Running a trade business can be challenging, especially when that business starts growing. Fortunately, different technological solutions can help make things easier. Investing in job management software is a significant step that has significant benefits for trade businesses. But, how do you know whether it is time to make this change to the day-to-day management of your business?
You Still Use Excel and Paper Job Sheets
Excel and paper job sheets used to be the preferred solution for project and employee management. However, both solutions come with complexities that can be easily solved by switching to the right job management software.
These complexities become more obvious as your customer base grows, you provide an expanded product inventory, and have numerous tradespeople in the field. Switching to the right job management software will make things easier for you and save you a lot of money and time in the long run.
You Need More Visibility
The right job management software helps you do much more than track your work and that of your employees. It can help you send updates to clients, create quotes and track different projects. Planning work more efficiently becomes easier, especially when different people are working on different projects for different clients.
Matching Invoices to Clients is Becoming Harder
If you have one system for job sheets, another for invoices and another for your customer database, you might find that they do not talk well with each other. It then becomes a lot more difficult to match different documents, including invoices, to the right customer. This happens a lot in the plumbing business where one tradesperson might complete a lot of smaller projects and tasks for different clients.
The right plumbing project management software makes it easy to track which projects belong to which clients, which ultimately helps with invoicing. Instead of relying on memory and different fragmented systems, invest in the right job management software for your plumbing business to streamline everything and give yourself and your employees peace of mind.
Your Clients Are Demanding Reports
Reports are essential when working on bigger projects. Your clients might need to see how much work has been done, who is doing the work, and what the whole project is likely to cost. Job management software can help you create the customer reports your customers are asking for quickly. Additionally, your customers can log in and check these reports for themselves in addition to seeing the progress of their projects.
This streamlines communication between the business and its clients while also making project management easier for all parties involved.
Your Paper Trail Is Messy
Fragmented paperwork is a real concern. This happens when a tradesperson in the field holds some paperwork, the project manager has their own set, and the office has another set. Knowing who has what becomes difficult in these cases. Job management software gives you a central storage space for these reports which makes following paper trails a lot easier.
The right job management software gives you better control over different aspects of your business. It makes things a lot easier for everyone involved, saves time and money, and drives both profitability and customer satisfaction.
