PinPoint Technology has weathered a pandemic that at first flattened its business. It has not only rebounded but increased its payroll from two people to 15 and is now preparing to embark on two new rounds of fundraising.
"As COVID hit, we were having to push pause and having a few investors say, 'Man, I don't know if it's the right thing to do.' Then we got started back up, and now we're hitting it on all cylinders," said PinPoint founding CEO Nick Began.
The company offers a cloud-based software service that enables contractors to communicate with their field service employees and customers via an app. It not only helps them manage and track appointments and the activities of their workers but also allows homeowners to track contractors. Using the app, homeowners get a photo of the contractor who will be coming to their house, their name, a short bio, and when they'll be arriving, Began said.
Began had just launched his company when the pandemic struck, causing him to furlough his only two employees and suspend operations as many contractors also ground to a halt. At the time, he only had a handful of clients using the system as a beta version for free — mostly countertop contractors that Began knew from his former company in Bedford Heights, Stoneworks.
Began used the downtime to talk to his testers and improve his product with features such as integration with more types of ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) software that potential clients already had, something his beta testers asked for, he said. Began said he also improved PinPoint by making it compatible with Google Calendar, something else he said users suggested.
Around the fourth quarter of 2020, things turned around — and markedly so, Began said.
Contractors were busy, but also more focused on service than ever, and many turned to PinPoint. Began has not only called back his two original employees — grateful that they were still willing and available, he said — but he's hired 13 more and is still looking for even more.
He's also past the beta version of the app now and selling the software service, which subscribers pay for with a monthly fee determined by how they use the system.
"We now have hundreds of clients that are on board or are being onboarded," Began said.
He's smiling now, but it was a scary experience, he said.
"Talk about a nervous time in my life. When that hit — you've got investor money, the product is supposed to be up and running, and you can't do anything with it. That was a tough time. That was probably my toughest time in business. … Now that I had other investors' money, I felt like I had to really make it work," Began said.
Began said he expanded beyond countertop contractors to flooring contractors and now is talking to retailers who could use PinPoint to better manage deliveries. Began said several big-box stores are currently evaluating his software for possible use.
Next, he's got to focus on further ramping up staff and establishing a permanent home.
"I'm hiring a senior marketing person right now. I'm also hiring a chief revenue officer, and we've made an offer and I think we have a done deal on someone coming," said Began.
The company also will invest in search engine optimization and possibly bringing on more software developers, he added.
As for the offices, Began is currently working out of offices in Beachwood — he had been working from Metisentry's offices in downtown Akron before the pandemic. (Metisentry founder Marling Engle and CEO Mike Fischer remain shareholders and board members of PinPoint, Began said.)
Began said he's now considering establishing the company in Bedford Heights in a 16,000-square-foot building that formerly housed Stoneworks.
He's also raising capital.
"I am finishing an additional $750,000 round and we're then going to a seed round of $1.5 million," Began said. "We've already spoken to JumpStart, North Coast (Ventures) and several other groups."
Began said he's gotten enough investor interest that he can be a bit choosy about whose money he takes, so he's focused on working with investors who can help him beyond writing a check, with business guidance, technical assistance or contacts to potential clients or other sources of support.
"I've told investors 'no' because they were not strategic enough and could not help us grow," Began said.
PinPoint seems to be attractive to investors because of its leadership and business model — and many local startup investors seek to work closely with their portfolio companies, just as Began hopes to do, said North Coast managing director Todd Federman.
"We have an investor network of more than 350 people in our group and we think we bring value far beyond the capital," Federman said. "It's music to our ears when someone like Nick sees the value in a network like ours."
Federman was careful to say that North Coast investors haven't yet decided to participate in PinPoint's upcoming fundraising rounds and have not invested in the company to date. But they're interested, and the opportunity looks promising, he said.
"It's early in the process of us getting to know them," Federman said. "But Nick comes at this from a place of knowledge, and it's a problem and solution he knows intimately — and that interests us as investors. … They've grown as a company to a point where it now makes sense and is a fit for us. … It wouldn't have made sense for us to come in two years ago."
Metisentry's Engle said he has been pleased with the progress he has seen in PinPoint as an investor.
"I think the PinPoint team has made great traction. Right now, they're ahead of forecast, and getting really positive signs from the customer base," Engle said via email. "The expectation consumers have for communication is higher than ever, and at the same time, service level seems low in many sectors, and businesses with people in the field need accurate feedback on service quality. PinPoint can help answer that call."
Gloss