Kacey Fine Furniture uses camera phones for delivery, sales

The Valley Advocate has an interesting article about how lots of small ideas can help companies, and leads with how the president of a furniture company — and her employees — have come up with lots of ideas about using camera phones.

“Leslie Fishbein, president of Kacey Fine Furniture, was idly watching a T-Mobile commercial when inspiration struck.  What if we replace our drivers' cell phones with camera phones, she wondered,” the article leads.

“That way, she figured, delivery personnel at the Denver retailer could take photographs at their destinations to show that they had not damaged a customer's walls or floors — or, if they did, document the problem instantly.  Not especially revolutionary or groundbreaking, Fishbein knew, but clearly a step forward,” the Valley Advocate reports.

Employees’ ideas

Shortly after the company gave out camera phones, its 205 employees began suggesting how they could be used for the business.  The article says:

“Indeed, documenting delivery damage is now only one of the phones' many uses.  Faced with a tight stairwell or narrow hallways, delivery crews now show the bottleneck to Kacey's director of transportation, who can often advise them over the phone instead of rushing to the scene.

“Loading dock workers document merchandise damaged in shipment and instantly e-mail the photos to the manufacturer, speeding up both claims and replacement.

“And upon delivery, after positioning, say, a sofa, a worker can take pictures of the entire living room — capturing, perhaps, the lack of end tables and lamps.  Guess what the salesperson mentions in his follow-up call?”

Lack of business use marketing

I’ve taken the wireless industry to task (not that it has done much good!) for its pathetic lack of publicity about the value of camera phones for business applications. 

I believe one of the reasons corporations as well as politicians have been so negative about camera phones is the lack of positive marketing about their value for businesses.

For example, I’ve suggested to cellular operators and handset vendors that they create a specific Web section that highlights the business applications and implications of camera phones.  So far, though, no one has taken me up on it.

As a wireless data consultant, my business is to help companies create new and enhance existing wireless data businesses.  Promoting the value of camera phones in the enterprise seems like a smart way to enhance a business.