Did you know that by 2022, the global field service market is expected to grow to $4.45 billion? That’s nearly $3 billion in expected growing since 2016, when the market was worth $1.78 billion. And inside the market, you have plenty of opportunistic field service organizations who are looking to get a piece of that growing pie, however, just over half of field service businesses are still doing things manually in their day to day lives.
Most companies who provide field services are still using paperwork and spreadsheets as a part of their process. If you don’t have a huge company, justifying a field service software can be difficult. Most companies feel this way at first. However, they see significant improvements when they start using a field service software.
Is it time to upgrade your paper and spreadsheets to an efficient field service platform/software? How will you know? It’s probably time for consideration if you’re experiencing any of the following:
- Scheduling is too difficult
How long does it take you to schedule a new job? Visibility is one of the biggest issues for field service companies. If you don’t know where your techs are or what they’re working on, it might be time to upgrade. Can your dispatchers easily assign new work to techs with the right skills and the closest area? If your dispatchers and field techs have to trade multiple phone calls to get things scheduled or find their assigned jobs, that is time spent not on the phone with your customers.
2. Failing to Offer A Standard, Consistent Service to Customers
One thing that will have customers calling back is consistent service. They want to know that when they call you for the first time or tenth time, that the service you provide will be the best it can be on each visit. It’s hard to do that, however, if technicians don’t have the tools to be consistent and if information is being lost. When a customer requests a quote, or notes are added to an account on a piece of paper, someone must catch that information to process it.
One way to create consistency is to make sure everyone has the same access to the same information. Field service mobile apps allow technicians to access all the service history they would need, while quoting tools make it easy for them in the field to provide a quote, without having to jot down information and have it turned into a quote later.
And to keep consistency high, mobile apps come with advanced checklists that have required answers, making sure nothing on a service call is missed, or else the technician can’t close out the work order.
3. You See Your Technicians in the Office Too Often
This is a sure sign that productivity could be improved. If your technicians aren’t spending most of their time in the field, then field service management software may help you correct this problem.
For instance, instead of an engineer/technician coming to the office, you can use Repair CRM GPS tracking features to locate your employee and send him on his way to the next job. Mobile field service management software is designed to keep your mobile workers busy, productive and out of your office.
4. Poor Customer Satisfaction
Customer satisfaction can be an indicator of problems with scheduling. This is particularly true if customer satisfaction is dropping at the same time your company is growing. If customers are complaining about the following issues, it may be time to switch to field service software:
– Late arrivals
– Incomplete repairs
– Late or no response to emergency calls
Many of these issues are the result of poor scheduling and job management. Poor scheduling means that technicians show up late to jobs, are rushed on the job site and are left with too much idle time between jobs. Electronic scheduling and GPS tracking help fix these issues. In addition, many companies use the program to send alerts about the job to the customer. Customers who know when their technician will arrive are happier.
5. Repairs Take Multiple Visits
It’s inevitable for some repairs to require multiple visits. When two or three visits for a simple repair becomes the norm, it’s time to consider using software to simplify repairs.
There are several potential causes for this problem. Do your technicians need additional information about customer history to complete the job? Without electronic access, techs may need to go to the office to get this information. This can slow down repairs significantly.
Do technicians require multiple visits because they don’t have the parts needed to make a repair? Trouble locating parts is often the result of poor record keeping. If your technicians can access an inventory of parts and their location in the field, they’ll be able to complete jobs faster. If your technicians need to reschedule jobs because they don’t have the right diagnostic equipment, it’s time to consider field service software.
Repair CRM helps field service management companies bring productivity to and increase efficiency for their engineers and back office. See how Repair CRM can help you expand your company when you explore your Free 30-Day Trial.
