3 Reasons You Should Be Using Mobile Workforce Management – Software Buddy
It’s an undeniable fact that mobile workforce management via apps now plays a crucial role in our everyday lives, both at home and at work.
Whether we’re doing our shopping online, checking the traffic on our commute or communicating with colleagues through social media, there’s not a single part of our daily routines that haven’t been revolutionised by mobile devices.
This is especially true for trades businesses, and all those working in them.
Where tradesmen used to spend their days on-site surrounded by paperwork and tracking everything manually, now the vast majority of tradesmen use mobile devices to speed things up.
They can be used for everything from invoicing and capturing client signatures to tracking the location of colleagues and uploading photos from a site.
If you’re not yet fully leveraging the power of mobile management in your trades business, here’s why you should be.
1. Time-Saving Benefits
Think of how many actions in your everyday life have been sped up thanks to mobile devices.
Checking the weather used to involve waiting on a TV weather report, or heading to a desktop computer to track down an update.
Nowadays, most mobiles have weather apps and widgets on home screens, so you can see the forecast instantly.
Now apply that to a working environment.
Imagine how much time would be saved on basic tasks if all of your employees were using mobile devices.
- Filing paperwork
- Checking schedules
- Updating client files
These and many more tasks are all made ten times faster thanks to mobile devices.
Employees won’t need to wait until they get back to the office to perform these tasks.
If your devices are synced with the cloud, it means that everyone receives the updates immediately – which could also save time for the rest of the team.
Better communication means a more efficient business – which makes offering better customer service easier too.
2. Enhanced Organisation Reputation
We’ve all been there before, turning the office upside down when trying to find a specific file or document. If you can relate, then you will understand the importance of going digital and mobile with your filing systems.
Using mobile management on-site gives you access to every file you need, right at your fingertips.
You no longer need to work with big, heavy folders or run the risk losing or damaging important documents; it’s all stored in your mobile device.
Mobile management software will also mean you can search the entire database with keywords and phrases to find the files you need. Letting you find and access the invoice you were looking for in a few clicks.
The more organised your team are, the more efficiently they can perform.
3. Work From Anywhere & Still Get Stuff Done
If your team is all using mobile devices, they can potentially work from anywhere. For trades businesses this means that all admin work, quoting and invoicing can be done whilst out in the field without having to wait until they get back to the office.
- Want to double-check the photos from your last visit to a client before you arrive at their site?
- Want to look over your schedule for the next two weeks so you can plan some personal downtime?
Mobile management allows you to do that from anywhere, at any time.
All staff accounts are even synced with the cloud which means that they are updated in real time.
Need to contact a client about their forthcoming appointment?
Simply send them an email at any time and their replies will be logged for full accountability, even if you’re not in the office.
ServiceM8 For The Trades
ServiceM8 is one of the top software apps for the trades. It has tons of features that are designed to help you become more profitable with less hassle.
Its field service app, exclusive to Apple devices, gives you access to some truly powerful features that will help take your mobile management capabilities to the next level.
As well as everything you would expect in job management software, here are just of few of the extra features you can benefit from:
- iOS-specific features. This includes a full Siri Kit, allowing a number of hands-free actions – ideal for drivers and remote workers.
You’ll benefit from Quick Actions (like automated clock-on and navigate to next job), 3D Touch features (giving you a ‘peek’ into jobs) and a Today extension, summing up your day’s duties and responsibilities in the iOS Today screen.
- Offline access. Not everyone has access to the internet 100% of the time, especially if your staff are out in the field somewhere really remote.
The ServiceM8 app allows field staff to view all job information, see their schedule and collect signatures without any internet connectivity at all.
All changes sync when the devices comes back online, so nothing is missed when connectivity drops.
- Apple Watch compatibility. It doesn’t get more mobile than the Apple Watch. ServiceM8 offers core functionality for watch users, allowing them to receive and reply to messages, keep track of their time on site and view basic job details from their wrist.
The watch can all help with navigation to the next job and send alerts when it’s time to leave for your next appointment.
- Union of hardware and software. ServiceM8 software has been designed specifically for Apple hardware, so you’ll find a perfect marriage of the two.
This creates a totally seamless experience across all devices, including phones, tablets and smartwatches.
You won’t need to waste time familiarising yourself with new formats and layouts in the field. Everything will be exactly where you left it, on any device.
Getting To Grips With New Technology
Technology overhauls are challenging for all businesses, whether you’re a multinational corporation or a small local trades business.
Getting it right is vital.
A poorly executed or integrated system could lead to lost business and decreasing profits.
There’s no room for error when you’re trying to grow a business.
If you’re looking for new technology to take your trades business to the next level, Software Buddy can be the helping hand you need.
Our user-friendly training courses help you to get to grips with the software fast.