Your home for the latest field service news, business tips, and more.
April 19, 2024
Business software can get pretty complex. In fact, most users call it quits after learning what it takes to simply use a program. Few have enough time or patience to learn how their software works. In some cases though, knowing the basics comes in handy. Case in point: Intuit Sync Manager.
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Earlier this week, we took a look at pre-notifications in iFleet, a brand new feature that sends reminder notes to customers before technicians head to their location to perform a service. Today, we’re going to examine a related feature: management notifications
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Here at My Service Depot, we’re always seeking ways to improve our field service software and give our loyal customers more bang for their buck. That’s why we’re particularly proud of our latest iFleet development: customer pre-notifications.
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Winter has officially arrived! Right now every one of your customers is struggling to weigh their personal comfort against their desire to avoid bankruptcy when the heating bill arrives. As an HVAC professional, you know that a programmable thermostat can go a long way towards establishing this balance. But how do you convince your customers to bite? Well, this handy infographic might help! To view the infographic, simply click the image below. To download the infographic, right click the image and select “Save link as…” You’re welcome to share this infographic with your customers, print it out, and distribute it in whatever way you’d like. Be sure to bookmark our blog for more helpful business tips!
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Many older Windows machines struggle to launch the SQL service required to use Smart Service after powering on or rebooting. Usually this happens when a computer or server’s startup process becomes too complex. A machine that attempts to start too many processes after booting will sometimes fail to launch all of them properly. Fortunately, there’s a simple series of steps to follow if this issue is affecting your Smart Service experience. 1. Open the start menu. 2. In the search bar, type “services.msc.” An item marked “services” will appear with a gear icon next to it. Click on this item. 3. In the resulting Services window, scroll down until you find “Sql Server (SMARTSERVICE)” 4. The status column will indicate […]
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Smart Service has a brand new answer to the routing needs of the modern service company: Smart Routes! Add route optimization to the already-prolific scheduling, dispatching, equipment tracking, and invoicing abilities of Smart Service to reap some massive time and fuel savings. How does Smart Routes work? Easy. Simply assign jobs to an employee, pick a day, then press a button. Smart Routes then arranges jobs in the most logical, efficient manner available. This module puts your business on autopilot! Like every one of Smart Service’s features, Smart Routes fits around the specific, individual needs of a service company. It all depends on how you’ve chosen to run your business. If you like, you can set a hard limit on […]
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For businesses with a single warehouse or location, managing inventory is a relatively straightforward process. For the service companies of the world, things aren’t so simple. Most start with a centralized warehouse or office, then compound the complexity with a fleet of vehicles. After making and receiving a parts order, it’s sometimes tricky to track which truck or building items end up on/in. This is precisely why Smart Service’s Multi-Truck Inventory module is so cool. For service companies that need to track multiple, distinct inventories, there’s no better tool. Check out our brand new demonstration video to learn how it works: If your service company is looking for a better means of handling inventory, consider requesting a demo of the Multi-Truck Inventory […]
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We’re firmly entrenched in autumn, and that means only one thing: winter is coming. If you’re an HVAC company, you know that this is your last chance to get your customers ready for the wintery weather ahead. The best way to do this? Preventative maintenance! Now is the time to sell as many PM contracts as possible, and the Smart Service team has created a great tool to help you do precisely this. Our informative infographic makes the case for preventative maintenance as sound financial planning. Feel free to download this infographic and share it with your customer base in any way you like. One of the goals of the Smart Service blog is to function as an all-around resource […]
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When setting a service schedule, it’s possible to run across a job that simply cannot be scheduled right away. Sometimes, the job calls for specific weather conditions or backordered parts. If you don’t have a good system for handling these scenarios, finding a good time to do these jobs quickly becomes a nightmare. Panic at the scheduler can mean lost revenue, and even worse, lost trust. This is where the right service scheduling software can make a huge difference. Smart Service eliminates any margin for error through its handy waiting list feature. When a customer requests a service that can’t be scheduled right away (or when a previously scheduled job needs to be reset), the job can be added to Smart Service’s […]
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This week Microsoft officially launched their newest operating system, Windows 10. As part of the launch, Microsoft is offering a promotion that allows Windows 7 and 8 users to upgrade to Windows 10 for free. Service companies everywhere should absolutely take advantage of this offer, but should also be careful during the transition to avoid losing any data. Things to consider: Upgrading Windows may remove some of your installed applications and cause incompatibility with others. We have tested Smart Service extensively with Windows 10 and have not found any issues with compatibility. However, if you make the upgrade, you might need to reinstall Smart Service on the upgraded computer (this might also apply to QuickBooks). Similarly, you should be cautious […]
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