Technicians with mobile field service apps are more productive in their daily tasks. In the current business landscape, field service companies must stay ahead by ensuring their technicians are equipped with the best tools to interact seamlessly with customers. A mobile field service app is an essential investment for any company looking to enhance service quality and streamline operations. These user-friendly apps are designed to enhance communication, streamline scheduling, and optimize routes.
As you strive to optimize operations and enhance customer satisfaction, selecting an app with the right features is paramount. Field service management companies offer mobile apps in the marketplace—many with competing feature sets. If you are wondering what features to look for, we can help. Let’s take a look at the essential functions a field service solution should support to help you drive efficiency and elevate your service quality.
Top features you should look for in a mobile field service app
1.Digital payments for faster invoicing
Collecting customer payments can be challenging, and tracking who owes you can be difficult—this is where integrating digital payments can help. Integrating digital payment gateways into your mobile field service app changes everything. With just a few clicks, customers can complete seamless, contactless transactions. This not only reduces the hassle of manual payments but it also ensures a quicker, more secure payment process.Â
By adding third-party payment apps like Stripe, your workflow becomes even more efficient. Automated invoicing and instant payment updates keep everything running smoothly. Customers can save their card details for future use, simplifying recurring payments. With consumer financing options, they can pay in monthly installments without late fees, reducing the risk of late payments and improving the predictability of your revenue. Implementing a comprehensive payment solution helps smooth out unsteady revenue and provides a hassle-free experience for your customers.
2.Offline access to the mobile app
Even in remote service areas, where connectivity is unavailable, technicians still need to work. That’s why offline access to crucial information is a boon for technicians on the go. Even without network connectivity, technicians can access job information, navigate routes to a customer’s location, and update a job’s status—all from within a mobile app. With a mobile app, technicians can access mobile forms, checklists, record tasks, and document notes locally on their devices.
When connectivity is restored, the mobile app should automatically sync all offline data with your centralized field service management solution. An offline access feature ensures that all information is up-to-date and accessible across your organization while helping to even out service operations. It’s recommended to utilize a mobile app with similar features to maintain technicians’ productivity and deliver an exceptional service experience to your customers.
3.GPS tracking
With a GPS enabled mobile app, your dispatchers gain real-time visibility over where your technicians are and how they are moving. This isn’t just about seeing dots on a map—it helps dispatchers to optimize routes and schedule jobs more efficiently. With the help of integrated field service management software, assigning tasks to the nearest technician is now easy.Â
GPS tracking empowers you to provide customers with accurate ETAs, enhancing transparency and customer satisfaction. It helps customers feel informed when they receive text notifications about their technician’s arrival. When they know when to expect their technician, customers can better structure their day and be prepared when their technician arrives. Beyond these immediate benefits, GPS tracking offers deep insights into traffic patterns, job durations, and technician performance. Equipped with this data, you can make informed decisions while continually refining your operations, reducing your travel costs, and enhancing overall efficiency.
4.Timesheet management
Field technicians have a lot on their plate—and yours is no different. Sometimes clocking in, or clocking out just doesn’t happen. With Zuper’s mobile app, your technicians can punch in and out easily—providing precise timestamps. If they forget to punch-in after arriving at a job, the app can send a notification with a simple reminder.Â
The app also tracks punch-in locations to verify your technicians are at the right place at the right time. Zuper’s geo-fencing feature allows administrators to block a technician from clocking in until they are inside their assigned service area. Additionally, false start times and unauthorized access can be minimized by enabling in-app facial authentication. GPS tracking is powerful—giving you insight into your workforce and making record keeping easier than it’s ever been before.
5.Work order management
With a mobile field service app, technicians can easily view, access, and manage jobs, work orders, routes, and invoices assigned to them. From their mobile app, technicians have real-time access to all their tasks—always up-to-date with the latest information about job’s, customers, and locations. The app provides detailed information about each job, including customer details, service history, equipment specifics, and work requirements. If a field service technician updates his job status to “Started the job” and later “Completed” through the mobile app, it instantly syncs with the field service management software. Dispatchers can view these updates in real-time, streamlining communication and record keeping and ensuring everyone is on the same page.
6.Forms and checklists
Forms and checklists within a mobile field service app ensure consistent, high-quality service inspections across your entire team. Built-in inspection forms provide your technicians with a step-by-step guide and deductive questionnaires, ensuring they follow the correct procedures and identify potential issues. You can easily attach templates for specific situations to work orders, streamlining the process.
Mobile checklists ensure nothing is forgotten, promoting accountability and timely task completion. They help collect accurate data on services rendered and parts used, allowing for end-to-end tracking of services. This ensures appropriate preventive or corrective actions are taken, benefiting your business, technicians, and customers.
7.Digital signatures and feedback collection
Capturing customer signatures directly on the app ensures that services are completed and acknowledged on the spot. This immediate confirmation can speed up your billing process and provide a clear record of work done, reducing disputes and misunderstandings. Collecting customer feedback and ratings helps you understand how your technicians are performing and where improvements can be made. This real-time feedback allows you to address any issues quickly, improving customer satisfaction. Also, positive ratings and testimonials can be used to showcase your company’s reliability and quality of service to potential clients.
8.Camera and video capture
With a camera and video feature in your field service app, your technicians can document everything from equipment damage to completed repairs. These images and videos become invaluable assets for your business. For your technicians, this means less paperwork and more time on the job. They can quickly document issues, capture before-and-after shots, and even create short video tutorials for customers.
For your business, these visual records improve accuracy, accountability, and customer satisfaction. You can use the captured media for training, quality control, and dispute resolution. It’s like having an extra set of eyes on every job.
9.Barcode/QR code scanning
Barcode and QR code scanning features can make technicians’ jobs much easier and more efficient. When technicians arrive at a customer’s site, they scan the equipment’s barcode and instantly access model details, serial numbers, warranty status, and service history. No more paperwork or relying on customer memory. For inventory management, scanning barcodes updates stock levels in real-time, preventing stockouts and reducing manual counts.
Scanning a code on a work order pulls up job details and instructions, helps track job progress, marks tasks as complete, and captures parts used. These features also help field service businesses to manage parts and supplies more effectively. You can easily track what you use, ensuring you always have the right materials on hand without having to guess.
Get upgraded with the mobile app
Field service businesses must upgrade to mobile technology to fully leverage the benefits of field service software. A mobile app benefits not only stakeholders but also customers, technicians, and the back-office team. By working together, you can track customer data, manage work items, and share information with staff remotely.
Streamline your entire service process with enhanced inventory management, empower your managers to effectively oversee remote workers, and deliver a more responsive customer experience. Book a demo with Zuper to know more.
