does and how it could impact
the bottom line. I really spent a lot of time and learned the
program because I was interested to see if it would actually do
everything that they told me it could do, and it does that and more.
“It’s very, very, very good software. I sound
like an Axon salesman, but I’m not.”
Can you give us some examples of how Axon
affected the company’s bottom line?
“Where the software can really help is with
tracking expenses
for the trucks. We were able to look at reports on how much fuel was
used per truck and the cost per mile, revenue per driver, revenue
per truck. I think at that level it really helped create
efficiencies and also find break-even points. And that allowed them
to look at the different types of work they do and at the cost per
mile for that work.
“By doing that, for the first time they could
establish a break-even point, which allowed for different sales
strategies. That was probably the biggest thing that we really
accomplished with the program in a short amount of time, and that’s
a powerful, powerful tool and obviously means increased revenue.
“The detail’s there where it was never there
before. Prior to Axon, there wasn’t any way to drill down into the
detail, and Axon provided that. Often you have to go back into those
records and pull them to prove what happened on the job site, and
Axon really gave them a digital record of what transpired per load.
“There might be six or eight drops per truckload
and that might happen five times a week per truck, so you can kind
of imagine the complexity with that. It is a complex thing to try to
capture all that activity, and Axon does that.”
How did you find Axon’s training and support?
“Axon’s support and training is stellar. They do it better than
any other company I’ve ever worked with, and I’m not being
demonstrative with that; they really do it well. They are just
amazing to work with. The support is very, very good. I particularly
like the way they do their training via the web and by phone and
then capture that on a video for the client.
“And then they have ongoing support. That
actually was one of the ‘aha’ moments. When I first heard that, I
didn’t think there’d be another software company that would actually
meet that standard, and sure enough nobody did.
“All the other companies wanted to charge by the
hour or limit the hours, and at Axon they believe so much in their
software that they provide unlimited support and updates for a lump
sum monthly fee. There were no additional costs whatsoever, and Axon
followed through with that to the T. I can’t say enough about the
support. It’s amazing.
“The behind-the-scenes support that Axon provides
was another ‘aha’ moment for us. They do snapshots of your data at
noon and six and recommend the backup schedules the company should
implement, and I really appreciated that.
“The implementation, installing the program,
getting them up and running on a new platform, and getting the
database live, and so on – Axon did a great job with that. And then
the assurance that the data is always clean at the midnight check,
all the checks and balances they have. I really don’t think most
people have any idea how important that is and how valuable that
is.”
Changing accounting systems is scary.
“Yes, it was a scary proposition. This particular company didn’t
want to give up some of their old systems, and when a company
implements new software, they need to let everything go.
“They just need to draw a line in the sand and
say, ‘We’re not going to look back. We’re going to move forward.
We’ve made this decision, and we’re going to make this work, no
matter what.’ This particular client kept hold of some of their
systems which slowed down implementing Axon considerably, so I can
speak from that experience.
If a person has any kind of computer experience
at all, I don’t think it’s that difficult. I think, with Axon,
within two months you’ll have good results, within six months you’ll
be extremely happy, and within a year you’ll wonder how you ever
lived without it.”
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