Customer Service

Customer Success - Scheduling Communications

It is very important as we schedule jobs that we communicate with our customers. This does not only mean what we communicate, but HOW we communicate the scheduling. There are several steps we need to take when scheduling a job and communicating with the customer: STEP ONE: DETERMINING SCHEDULE OPTIONS Where is it? This is an important question to ask, since we do often get requests from all over North and South Carolina, as well as Georgia at times. If we schedule too soon for a job that will take a half day for travel, we could cause efficiency problems for our dispatcher. Please keep in mind that anything greater than 30 miles from the branch location (Charlotte or Anderson) should be scheduled at least 2 days out. If there is an emergency that needs to be scheduled sooner, communicate with the Service Manager to coordinate a plan. What is it? Another crucial factor is the scope of work. This is important for two reasons: 1) Different teams in Loc Doc service different job types (Projects, Access Control, Locksmith), and each of these teams schedule independently of one another. 2) Our schedules are built upon the average job length of 2 hours. If a job seems to take longer than 2 hours, we need to make sure the schedule is adjusted to fit. For this reason, make sure you ask clarifying questions to get as much information as possible, such as how many doors need rekeyed, or if this is an electronic issue or mechanical issue. Then you can assess the schedule of each team and schedule accordingly. The scope of work will also give us an idea of the urgency of the job. When communicating schedule options with the customer, it is not a good idea to offer service in 2 days to someone who is locked out of the home or commercial space. It is also not a good idea to offer the emergency charge to a customer who has a vacant space they need rekeyed for a tenant who is coming in two weeks. The next piece is looking at our availability. We can do this by looking at our Schedule. The Schedule at a Glance tool is built to show us how many jobs are on the schedule by day. The schedule is edited so that when it reaches our current capacity it will highlight the day in red. When you see red, you know that there is no availability on the schedule until the next day that isn’t red. (NOTE: We are currently working on a new Schedule Module which will change this process. This will be updated once the Schedule Module has rolled out) STEP TWO: COMMUNICATING SCHEDULE OPTIONS Once we have a good idea of what options we can offer the customer through our availability as well as the scope and location of work, it is time to communicate with the customer. Offer the most reasonable date to the customer. Using your awareness of the situation, offer a date that sounds like a solution for the customer that also works best for our schedule. Example: We have some availability on Friday if that works for you? If the customer needs it sooner, offer an emergency charge to come out today. If the customer requests a specific time, offer them a time block such as 8-10, 10-12, 12-2 and 2-4. Other than this, use your best judgment and make sure to put the customers needs at the center. STEP THREE: SCHEDULING IN TRACKVIA When you have a decided upon date, update these fields in Trackvia accordingly NEW DATE: Make sure you mark the proper time and date. TIME BLOCK: If the customer requests a specific time or time frame, this is where to mark it. If they do not request a specific time, use the option 8:00-5:00. APPOINTMENT OR DUE DATE: Appointment means the site visit must be exactly at the time or time block mentioned, no sooner. Due Date means any time between now and the time or time block mentioned. We offer this to the customer especially if they prefer sooner, but do not want to pay the emergency charge. EMERGENCY OR AFTER HOURS. Make sure to select Emergency or After Hours in the checkboxes, change the trip charge, and select the Time Block of After or Before 5 if it is outside of business hours