How Plumbing Business Software Works
Richard Kirby succinctly names the three biggest challenges for a small business: people, finances, and time. A good business software solution tracks the performance of each plumber while helping to address their shortcomings. Second, financial reporting, billing and payroll features are central to any business operation. Last (but certainly not least) is finding the time to administer the business, delegate responsibility and hold yourself and others accountable.
Plumbers don’t miss their appointments and customer service is first class when an all-in-one plumbing business software runs on your desktop or cloud service. With the Thoughtful Systems Plumbing Business Software desktop or cloud service, managers can set automatic reminders for employees to purchase parts for certain customers or remind them of appointments. Task are done on time and clients are billed properly to keep clients happy – the main focus of your business is at the core of your business’s workflow with good plumbing business software.
Five Key Features of Thoughtful Systems Plumbing Business Software:
- Job Estimation
- Scheduling Management (Online For Customers)
- Dispatch & Mapping
- Equipment Inventory
- Accounting and Billing
Operations, management and customer service are central to how the plumbing business works. Cloud solutions and online customer portals provide the ability for managers and employees to interact while customers appreciate the ability to schedule appointments and communicate via the Internet. An informed and empowered customer is a happy customer, after all.
Go Paperless or Not with Plumbing Business Software
Plumbing business software can help you reduce costs by helping your business transition to a paperless environment – while keeping traditional clients unchanged with printed paper statements and invoicing. The bigger advantage with paperless solutions is that your employees can take notes on clients, report on projects complete and adjust inventory using the Thoughtful Systems Cloud Solution – all while on the road or at the job site.
Yes, that mountain of paperwork might be a thing of the past someday down the road. But some clients prefer mailed statements and paper printouts. Thoughtful Systems provides for both.
How NOT to manage a client’s phone call:
- The person answering the phone asks for the name of the caller.
- The employee asks the client to hold while he looks for the client’s file. After two minutes, he asks the client to call back because he can’t locate the file.
- As soon as the employee finds the file, he calls back and verifies personal information to make sure that the details are up to date. If not, then a few more minutes updating the information is required.
- The employee will spend a ten minutes trying to read and understand the notes from the plumber who last did the job – if these notes are available at all. This is especially true if the client asks questions, like who the last plumber who went to his house was and what jobs were done. In most cases, the file won’t have these details.
- After 1/2 hour and countless callbacks, the appointment is finally set. Unfortunately, this doesn’t guarantee that the plumber will show up on time because the file can easily be misplaced.
Plumbing business software can help with time management because information is integrated and accessible to employees on the road or in multiple office locations. Real-time updates equate to good customer service. When a client asks something related to past jobs, employees know the answer without having to look for it. An appointment can be booked in just a couple of minutes. Best of all, your plumber won’t miss the set appointment because reminders are set to alert the plumber – on the road, in the office or where ever the mobile device is located.
Gain More Profit
A plumbing business software is an investment. Use it correctly and it will pay for itself several times over. There are also the man hours that you’ll save. This means there will be less wastage on company hours and materials.
Best of all, using this software will lead to satisfied clients. Customers will appreciate how easy it is to book an appointment, how easy it is to receive and pay invoices, and your employees will be more efficient and happy because transparency and communication is easy.