GIVE US SOME BACKGROUND ABOUT YOU AND YOUR COMPANY.
My grandfather Joseph Silverman started DCI as we are more commonly known in 1990. We are an insurance agency catering exclusively to In-Home Child Care Providers, Commercial Child Care Centers, Montessori Schools, and other early childhood education enrichment programs and organizations. We specialize in providing Liability, Student Accident Medical, and other comprehensive insurance solutions to the child care industry. Previously my grandfather worked for a large marketing firm where his job brought him into contact with the child care industry and he grew to really admire the community and family spirit of the industry and decided he wanted to make it his passion to help the people that help those who care for our nation’s future every day.
I had been around the business since I was a boy, and my grandfather invited me to join him when I graduated from college in 2007. My Grandfather retired in 2015 and as we navigate the year 2020 our goal of educating and protecting child care providers and the children they care for hasn’t changed. Since what we do is so specialized finding invoice solutions that were user-friendly, cost-effective, and robust enough for our needs was extremely difficult. Invoice Ninja allows us to provide our customers with a very user-friendly and secure experience to pay their invoices without having to create an account or remember a password if they do not wish to. Invoice Ninja also gives us the flexibility to make changes on the fly and gives my employees more time to focus on the customer.
HOW HAS INVOICE NINJA HELPED YOU TO GROW?
As a company as a whole, we were fairly late to the web-based technology boom that sent most business transactions online. When we first started accepting online payments we used a web-based program that was cumbersome and not user friendly for us or our customers which caused our technology growth to be stunted. Using Invoice Ninja has helped our web-based presence significantly. Customers are making their payments quickly and confidently and allow us to service our clients much faster than ever before. Because our overall process is so much more user-friendly customers are sharing this with their colleagues and we are attracting more customers.
WHAT IS YOUR BUSINESS MODEL?
Our approach back in the 90s was very grassroots, word of mouth driven. While we were able to maintain this approach into the 2000s, we soon realized how important it was to have a credible web presence. Since launching the use of Invoice Ninja in 2018, it has highly illuminated the importance of having a quick, user-friendly experience for the end user supported by responsive knowledgeable customer service that evokes confidence in your product or service. Once you have attracted the users staying informed on your data is just as important. Being able to analyze your sales, and run reports on your products and services will allow you to keep up with your customers’ needs and allow you to bring them new products or services, and adjust prices at the appropriate times.
DO YOU HAVE ANY ADVICE FOR OTHER FREELANCERS AND ENTREPRENEURS?
We used to think that our obscure niche place in the market was a detriment because it made advertising more difficult, but we realized that there were so many areas we were benefiting from it. Identify what makes you unique and find ways to embrace that. Every industry is different, there is no one size fits all book, approach, or a resource that will allow you to plug ‘n play the success of your business. Try to expand your awareness beyond your specialty into other related areas. You never know when you might see a trend, resource, or opportunity that could give you an edge or trigger a new idea.
You can find us at www.dcins.com and we invite you to ask questions or comments!
