Arpin America uses MoveHQ’s electronic inventory and mobile survey app to elevate its brand

What started as a mandate from their van line became business critical when this family-owned moving company discovered how much time MoveHQ tools saved their business.

Ryan Silvestri grew up in the moving industry. His grandfather was in the business for almost 50 years, and his father, Mario Silvestri, founded Arpin America in 2000. They now have three locations Dallas/Fort Worth, Houston, and the New York Tristate area, where they offer everything from local to interstate, and even international moves.

As the Vice President, Ryan is responsible for integrating technology to improve business operations. "Movers have been slow to adopt," says Silvestri, "but what they have adopted so far has been very useful and made us quite a bit more efficient as a business."

From mandatory to essential

Ryan was first introduced to MoveHQ's electronic inventory app, HQ Driver when Arpin Van Lines made its usage mandatory for all agents. "I am so happy that HQ Driver was mandatory because it was amazing. The second we started using it, everything became easier – billing, claims, everything! I haven't had a single driver I put onto the electronic inventory that wanted to return to handwriting inventory."

Drivers can quickly select items, take timestamped photos, and add notes to their inventory. "It makes our corporate clients very happy to have clean docs and paperwork." He says, "There are no mistakes. Everything is legible. If you had seen some handwritten inventories, it might give you a heart attack."

Ryan Silvestri, Vice president of Arpin America

Hands-on training & ongoing support help set drivers up for success.

Implementing new technology can be challenging, so it's essential to set a good example and give your team a "what's in it for me?" to keep them engaged. Ryan trained all of the drivers, starting with small jobs. He visited the job sites and provided hands-on training.

"I can't think of a single driver that it took more than one job to want to use it. Then maybe a week or two of phone calls, and that was all she wrote."

Ryan and his team also rely on MoveHQ's dedicated support team. "I have their number memorized," he says. "They help me whenever I need it. Calvin and Emily break stuff down to my drivers. They make it easy."

Impress your customers with instant quotes

Arpin America relies on MoveHQ's suite of integrated mobile apps to stay organized and reduce duplicate work throughout the moving process. His sales team uses the HQ CRM mobile survey app to elevate their brand. "It's a clean, professional look. It puts you in the customer's mind as being organized and having authority."

MoveHQ constantly updates tariffs to calculate pricing correctly. You can also customize your rate calculator to fit your business's needs. "I can't imagine doing all that math every day," Ryan explains. "Having that cube sheet, hitting a button, and having a professionally-finished proposal is a big deal. Plus, you can send it immediately. It creates a lot of good efficiencies."

Time is money, but also, money is money

Going digital saves hours at every step of the move, from survey to delivery. "Just on the sales process, you're talking about saving no less than an hour's worth of work for every survey you do. On the driver's side? Forget it. You save several hours if you're on a 25,000 LB shipment," Ryan explains. With that extra time, the Arpin America team can focus on connecting with their customers and providing excellent service. Plus, his drivers are getting those valuable hours back to spend with their families.

Arpin Ameria doesn't just save hours per job. They are saving hundreds of thousands of dollars a year on claims. "Just a week ago, a shipper claimed that her washing machine was dented, but it was dented before we got there. Not only did we have conditions that specifically matched the exact location of the damage, but he also has a picture of it, and it's timestamped for pack day." Ryan continues, "It's a huge deal. A Samsung dryer is $900. The savings there are almost not calculable."

Conclusion

"Go for it. It's a differentiator," Ryan explains when asked for his advice for moving companies. "The format is so clean on the survey and quote, and tariffs are always updated immediately from your van line, so there's no lag time. Same with the inventory; it's so clean and professional. To me, that's the most important thing. It creates so many different efficiencies between all the facets of your business. From sales to marketing to your operations and dispatch, it cleans things up for you visually and operationally."

Learn more about the industry's most popular electronic inventory app, Driver.