For many regions, warm weather is just around the corner! And for many field service businesses, rising temperatures mean the return of the busy season. Preparing now for those approaching hectic months will help streamline your field service company before your team has a full load.
Let’s unpack a few tips you can jump on now to help prepare your field service company for a successful busy season.
Optimize Your Company’s Operations
The slower months before the start of the busy season are a great time to make sure your field service company is running efficiently. Use this time to improve your company’s workflow, operations and ultimately, the customer experience.
Evaluate Workflows
Think through last year’s busy season. Write down each step of day-to-day operations, from dispatching to invoicing.
Are there any common roadblocks that you or other employees faced?
For example, extra trips to the warehouse for inventory or consistently inaccurate timesheet entries could be common roadblocks. Once you have identified any recurring issues, work with your team to find possible process improvements.
Solving any common roadblocks now will save time for months to come.
Explore Software Features
If you have a field service management software, like FieldEdge, make sure to brush up on its latest features and functions. You never know what recently added functionality could enhance your operations!
Reach out to your customer success manager to see if any untapped features can help your business.
If you are a FieldEdge customer, check out FieldEdge Academy for the latest resources and tips. If your business doesn’t use service management software, now is a great time to research and demo solutions!
See how FieldEdge can revolutionize your business operations before the start of the busy season. Book your FREE personalized demo today!
Empower Employees
Busy seasons can be exhausting.
Before work picks up, make a plan to distribute the workload evenly across employees. Remind them to let their manager know if they become overwhelmed. In turn, this will help maintain employee job satisfaction, which is increasingly important during the current labor shortage.
If techs currently have some downtime, help them brush up their skills by researching relevant classes or resources.
Finally, explore creative ways to keep staff energized and motivated. An incentive program or rewards system can help
employees feel appreciated despite working long hours. Occasional gift cards, bonuses or an extra day off can go a long way to re-energize hard-working staff.
Enhance Marketing Efforts
Before the start of the busy season, evaluate your marketing strategy.
Ramp up marketing efforts to encourage customers to call you before routine issues become emergencies. And the following steps will help you reach new customers:
- Update your website
- Ask for customer reviews
- Create seasonally-appropriate social media posts
- Read up on better ways to market your field service business
Organize and Plan Ahead
When the busy season arrives, nobody has time to sort through loose papers or search for lost inventory.
You also want to prepare for any surprises that may arise. Follow these steps to stay organized and ready for whatever the season may bring:
Review Inventory
When things get busy, you’ll be far better off having properly counted and organized your inventory. Check that all of your inventory is stored properly in its right place.
Is there any equipment needing a reorder before the busy months? A well-stocked inventory facility that’s properly organized will save time when techs need to pick up additional parts. Plus, restocking becomes a breeze when properly organized inventory stock is visibly running low.
Spring Clean
Things can pile up in office spaces, trucks and warehouses. Take some time to clean out any clutter, tools or spare parts that may be lying around.
Re-organize any closets or filing cabinets that may be packed full or disorganized. Clean out service trucks and conduct any needed vehicle maintenance.
Organized vehicles, facilities and work spaces ensure you have one less thing to worry about when days are stacked with service calls.
Plan for Surprises
What if the busy season arrives early or lingers through autumn?
Make sure you plan for a longer than expected busy season. Consider how to support your exhausted techs and prepare to order any additional inventory. Also, if you don’t have a business emergency plan in place, now is a perfect time to prepare for any unforeseen natural disasters.
Start Your Busy-Season Prep Right TODAY
An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Take the time you have right now to prepare your business and operational workflow for the approaching busy season.
Enacting any of these tips will prepare your field service company for as stress-free a busy season as possible.
Help everyone on your team succeed this busy season using the field service software. Book your FREE personalized demo of FieldEdge today!
