The Auer Steel team is leading the charge in meeting contractors where they are, adapting to the future of distribution, and squeezing every bit of efficiency from a busy counter team. After eight years on Prokeep and now diving deep into order automation, Auer Steel has transformed the way they quote, communicates, and convert orders. And the results speak for themselves.
From Scattered Channels to One Unified Inbox
Before fully leaning into Prokeep's platform, Auer Steel faced a challenge every distributor knows all too well: customers reaching out from everywhere. Phone calls, texts from personal cell phones, and emails all land in different places, with no consistent process for handling them.
With Prokeep's unified inbox, every inbound request… text, email, web chat, digital fax… now flows into one place. No more missed messages. No more siloed conversations. Just one system that gives the whole team visibility and the ability to jump in and help wherever needed.
Order Automation: Half the Clicks, Twice the Speed
One of the biggest wins Auer Steel measured after rolling out Prokeep's order automation was something simple but powerful: click reduction.
"We went through a lot of cases and tests and tried to truly measure every single thing you clicked on," Jeff said. "Just the amount of clicks to book a four-line order versus doing it in Prokeep was about half."
That efficiency compounds fast across a busy counter team. When a contractor texts in a parts request, or even sends a photo of a handwritten list, Prokeep's AI automatically reads the request, matches it against live ERP inventory, and surfaces suggested products for the rep to review and confirm. The human is still at the wheel, but the heavy lifting is done.
"Whether you're brand new or you've been there a while, you've got a tool available to you now that's going to try to help you along the way," Jeff said.
Extended Hours, Zero Extra Effort
One of the unexpected benefits Auer Steel discovered was the ability to serve customers well outside of normal business hours — without anyone staying late.
When a contractor sends in a quote request just before closing, Auer Steel's team can have a polished, accurate quote ready before they clock out. Prokeep automatically generates a landing page for each quote, so the contractor can review, approve, and submit their order that evening on their own time.
It's an e-commerce-like experience, built right into the texting and messaging workflow contractors already use.
Tech Support Gets a Boost Too
The benefits of Prokeep's order automation didn't stop at the sales counter. Auer Steel's tech support department — which spends its days troubleshooting with contractors in the field — found an unexpected advantage in the platform's image parsing capabilities.
"The image automation has actually been super helpful for them because now they're pulling models and serials straight off of plates from pictures," Jeff said. "In the HVAC space, you're staring at a 14-digit number trying to figure out if it's an S or a five."
Being able to snap a photo of a unit nameplate and have Prokeep instantly extract the relevant details has saved Auer Steel's tech support team significant time and guesswork.
Visibility That Empowers the Whole Team
For Jeff and his leadership team, Prokeep has also brought a new level of operational clarity. Open quotes, response times, order activity by rep — it's all visible in one place.
"If you're a manager or a supervisor and you just want to see activity, it's a great spot to see the quotes coming in and who's using it and what types of customers," Jeff noted.
That visibility also helps the team cover for each other. When a rep is out, no quote gets left to die on the vine — a teammate can see it, pick it up, and follow through for the customer without missing a beat.
Meeting Contractors Where They Are
At its core, Auer Steel's investment in Prokeep is driven by a simple philosophy: meet the contractor where they are, on the platform that makes the most sense for them.
"It'd be a lot easier if we could dictate how they did business with us," Jeff laughed. "But we just haven't figured that part out yet."
Instead, Auer Steel arms their team to show up however a contractor wants to engage — text, email, phone, or image — and respond with fast, accurate, professional quotes that make it easy to say yes.
"I've got a phone number and I've got a person. I know what company they are. I've crossed off half the issues right from the start. Now let's match up the items, correct a couple, and we're done — and moving on to the next thing."
Conclusion:
Providing quality service through efficient communication doesn’t need to be a tough challenge. With Prokeep’s centralization of text, email, web chat, and fax, your team will no longer be tethered to personal phones, or struggling to keep up.
A communication tool makes for a better workflow, allowing you to manage tasks effectively, communicate with ease, and create the work-life balance you deserve. For businesses like Carrier Enterprise, who value providing a strong customer experience, Prokeep makes all the difference.
Whether you’re a business leader or counter rep, empower your team to see the value in communication — so you can work smarter, provide industry-leading service, and create a stronger balance in your life.
