Save the Date: No More Guessing Games with Service Scheduling Software

“My business has always followed X, Y, and Z processes. We get by pretty well this way, but could software help too?”

If this sounds like you, you’re not alone. Field service processes remained unchanged for so long that even though you’re familiar with service scheduling software, you question its value.

Still, you’re always striving to do what’s best for the business. We’ll show you why you can’t go without scheduling software and explore its key benefits.

Why do you need service scheduling software?

Businesses use service scheduling software to help them function efficiently. It can balance service requests with last-minute jobs and automate processes for scheduling, creating work orders, dispatching, and invoicing. Many companies rely on software to reduce the manual scheduling and dispatching processes that would otherwise slow them down.

What are the benefits of using scheduling software?

Field service management makes life easier in your day-to-day business. Streamlining activities lightens the load on the back office and field technicians alike, putting the focus on keeping customers happy. These are just a few major benefits:

Manage and Schedule Appointments

What do the coming days look like? Service scheduling software lets you see and sort through appointments easily. Get insights into who is assigned to which jobs, which jobs still need to be assigned, and work hours for each technician. The right scheduling tools help you manage demand and factor in both availability and skill level.

Route Requests

Last-minute change? Don’t sweat it when you can manage schedules and schedule changes in one place. Service scheduling software helps your business handle jobs on a dime to deliver exceptional service and still avoid overbooking technicians. When you need to pivot, your platform enables you to shift schedules based on multiple factors, including technician competencies, availability, and proximity.

Improve Performance and Customer Satisfaction

One of the biggest pains for customers is not knowing—or controlling—when a repair technician will arrive. But scheduling software helps to close service windows by scheduling based on what works best for customers.

On the customer-facing side, they can book appointments online. But beyond this, the technology brings all sides together with messaging and notification features to keep technicians, back-office personnel, and/or customers looped into job details and statuses, including arrival times. Plus, once all is said and done, you can also get intel on how to keep improving with reports on individual performance.

What are the important features of service scheduling software?

Think of estimates, job creation, scheduling, and dispatching as the essentials for your software solution. But really, the right platform can—and should—do so much more. These six features go above and beyond:

1. Referral Tracking

The software you choose needs referral tracking to unlock new ways to see how potential customers are reaching your business. Service scheduling software lets you link toll-free numbers to the platform to see where calls are coming from—whether it’s your website or digital ads. Just link each referral source to a unique line.

2. GPS Tracking

Speaking of tracking, it’s equally important to know what’s going on with drivers and field technicians. GPS tracking is a valuable feature to look for in a software solution because it can improve your operations. With it, you can track driver locations, note on-the-road behaviors, and determine who’s best for last-minute jobs.

3. Customer Records

If you’re already looking for ways to improve processes, you may already be thinking about your overflowing filing cabinets. So add records storage to your list of software must-haves. With it, you can keep digital job notes, photos, documentation, and invoices in one place. This also makes it easy to log client requests, preferences, and records for multiple contacts and service locations.

4. Customer Support

While it’s certainly still valuable for some, many customers want alternatives to calling support. Can your software candidates provide this? Look for service scheduling software that allows customers to start conversations online and continue via text message, answer common queries with a chatbot, or even accommodate live chat with support teams online.

5. Shared Portal

You get the most out of service scheduling software when it isn’t one-sided. Let it work for your business and customers with a shared portal. With it, customers and your team can make changes to jobs, from internal scheduling to allowing customers to book appointments and track progress.

6. Invoicing and Payment Capabilities

The fewer tools you have to juggle, the better. Software that integrates invoicing and payment under the same umbrella helps you stay more organized than you might if you had to log into several systems. Consider a platform that has built-in invoicing, along with reminders and online payment features for customers so you get paid on time.

Find the best field service scheduling software.

Tired of trying to guess how to integrate service scheduling software into your business? We don’t blame you! But with the basics in hand, you’re ready to move forward.

Take the steps to implement the technology and streamline your operations. Start by honing in on your business’s priorities and what software features could help the most, then get to work researching options to find a few that could fit the bill. Once you do, you can get in touch with providers to find the best-fit partner.

Service Fusion can help too. Our platform supports service scheduling, dispatching, billing, and more—and we set every business up for success with our personalized white-glove onboarding process. See how we approach field service differently than the competition—check out our comparison infographic for an inside view.