The key to visiting more cleaning locations is organizing your service schedule. Proper time management makes it much easier for HVAC specialists to serve multiple customers in one day. This not only benefits the customer by providing them with quick service but also benefits the business by increasing profits. Good time management means reliability, which can also aid in customer retention.
To organize your service schedule, one thing you can do is use home service software that includes scheduling and dispatch programs. Home service software can organize your business from the top down, all the way from quoting software to payment and invoice technology. For scheduling and dispatching, home service software can easily organize a service schedule for large and small teams alike.
How Scheduling and Dispatching With Software Works
Scheduling and dispatching with software is a much better method for managing employee time than the paper-based scheduling of the past. Not only does scheduling and dispatching with software technology reduce paper waste, but it also streamlines the process to improve the overall workflow of the company.
The best scheduling and dispatching software makes it easy to organize service schedules with drag and drop methods. All dispatch employees will need to do is drag and drop new work orders into preferred time slots, which simplifies scheduling for admins and HVAC teams. Other specific ways scheduling and dispatching software works include:
Dispatch On the Go
The most effective scheduling and dispatching software can be used on the go. For dispatch employees, dropping work orders onto calendars for available employees will automatically create a dispatch order associated with a specific work site. This dispatch order will include the customer information and the work order, all of which can be accessed on an HVAC tech's mobile device.
By including dispatch on the go, this feature can make it much easier to schedule emergency jobs. Furthermore, HVAC technicians can save time by accessing work orders on a mobile device rather than returning to the company for new work orders.
GPS for Emergency Jobs
Scheduling and dispatching software also includes GPS that can be used for emergency jobs. The built-in GPS technology will track the current location of HVAC technicians, which makes it easier to reroute technicians to cleaning locations based on the urgency of the work order. This is another way to save time because the closest available technicians will work on the jobs that are nearest to them. This can also cut on time and fuel costs.
Give Techs Small Teams
Finally, instead of dispatch employees managing the service schedules for the entire company, home service software allows your dispatch team to separate employees into small tech teams. Having smaller teams that are categorized by specialty or service location can make it easier to keep schedules updated and assign work orders to HVAC techs based on location.
What About Job Management Software?
In addition to the at-a-glance ease of scheduling and dispatching software, your company may also want to consider job management software. Job management software is a crucial element of home service software that is used to manage the overall workflow of the business.
For example, job management tools can create new work orders, track jobs, schedule employees, record billable hours, send invoices, and more. The best job management software can also include quoting technology that allows your business to be competitive.
Streamline Work Orders
When it comes to time management, streamlining work orders with dispatching and scheduling software is a core element. However, there are other ways you can streamline work orders with job management software. In particular, quotes that are accepted from customers can turn into work orders that can be assigned to nearby HVAC technicians.
Once the work order is assigned to a tech, it's only a matter of time until the duct cleaning service is complete. When the work is done, the HVAC tech will be able to use a mobile device to turn the work order into an invoice that is sent directly to the customer. This will prevent duplicate data entry, which saves time in the long run. HVAC technicians can also include materials, pictures, and other attachments on the invoice.
Automatic Timesheet Fills
Job management software can also simplify timesheets. For example, job management software often includes features such as automatic timesheet fills, which works by using GPS-enabled tracking on employees to check in and out of work with mobile devices. The automatic timesheet fill ensures that employees are paid for all billable hours, even if those hours go overtime.
Automatic timesheet fills can also be relevant for simplifying the service schedule. For example, because automated timesheet fills will track when a work order starts and ends, employees can take on additional work orders when other jobs are completed. Automatic timesheet fills are also more convenient for employees overall, including employees who oversee payroll.
Email Invoices to Customers
Job management software can email invoices directly to customers, which cuts down on billing time and helps your business profit. HVAC technicians or other employees can email invoices with payment links directly to customers as soon as jobs are completed. The ability to email invoices with built-in payment links simplifies the final steps of a work order and ensures your business is paid quickly for completed jobs.
If you want your HVAC technicians to visit more customer locations for HVAC duct cleaning, then it may be time to use home service software to organize service schedules. Home service software can include features such as scheduling and dispatching programs, which simplifies job assignments and work orders. Learn how to expand your client base when you contact ServiceBox today.