How to find the best field service management software.

When your company revolves around the effective coordination of a team in the field, you need the best field management software. Any delay in dispatching your workforce or providing your staff with the information they need can result in a lost sale. Or an unhappy customer who won’t be recommending your business to their friends. A field management software platform capable of handling everything—from invoicing to fleet tracking—helps your business run more smoothly. Plus, it helps create an excellent customer experience that will keep your clients coming back again and again. 

How to find the best field management software

There is a lot to juggle when managing a team of field technicians or regional customer service representatives. You need to coordinate staff availability, keep detailed customer records, and have the ability to quickly dispatch staff when an urgent job request comes through. What should you consider in your search for the best field management software?

• How do you typically assign jobs? Do you receive more customer service requests from phone calls or through email? If you receive a significant amount of requests via email, the best field service management software for your company would need to integrate with your email platform so you can assign jobs straight from your inbox and easily keep track of project details. Similarly, if you get a lot of requests by phone, you may want to invest in a platform that sends you a text or email when you receive a voicemail, so you don’t waste time listening to messages and can assign tasks ASAP.
• How do you want to keep track of your team? The best field management software solutions offer a variety of methods for tracking your deployed staff. While most software solutions offer job ticketing functions that make it easy to assign work orders, others also offer GPS fleet tracking. Consider how closely you need to manage your team’s location, scheduling, and workday productivity. Then decide which styles of tracking are best for your needs.
• What information does your team need immediate access to? When out in the field, your team does not have time to sift through piles of paperwork or scroll through hard-to-read records just to answer a customer’s question. Needing to phone the office to process a payment or draft an estimate is a slow and time-consuming process. Many platforms offer mobile functions so technicians can create estimates, accept payments, and access customer records all while on-the-go. These software solutions allow your mobile workforce to offer the best possible customer service, with on-demand customer histories and other important information at their fingertips. 

Freshdesk: The top free field management software solution 

If you’re just starting out or restricted by budget, a free entry-level field service management software is Freshdesk. Freshdesk is a team collaboration platform that allows you to coordinate job tickets with ease. Customers herald its ease of implementation, with many saying they were up and running within minutes. While they tie some of their more enhanced features into paid packages, their free option is the perfect companion for your budding business. 

• Easily create job tickets. With Freshdesk, you can create service tasks straight from an email or website submission. You can even drag and drop emails directly into your project calendar. 
• Quick visualization of team availability: At a glance, you can see who is ready and available to take on an incoming job. No need to bounce between several calendars or lose time placing calls to your team. 
• Consolidate all communication on a project in one place. Keep track of project details in one dashboard. Fresh Desk saves every email, phone call, or communication and ties it to a job ticket. Also, technicians can add notes or photos to the project record right from the field. 

If you need a basic option to get management of your job tickets up and running, Freshdesk is a great free option to consider. 

Service Fusion: The top paid field management software solution 

Service Fusion is a business-boosting powerhouse that combines everything you need into one software solution. From GPS fleet tracking to on-the-go invoicing, Service Fusion empowers your team to focus on getting the job done instead of stressing over time-consuming administrative tasks. 

Unlike other options, Service Fusion does not require a long-term contract. Better yet, they don’t charge per user, so your costs always stay the same even as you scale your business. Their monthly fees range from $99 to $349 depending on your needs. They also offer a la carte pricing on popular features to better tailor your experience. 

• Quickly schedule and dispatch your technicians: In one glance, you can see project status and team availability. You can dispatch jobs directly to your technicians’ phones and send automated appointment reminders to customers as your team nears their location. 

• Streamline your records: If you’re constantly scouring your inbox and desktop for project details, Service Fusion will change the way you do business. Service Fusion combines all of your customer records, invoicing, and communications into one simple platform. They even offer phone call tracking integrations that help keep track of customer service interactions. 

• Empower your team while on-the-go: Service Fusion is loaded with mobile capabilities. Their powerful smartphone app empowers your field technicians to collect payment on-site and generate estimates in an instant. Your team can even attach photos and videos to the job ticket. 
• Real-time tracking: One of their most popular features is their GPS tracking integration. Get real-time insight into the location of your entire fleet so you know who is closest to an emergency call. The service even sends out the best route to get to a job, reducing fuel and maintenance costs. 

From HVAC contractors to plumbers, and even car sales associates on the sales floor, thousands trust Service Fusion to keep all aspects of their business running smoothly. 

Any business that has a mobile workforce has unique needs. Whether your staff is handling on-site repairs and installations or selling inventory on a large sales floor, they have a lot to coordinate. Sifting through binders of paperwork and calling your main office for on-the-fly pricing hinders employee productivity and loses you business. Finding the right field management software empowers your team to get their job done quickly, take on additional job tickets, and grow your base of satisfied customers.