Running a service company is about staying focused. Each job has limited money-making potential, so it’s vital to do them all as efficiently as possible. These five tips make it easier to sustain profitability starting with the workforce in the field.

1. Get Smarter About Metric Tracking

Maintaining a cost-effective workforce in the field can be difficult. Some business leaders baulk when asked to make tough cash flow decisions about which projects are important, while others do this by instinct. For instance, experienced managers might have a “gut feel” for what’s a good use of company time but the data may show otherwise. Business intelligence tools like Tableau give businesses of all sizes the visibility into metrics across their business to make the right decisions.

Intelligent metric tracking gives companies the numerical data to refine their intuitions. Software tools facilitate complex analysis tasks, such as overseeing a technician’s performance or comparing parts overhead for different job types. These kinds of metrics help service businesses understand the driving forces behind their bottom lines.

2. Put Marketing to the ROI Test

All marketing campaigns should survive a trial by fire. If they don’t create profits, then they get ditched.

The competitive jungle of the service industry makes it vital to pick campaigns that can last. It’s easier to implement self-sustaining marketing projects when the primary focus is return on investment, or ROI.

ROI-tracking software tools help make complex trends more obvious. Want to choose between buying new social media ads and spending time cold calling? Tools like ServiceTitan are built specifically for service businesses and help track how each marketing campaigns is performing. This way an electrician or HVAC service business can stop ineffective marketing campaigns while scaling the campaigns that are generating the most business.

3. Analyse Consumer Response Trends

Post-appointment client satisfaction leads to future bookings. When it’s easy to keep tabs on job life-cycles and completion success rates, it’s also easier to keep customers happy.

Consumer response analysis software helps service providers understand what they’re doing right. Good apps also place lots of information at each technician’s disposal: It’s as easy to pull up a client’s name or order history as it is to read notes from other techs who worked on the same account.

4. Streamline Everything

In-the-field efficiency demands a ship-shape office. Leaders also have to get themselves on track.

Start by improving the decisions that managers make. Give them access to more information and tools that inform their decision-making process. Then track how well they respond to the tools and information they received.

Effective management systems make this process feel more natural and budget-friendly. Apps scale to meet the needs of each organisation. They also work with commonplace mobile devices. Using technology to optimise fleets and workers is much easier when per-job IT costs stay low.

5. Unify the Management Experience

Foster healthy relationships with the people who do the hard work. Service businesses that cultivate job satisfaction ultimately edge out their competitors: Happier, eager staff do superior work.

When technicians and management share software tools, they also share a sense of ownership. It’s a lot easier to keep everyone accountable when they all feel like what they do matters.