What Your Competitors Are Getting Out of Field Service Dispatch Software

Field service is a dog-eat-dog world, and you have to have thick skin to keep up. Just kidding! But you should ensure your strategies and processes are fresh. After all, your competitors are surging ahead with a secret weapon: software to lighten the load.

It’s easy to get caught up in the day-to-day chaos of field service, whether you’re determining how to help customers, sending out technicians, or paying employees for each job. Meanwhile, your competitors are gaining operational efficiencies, providing next-level customer service, and deploying automated processes. Think you can keep up with—and outperform—the Joneses?

Learn what your competitors gain by using field service dispatch software and how it can help your operation.

See the difference field service management software could make for your organization.

Operational Efficiencies

“Work smarter, not harder.” With the right solutions in place, you can streamline your most cumbersome processes and activities, whether that’s tracking time or staying on top of your technicians.

Time Tracking and Payroll

There’s a better way to manage time tracking when your workers are all over the place, keep nontraditional hours, and have varying employment statuses. Field service dispatch software expedites and ensures accuracy for every worker on your team, whether they are:

• In-house
• Contract
• Freelance
• Remote

GPS Tracking

Your competition isn’t playing phone tag or pulling their hair out trying to keep up with technicians. Instead, they are using GPS fleet tracking to stay ahead. Field service dispatch software with GPS tracking not only takes the guesswork out of communicating with technicians, but also helps you:

• Find the right technician for the job.
• Monitor and improve driver behaviors.
• Save on fuel by balancing who is closest with the best routes.

Digital Forward

The real elephant in the room in field service is just how tedious and disorganized everything can get—and fast. Paper invoices. Paper checks. Paper records. So. Much. Paper!

Field service dispatch software reduces—and can even eliminate—these mountains of paper by storing everything in the cloud. Job records, invoices, remittances, and more can be located in one place. Imagine seeing clear a clear desk or closing your filing cabinet for the first time in years.

Next-Level Customer Service

As Aerosmith put it, “Same old song and dance.” In field service, that means customers call and can’t reach anyone or wait on hold listening to elevator music (and not fun jams like Aerosmith, either). Your competitors know they would lose customers if they did business this way, so why would you keep doing it? With field service dispatch software, your company can enhance the customer service experience with expanded communication options.

ServiceCall.ai

Service Fusion’s ServiceCall.ai service lets you register contact numbers as call-or-text options, so customers can approach you their own way and on their schedule. Plus, Ring-A-Tech makes it simple to transfer calls to their assigned technician.

• Level up: Software helps you keep better records and improve your service by logging customer preferences, bills, job history, and notes.

Automated Processes

Trying to perfectly align every little puzzle piece to help both your team and your customers is a pain in the tuchus. Doing it all on the phone or on paper is even worse. Field dispatch software automates jobs from start to finish.

Estimates and Dispatching

Does this sound familiar? “Hmm … let me consult my price guide and talk to my technician about his schedule and I’ll get back to you.” Your competitors aren’t spending hours, days, or weeks figuring out how to help a customer (who gets impatient and moves on).

Instead, they rely on field dispatch software to get the ball rolling. Although they may have to do a little legwork, the right software creates estimates based on project needs and quickly converts them to jobs.

• Drag-and-drop scheduling: Use a calendar view to see technician availability and quickly drop jobs into the schedule!

Invoicing and Bill Pay

No more fumbling around Quickbooks trying to figure out who owes what and when. Your competition has already improved this process, pulling Quickbooks data into field service dispatch software to generate and send invoices digitally. As part of this, customers also get:

• A faster alternative to checks and snail mail
• A payment portal that accepts credit, debit, and automatic clearing house (ACH) payments
• FusionPay simplifies operations and accelerates cashflow, while delivering a convenient payment experience for customers

Bonus! Progressive billing features allow you to bill customers incrementally as part of payment plans, accommodating customers who need a bit of flexibility.

RELATED ARTICLE: Can Dispatch Software Replace a Service Dispatcher?

How Field Service Dispatch Software Makes Life Easier

With such a high degree of newfound freedom and flexibility, could it get any better than this? One thing is for sure: Field service dispatch software takes a load off your shoulders. Excuse us while we sing a little ditty:

Livin’ La Vida Remote-a

It’s almost like remote work has become the new American Dream. And with technology at your fingertips, it makes sense. Could it be within reach?

Your spouse runs conference calls in the dining room, and the kids took classes from their bedrooms for a year or more. Why can’t you work remotely too? Your competitors know it’s possible to work from anywhere. Everything you need is inside your field service dispatch software.

• Log in to one-stop field service dispatch software.
• Step away from the desk and work on the go inside an app.

Make Time for the Little Things

You know how you have to go grocery shopping at night because you put in a long day? Or how you eat too much takeout because you miss dinner at home or don’t have the energy to cook at the end of the day? Your competitors got out of this tired routine. You can experience a work-life balance too!

Field service dispatch software and its on-demand access mean you can pick up where you left off—on your terms. So toss in a load of laundry, get the kids ready for school in the morning, enjoy dinner with the family, and do whatever else that makes you who you are.

 

Activate Cruise Control with Field Service Dispatch Software

There’s a right way and an old way to approach field service. If you’re still clinging to the days of yore, you could be missing out on new operational efficiencies, improved customer service, and automation opportunities. Up-level your field service with field service dispatch software. Check out our infographic: ROI FSM Brings to Your Organization and get in touch to chart a new course.