Software Solutions Providing Handy, Helpful Capabilities

ServiceMinder (www.serviceminder.io, 888/493-9995) is a platform for managing and operating home services brands, designed to support franchise brands and multi-location companies.

Featuring an integrated mobile app to support sales and service agents as well as owners in the field, it supports end-to-end tasks including call handling, targeted email campaigns (including drip email and proposal and expiration reminders), branded proposals including those customized to incorporate codes for discounts and financing options, booking and scheduling a job, and collecting payment accommodating electronic signature.  

Owners can track leads using various reporting options such as revenue by lead source and automated royalty reporting. Franchisors can access data at the brand and location level to help make data driven decisions.

The software also facilitates invoicing and accepting online credit card payments. Recurring/Membership based service providers can also set up automatic invoicing after every appointment. 

Integrations include AnswerConnect (24/7 live receptionist telephone answering service), WebPunch (online reputation management), Transitiv (data warehousing and collaborative analytics for multi-unit businesses), and QuickBooks. 

Pricing: invoiced per month per location; free one-on-one demo available.

Sage Field Operations

Sage Field Operations (www.sage.com) is a cloud-based platform for service contractors (covered in the October 2017 column) that provides field teams with real-time access to the critical information needed on the go and streamlines communication between the field and office. Sage recently added two new capabilities to help service contractors maximize productivity of technicians in the field:  residential workflows and a business intelligence solution.

The residential workflows functionalities enable contractors performing residential as well as commercial jobs the ability to present flat rate, menu-based pricing to customers and accept and process payments from the field directly through their smartphone or tablet such that payments go straight to accounts receivable. The new business intelligence solution adds reporting and forecasting capabilities, including technician performance and revenue and labor requirements, to the Sage Field Operations platform. 

CompanyCam

CompanyCam (www.companycam.com, 402/207-9609) is a photo-based documentation/communication tool (for Android, iOS, and desktop) for contractors to use both internally and with clients. Photos taken in CompanyCam are automatically stamped with time and location and sent to the cloud, where they are organized by project location and accessible to approved team members.

Users logged into the app or browser can add annotations to the photos, including arrows, comments, drawings, and apply tags, and can also use the photos in their own documents for sharing with crews and customers. Your office manager can see photos populate on the web in real time.

The app offers several plans, the most popular being Pro and Premium. Pro accounts have access to unlimited projects, unlimited photo capture, five-minute video recording, project checklists, photo reports, gallery and timeline link sharing, and a suite of over 50 integrations, including QuickBooks Online, Jobber (April 2019 column), HouseCall Pro (September 2019 column), and SumoQuote (May 2020 column).    

Premium accounts have all the Pro features, plus access to project, checklist, and report templates, 10-minute video recordings, and video walkthroughs.  Pro and Premium plans include the options to invite guest users and to add the ability to collect digital signatures within the app.

Enterprise plans are available for teams with over 50 CompanyCam users. The enterprise level includes all Pro or Premium features, in addition to customized onboarding and priority support.

Pricing: per month or annually. Each plan’s base price includes three users, with additional users at a per-user price. A 14-day free trial is available of all Premium features for up to 10 projects.  

Groundwork 

Groundwork (www.hellogroundwork.com) is a lead qualification and sales software suite for specialty residential contractors centering on “virtual selling.” Groundwork uses workflow technology, image and video capture, and automation to give contractors information helpful to engage and convert leads quickly.

Groundwork allows you to connect with potential customers by inserting personalized and branded videos into the customer flow. You can respond to messages from customers by recording and sending a custom video response to introduce your team, provide ballpark price ranges, and build trust.

Groundwork is available in three tiered versions, Lite, Pro, and Enterprise.

Groundwork Lite: one user; one lead conversion path, custom branding, lead tracking dashboard, standard automated reminder messages.

Groundwork Pro includes all that plus: up to three users; unlimited lead conversion flows; in-app messaging, and custom automated messages, marketing tracking features; premium support, direct integrations with Company Cam and other CRMs.

Groundwork Enterprise: Groundwork can build custom packages for multi-unit and multi-location companies

Groundwork is integrated with many of the leading software systems used for lead generation and project management: All editions of Groundwork integrate with Zapier, while Pro and Enterprise plans have custom direct integrations with leading systems, including CompanyCam.

Pricing: 14-day free trial; monthly and annual billing options at all tiers.

Update

FieldEdge cloud-based field service management software (www.fieldedge.com, 800/416-0391)—profiled in September 2018 column and formerly featuring two plan options Select and Premier—has introduced a third plan, FieldEdge Elite, for enterprise-level service companies, that includes all the functions of the Select and Premier plans along with the addition of outbound call recording, Marketing Edge, and Proposal Pro, a new integration that helps create customizable proposals with good, better, best and budget customer options.

Patti Feldman writes articles and web content for trade magazines and manufacturers of building products. She can be reached at [email protected].