Momentum Episode 37:
How Automation Saved a Business $30,000 a Year

What happens when a seasoned entrepreneur replaces paperwork with powerful automation? We'll find out as we sit down with Joe Craparotta, who's turned digital forms into a $30,000 a year savings, a scalable QM platform, and a thriving passive income stream, all powered by Jotform Enterprise.

Welcome to Momentum, a podcast by Jotform, where we talk about the technology, productivity tips, insights, and best practices that help us move forward in business and in life. Let's get started.

Hi Joe. So nice to meet you and so nice to have you on the show. I'm so excited to hear your story.

Yeah, I'm pleased to be here. It's great to be able to share my story with you and other fellow Jotform people and looking forward to our conversation.

Thank you so much for being on. I can't thank you enough for coming on to share all of the insights that you've gleaned over what, 17 years using Jotform. That is insane, almost since the very beginning.

That's pretty crazy. Yeah, I found it somehow and I kind of jumped onto it. I saw that it was very intelligent and had good flow to it. I was able to solve some problems real quickly and didn't need to go the traditional route of describing my product to a developer.

I was able to demonstrate it to whoever I wanted to give the form to, and they could test it out, give feedback, and I could change it and start the flows. It was a great product to find.

It's crazy that we've kind of grown up together over the years. Let me just dive straight into your journey and the businesses that you've run over the years.

At the time, I was in the e-commerce space and becoming a pioneer. There weren't any applications that could launch products to the marketplace, so I built my own.

With that process, you needed to hit the front end of the marketplace to get the final transaction. We were scraping the front end of websites like eBay and half.com to form a system that aggregated inventory, images, and assets, published them, and created pick tickets for fulfillment and shipping.

It was a pretty intricate process, very labor intensive and expensive. If you weren't leading the pack, you got left behind a little bit.

At some point, you needed to qualify to talk to larger companies like PayPal and eBay. They started to get smarter and said if you want to talk to us, you need to do it on our backend servers and adhere to some standards.

I learned a lot of processes because you needed to learn how to talk to different systems. It gave me a background that helped me engineer many solutions I've done today.

Were you able to connect Jotform to that API and set it all up through Jotform?

No, the easiest things I did with Jotform were starting with operations that did distribution but were also walk-in retail shops. Our client had its own point of sales system.

When I started opening these operations, I needed to give clear instructions to managers on how to reconcile the drawer. There was a lot of cash going through, and the point of sale system didn't have a reconciliation process.

I needed to build my own reconciliation process. Using Jotform's widgets and components, I was able to do calculations and mitigate some of the problems we were having, like helping cashiers correctly balance their drawers at the end of the day.

Before implementing Jotform, it probably took an hour of the manager's time to complete these reports because we were just putting it on paper, faxing, emailing, and scanning. Nothing flowed well.

A form is just a form, but you can also integrate work instructions into it. We put a checkbox asking if the user would like to see the work instructions. New users could open that box and see how to do each field.

That was very useful. We kept building on it and also implemented what most businesses call a quality management system (QM). In a QM system, you start with SOPs, work instructions, and include forms.

When you build all that, your staff has a clear picture of how to do things. If someone asks how to do something, you can show them how to find it themselves and educate themselves further on other tasks.

Jotform fills that need for businesses. The biggest thing I built with Jotform was during the crisis from 2020 through 2022 when many businesses couldn't have people in stores or didn't want the risk of customers inside.

The operation I ran was a logistics business with food products, so we were able to stay open. I used Jotform as the front end to create a curbside application where clients could say, "Hey, I have these 10 orders to pick up," and we used Jotform to capture that information.

I connected many sources through APIs, mostly using Zapier to trigger events and put together an MVP product. Many people think Jotform is just forms, but you have a lot of backend integrations and partnerships, like eBay, that connect safely.

The process started with intake of the customer order, then putting that into an online database called Airtable. I used Zapier to trigger events like SMS messaging to notify customers when their order was received, processed, and available for pickup.

My staff could use their phones to log order numbers, which would trigger a printer to print the order the customer was waiting for. We also recorded part of the license plate to identify who would receive the order.

Jotform was key, and that's why I moved to an enterprise server in 2019 because I began doing so many transactions. I was probably on your central server before, and the enterprise version allowed as much traffic as needed.

We put up 14 sites, probably doing 1,500 to 1,500 orders a day, which really saved the process. Since then, the client built out a product called Advanced Wool Call, engineered to fit inside their operation in their own secure environment with their customer data.

That's an amazing story. Many companies were thrust into that same position where all those old paper forms had to go online out of necessity because of COVID and everything that happened.

When moving quickly, I noticed you had GDPR compliance, which governs data. Our client asked where data was stored and if it was compliant. Jotform passed all tests, and I even reached out to your CEO, who explained how data is stored.

With that information, I was able to continue the process, and the client was comfortable moving forward. Airtable had the needed standards, so it all fit together.

Had I picked other providers without standards or redundant systems, it wouldn't have worked. I know Jotform has redundant servers worldwide, so the failure rate is very low. That's why I've stayed with it so long.

You were there right after Jotform Enterprise started, migrating the standard instance to enterprise. Tolga sold me the system, and the migration was smooth without needing to recreate processes.

You start simple and move up in tiers. When ready for enterprise, you jump over. It's a good process for startups, and tiered pricing helps afford it while growing.

How did jumping to Jotform and digital forms improve your workflow?

Before, we were scanning and faxing without putting data into a database. With forms, data lands in a database, allowing calculations. It wasn't static paper that you just print and file.

In the cash operation, several drops happened during the day. When mistakes occurred, you could zero in on the time of day the mistake happened. Collecting data lets you investigate clearly.

Without data in a database to query, you couldn't get a clear picture and spent hours looking through static papers, which ate up time. I was on the road a lot, but I could access data from anywhere.

You mentioned saving a significant amount of money. Can you break down how implementing automations saved so much?

The cash management part saved about $30,000 a year that we didn't have to chase after. Recently, I've been helping Michigan growers stay compliant by creating QR codes and a visual workboard for operations.

Every task in the operation can be on a visual workboard. Scanning the code gives work instructions and lets them input needed data. The data then goes into a bigger software system, but Jotform serves as the workflow.

Subject matter experts can work from emails or spreadsheets where data lands, review inputs for accuracy, and put it into the system correctly. This growing industry benefits greatly from this.

Many people still use paper forms, which aren't conducive to soil, heat, and humidity. Moving companies to digital helped significantly. One client reduced operational costs by 20%, freed up time, and optimized labor hours.

Without clear data capture, growers often over-schedule people, which are the most expensive part of the process. Jotform also helps with reviews and education.

Having a system in place creates best practices. You can review forms quarterly to ensure they capture needed information and reach the right experts. Data can be put into business intelligence tools for clear reporting.

Moving from paper and manual processes to databases and spreadsheets reduces costs and organizes your work, like organizing your desk or closet. Jotform forms are part of that system.

Within a form, you can put guardrails, like accepting only values within a certain range, mitigating data entry errors. You can add many conditions to make forms brilliant when published and used.

You're working on a new venture called Point A. Can you describe what Point A is and what motivated you to start it?

Point A helps businesses stay compliant and provides a roadmap for a full quality management picture. It can be used as a process flow and for reviewing data entry before it goes into the main system.

It gives businesses a complete structure to work from. Many small or medium businesses don't document their processes well, which is problematic if someone leaves.

Point A asks how you're doing things today, if you're getting information the right way, if you need to sign documents, and how you intake data. We can work as consultants and have built a good process already.

We can deliver a clone form we've produced that clients can modify if requested. This tailors the system to their operation rather than forcing them to wait for developers to make changes.

You can tweak the system on the fly and cater it to individual growers. Do you use it through an app or just scanning QR codes that go to forms?

I delivered some apps divided by segments like cultivation and safety apps. Clients can download them, but most like the visualization and team huddles showing weekly progress.

Magnetic tags on a visual workboard can be moved as tasks change. Logging in and updating through an app can be difficult, so this system evolved driven by customer needs.

Clients prefer having the board from management and scanning codes to access tasks. Feedback is that it's simple, works, divides workflow, and frees up time to focus on important things.

You create systems in Jotform Enterprise, build forms for specific use cases, create QR codes, and clients scan those to access everything through tables.

In Enterprise, you have workspaces. New clients get their own workspace with filtered views. I generate QR codes that link directly to forms, which are simple and don't launch complicated apps.

You can connect forms to Google Sheets or Microsoft Office so every transaction lands in a spreadsheet, simplifying processes and helping compliance.

You can access logs in Google Sheets, Excel, or backups on Jotform systems, allowing re-query or download if needed. Having access to information all the time saves time and effort.

Paper forms are not great for growing operations covered in dirt, water, and humidity. Switching gears, you've been with Jotform for 17 years and joined the agency program. How did you discover it and decide to join?

After selling my equity in Cur Resource Group, I looked for new things to do and wanted to build processes for other businesses. I bought an enterprise version and saw the reseller program, so I joined to attract an audience.

My mission is to share what I've done with Jotform in greater detail, maybe on a website or podcast, to help people understand why they need to stay organized and how to build a quality management system.

A quality management system is important to describe how you do business, review it regularly, make incremental improvements, stay ahead of competition, and control costs and waste.

I probably know Jotform better than 90% of people working at the company after 17 years of use.

I've used your support, and they've been very helpful, injecting code into forms to supercharge them. If widgets don't meet my needs, developers send snippets of code that work and help a lot.

I plan to use support more often because response times have been incredible when needed.

What other features do you use within Jotform Enterprise? What widgets and integrations have been helpful?

The biggest thing was pushing data into a database, making it act like a real application. I also love the new presentation product, which will help store RFPs and pricing data to produce things quicker for prospects or customers.

Jotform is evolving like Excel, which has many features no one can master. You've built just enough useful products thoughtfully, likely influenced by your founder's roots.

It's a sticky product; once it gets in, you find many ways to use it. People start with one use and dive deeper.

Are you using any AI tools recently launched?

We're experimenting with AI tools, getting familiar and trying to build processes with them. We may use AI to market Point A and help clients market themselves quickly on platforms like Facebook and Instagram. SMS messaging is also built in.

How many growers are you working with now?

Just a couple right now, but many are interested. After a tour, they say it frees up their time. The badges on the visual workboard are another use case.

For example, security surveillance tape needs documentation. You put a magnetic badge on the IT room door as a spot to review video. The person scans it before entering, documents the review, and logs it.

You can place these badges around the organization near workstations or task locations so people can quickly access work instructions or input information and notify supervisors.

Every time I talk to a Jotform user, I hear new ways to use it. Using it to log security is one example. Others use it for visitor sign-in and sign-out, replacing paper copies that never get entered into systems.

You can organize visitor data, know who visited when, and even take pictures of interesting things like contractor work orders. This helps billing departments verify work and dates.

Logging inventory and equipment through forms is incredible. Being process-oriented and documenting everything lets you find and search information easily.

That's great advice for any company. I think that's a great place to end on. I can't thank you enough for coming on the show.

Do you have any parting words of wisdom for people in similar situations?

We're in a new AI era, and you have to be nimble and fast. Maybe your business window is only a couple of years of success, not 17 years. Your goal might be profit in the first year and exiting in four years, either by selling or scaling.

Keep scaling up, hitting best practices, and making incremental improvements over time to be successful.

Thank you so much for being on the show, Joe. I really appreciate it. Lots of insights, great information, and good advice for entrepreneurs in similar situations. If Jotform can help, great. It seems to have helped your processes over the years.

It was so cool to hear your journey and how Jotform has helped foster things along the way. Thank you again. I appreciate it.