Take Control with simPRO: Optimise Customer Communications - Webinar recap

Recently, simPRO launched the Take Control with simPRO webinar series, focusing on optimising your business workflows and how you can make use of simPRO tools and features.

The first webinar in the series concentrated on how you can optimise your customer communications through simPRO. You may be used to communicating with your customers regularly, however now, more than ever, it is vital that the channel of communication stays open.

In this webinar we discussed how simPRO's communication features and integrations can help you keep your customers up to date during a crisis.

The topics covered in the webinar included:

• What are notifications and how you can use them
• Using tags, profiles and groups for identifying and filtering
• How Voice Over Internet Protocol (VoIP) can help you avoid missing calls
• Zapier integrations

In this blog, we’ll recap the main learnings from this webinar and provide links to the Learning Toolbox where you will find further information on each topic. Keep an eye out for the icons below.

Notifications

Now is not the time to hold back information from your customers. Make sure you’re keeping them up to date on the status of your business and any changes you may have to make. By using notifications in simPRO you can send an email and/or SMS message when certain workflow requirements have been met. For example, notifications could be used to notify a customer that a job has been put on hold.

To make the notification process even easier, you can use scheduled notifications to remind customers of jobs and let them know that work is still going ahead, or when a field staff member is on their way. You can also define on your customer cards their preferred notification method, allowing you to tailor the way you contact the customer.

Top Tip: Send notification emails from an address that can be replied to!

Tags, profiles and groups for identifying and filtering

Filters and tags can be a great way to identify your customers as well as their job status. Filters such as groups, profiles or tags can be particularly helpful when you want to identify customers under a specific category such as those who are self isolating or those businesses that are partially operational.

Once you have assigned tags, groups and profiles to your customers, you can then use them to filter your customer list. Then, by using your advanced search, you can identify customers who may be classified as vulnerable. You can also create an email for this list to advise them on how you will be able to help change or amend arrangements during isolation.

Top Tip: Export your customers to update them in bulk with the relevant filters.

VoIP

During times when staff are working from home without reliable mobile coverage, using a VoIP system can help you keep connected. VoIP is a remote softphone that works through your server and your PC, allowing you to make and receive calls through the internet from anywhere.

Integrating your VoIP system into simPRO means you can make calls directly from your build to your customers with one click taking away the need for scrolling, dialing or searching for numbers. Having the functionality to transfer calls between your colleagues gives your staff the seamless communication you get from working together in the office. It also provides your customers the consistent service they are used to - even if your staff are in the kitchen, on the sofa or calling from a bedroom!

You will require a VoIP provider to set this up within simPRO.

Top tip: Great for when staff are working from home!

Zapier Integrations

simPRO has an integration with Zapier which allows you to connect simPRO to over 1,500+ apps including business tools that help you automate repetitive day-to-day tasks. Apps such as marketing automation software, MailChimp and the online survey platform SurveyMonkey are great ways to keep in touch with your customers, especially during the COVID-19 crisis.

MailChimp allows you to pull customer emails from simPRO directly into MailChimp, saving you time, especially when you have an important update for your customers. To go with our Zapier integration we have also launched some pre-built ‘Zap Templates’ to get you started.

Top Tip: Check out the latest templates for simPRO + Zapier

Communicating with customers during a crisis is vital, as keeping them informed at all times will prevent any confusion or frustration, especially if appointments need to change. We hope this article has helped you understand how simPRO can help you manage your customer communications. We also have some great hints and tips in our blog, Communicating with field service customers.