How IDEAL Helped Outdoor Energy LLC Streamline Operations and Gain Control

Based in Reedsburg, Wisconsin, Outdoor Energy LLC has been serving the power equipment needs of homeowners, farmers, and professionals since 2008. Known for their strong work ethic and honest service, the team at Outdoor Energy has built lasting relationships throughout the region by delivering top-tier products and support their customers can count on.

As the business expanded, Arlin Kraemer, owner of Outdoor Energy, recognized the need for a more unified way to manage day-to-day operations. Since switching to IDEAL, LLC Outdoor Energy has eliminated the need for multiple disconnected systems, improved inventory control, and gained reliable, responsive support.

We sat down with Arlin during a recent onsite visit to hear how IDEAL helped simplify their processes—and why it’s been a valuable partnership ever since.

What was going on in your business when you got IDEAL?

Arlin: Before we got on with IDEAL, we had inventory here, we had point of sale here, we had time management here, and to integrate all that, bring it all into one system was very advantageous for us. The inventory control alone pays the cost of the software system, and ongoing subscription costs are easily offset by the labor savings.

What’s your favorite feature of IDEAL?

Arlin: One thing I really do like is this dealer vote on this Parts Locator. That’s massive. Just the other day, we were able to keep a customer happy. After waiting almost a month, we discovered the part up in New York, and they shipped it to us. We had it in three days, had the customer happy, so that was big.

What was the first six months like integrating with IDEAL?

Arlin: We started out with the two-day training, brought everybody into the office, put up a big screen, sat down. That was very valuable. Once you learn the basic working components of it, everything is tied to something specifically. You can’t do anything in sales without tying it to something in accounting, and you start learning some of those things.

How have you found IDEAL’s customer support?

Arlin: One thing I did appreciate, and the reason that we stuck with it, was we could put in that help ticket, we could make that phone call, and somebody called back, or somebody responded.

I’ve dealt with other software systems where once they had your money, it seemed like the post-sale support was not nearly as aggressive as the pre-sale courtship. I appreciate the way you guys backed us up.

Do you have any advice for someone in the market for a DMS?

Arlin: Software systems aren’t cheap, just by nature, but you have the security of knowing that when you print out that sales tax return, it’s accurate, it’s not somebody’s math.

We were trying to make three different systems work together. It just took that headache away, and overall, it’s been an incredibly good journey for us, and I really appreciate the partnership we’ve had with IDEAL over the years.