Plumbers, electricians, contractors, housing supervisors, construction managers, flooring experts, painters and other small business owners operating in the home construction and maintenance business can benefit from SMS text messaging services in a variety of ways. From scheduling and rescheduling appointments to keeping an eye on employees, SMS is an inexpensive and effective way to run your small business.

It’s All About Customer Service

Maintaining contact with customers is essential to provide quality customer service. Stay in touch using text messages to:

·         Remind customers of impending appointments

·         Confirm appointments

·         Reschedule if a time conflict or emergency occurs

·         Book recurring appointments

·         Send payment reminders

·         Communicate with customers when they’re not on the job site

When sending SMS notifications, include the name of your business, website address and only the most essential, basic information customers will need. You can create automated messages to send at specific times for recurring appointments or payment due dates. This can make bookkeeping and administration tasks easier to complete.

Promoting Additional Services/Marketing Your Business

Getting business (and repeat business) means driving traffic to your website or prompting people to call when they need you. Stay on customers’ radar by sending monthly text messages encouraging them to call you or check out your website. You can also offer discounts for follow-up service, free services in conjunction with paid services or promote products.

Customers that have already used your services will potentially use your services again (especially if they’re satisfied). These same customers will refer you to others. Use mass text messages to encourage referrals. Offer a ‘referral discount’ to those who forward your text to others.

Manage Employees

Managing employees can be difficult, especially if they work on-site all day. Make sure employees complete daily task by sending text message reminders. You can also schedule lunch breaks, send directions to a job site, ask employees to fill-in when others are not available, and provide materials and supply orders quickly. You can also answer any questions employees have about a job instantly.

Running a repair or home maintenance business is exhausting if you don’t plan ahead and use the technology that’s available to you. Text message services take some of the pressure off by allowing you instant contact with customers and employees.