Business owners who try to handle scheduling and dispatching without plumbing scheduling software are at a disadvantage when it comes to winning and keeping customers.
Manual scheduling processes — with disparate spreadsheets and dispatch boards — can damage the customer experience by:
Impairing customer communication, for example, leaving customers on hold for long periods while the CSR checks a technician’s availability and then having to repeat the process if the proposed time slot doesn’t suit.
Causing significant slow-downs and errors when CSRs (who are not generally well-acquainted with business strategy) don’t know how to prioritize certain kinds of jobs.
Many plumbing businesses use scheduling apps or plumbing business software to solve these challenges. However, some of the less advanced software require call bookers to navigate through multiple screens and interfaces—causing the same inefficiencies and errors that scheduling and dispatch software should eliminate.
The best plumbing scheduling apps help plumbing contractors do the following when a new call comes in:
Answer calls quickly and efficiently and have all of the relevant customer information to hand (including invoicing and job history if they are existing customers).
Record the essential job details all in one place, in real time, so staff can access them at any time from any location.
Schedule plumbing jobs swiftly and assign them to the most suitable tech, taking travel time and tech experience into account.
Optimize customer management by providing real-time updates via text messages so customers know the job status at all times.
In this post, we share seven best plumbing scheduling software solutions ranging from simple free apps to full field service management software, starting with a deep dive into our own, ServiceTitan.
Want to see how ServiceTitan streamlines your plumbing business operations? Schedule a call to get a free demo of the features we cover in this article.
1. ServiceTitan
Optimizes Scheduling and Dispatching to Maximize Efficiency & Profitability
ServiceTitan’s cloud-based field service management software offers scheduling features alongside dispatching, call booking, job management, and more.
Our scheduling software empowers plumbing contractors (and other service businesses such as HVAC and electricians) with the tools they need to schedule appointments with customers, manage technician schedules, and assign jobs to field technicians efficiently and profitably.
Here’s a summary our ServiceTitan’s scheduling features:
Call Booking That Optimizes Customer Experience
ServiceTitan gives CSRs a leg up on efficiently booking calls and increasing average ticket prices from the moment the phone rings.
Using drop-down menus and custom prompts, CSRs can simply enter the customer information directly into their system, including job type, start date, priority, and more.
If the call is from an existing customer, ServiceTitan will tell the CSR exactly who is calling before they even answer the phone, so CSRs can greet them by name, setting them up for improved customer satisfaction from the beginning. They can also pull up their complete service history (past estimates, work orders, invoices, membership information) from the very same screen, providing valuable efficiency gains and ensuring that they’re prepared to answer questions and quickly book new jobs.
With ServiceTitan, there’s no need for the CSR to juggle a pen, paper and spreadsheet, or put customers on hold or call them back while they pull paperwork from a filing cabinet.
We even provide examples of call center script templates that can be used in your own specific business. And, in the event that anything does go wrong, our Call Recording feature allows supervisors to replay a CSR’s conversation with a customer to verify the facts.
Note: Recordings are also available to techs via our Mobile App when they're out on service calls.
When it’s time to schedule the job, ServiceTitan offers two unique features — Schedule Assistant and Adjustable Capacity Planning — that set our scheduling workflow apart from most scheduling software.
Here’s how they work.
Schedule Assistant to Book Jobs Faster
With many software tools (and certainly manual methods), scheduling requires jumping between different screens to view technician schedules, going back and forth with customers to check their availability, and trying to account for various factors such as technician skills and routing. This is difficult, even for the most experienced CSRs.
ServiceTitan’s Schedule Assistant can be used directly from the call booking screen to solve these issues and improve margins by suggesting an optimal date, time, and plumbing technician that minimizes drive time.
It can also be used from the Dispatch Board, job record, and on recurring service events. Technician skills, zones, and non-job events are factored into Schedule Assistant’s recommendations—so you can have peace of mind that the right technicians will be sent to the right jobs.
Adjustable Capacity Planning to Maximize Profitability
ServiceTitan also offers a unique functionality called Adjustable Capacity Planning, which allows plumbing business owners to define, automate, and implement a capacity planning strategy, which optimizes their schedules for profitability.
This feature is seamlessly embedded within the call booking process and allows plumbing businesses to increase or decrease technician capacity based on seasonal demand. For example, around the holidays, most plumbing and HVAC businesses will aim to reduce the number of maintenance jobs they book, giving themselves flexibility to handle more seasonal big-ticket work, like heating system replacements.
Similarly, during slower times of the year, plumbing companies may well overbook their schedules with maintenance plan visits and check-ups, knowing those home service calls can be completed quickly and efficiently.
With ServiceTitan, entry-level employees don’t need to understand any of this to efficiently book jobs according to your preset business needs.
Our plumbing scheduling app further automates the booking process by ensuring that only techs with the skills required for a given job can be assigned to that task. That way, plumbing contractors can be sure that the right tech is dispatched to the right job every time.
Once a job is booked and scheduled, automated job confirmations, text or email notifications are sent to the customer to confirm appointment requests. All scheduled appointments are updated and can be viewed through the dispatch board, where dispatchers can access all the information and functionality discussed above.
Dispatch Board for Easy Field Service Coordination
ServiceTitan’s user-friendly dispatch board allows dispatchers to perform most of their day-to-day tasks without leaving the board. This includes being able to see which jobs are unassigned, unconfirmed, dispatched, working, paused, and more.
From the dispatch board, users have access to:
Drag-and-drop functionality: The ability for dispatchers to easily assign or reassign a tech; confirm or reschedule a job; view property data; and more.
Live activity feed: A feed to see real-time job activity (Arrived, Paused, Complete) and to direct-message and communicate with techs (individually or en masse).
Notifications: Alerts that notify the dispatcher of unusual activity or problems that need to be addressed.
Technician GPS tracking: With technician GPS tracking, dispatchers (and customers, if enabled) can track the location of plumbing team members as they’re on their way to a job.
Schedule and route optimization: Options that help dispatchers coordinate appointments with techs in an efficient way, including identifying jobs in locations where a tech is already working.
Mobile App to Ensure Plumbing Techs Stay Agile
Technicians using our Mobile App (via Android and iOS mobile devices) enjoy access to a wide range of functionality.
From their home screen dashboard, they can:
Listen to call recordings between customers and CSRs
View a customer’s service history
Send text notifications to customers to confirm and revise arrival times or follow up
Take and upload pictures
Create plumbing estimates
Provide customers with Good Better Best presentations
Order parts
Collect signatures on work orders
Help customers apply for financing
Take check and credit card payments
And more
Unlike many other plumbing service software, our mobile app provides offline functionality for access to all the tools and data that techs need to do their best work even when there’s no internet.
Our mobile scheduling and dispatching features are also designed to be calibrated to the individual preferences of plumbing company owners.
For example, plumbers can choose to give their techs full visibility into all of their assignments, or they can confine their techs’ view to the next job or two on their agenda.
ServiceTitan can also be set up to allow techs to self-dispatch — simply by clicking a button on their screen — or programmed to limit dispatching authority to office employees.
Similarly, to track job progress, ServiceTitan can be set up to register when a tech comes within 100 feet of a job site, automatically beginning the work-in-progress portion of the job cycle. Alternatively, business owners can choose to allow techs to enter their start-of-work time themselves.
Web Scheduler for Direct Bookings
For customers who prefer to book their plumbing services online, our user-friendly website widget allows them to make online bookings without ever having to talk to anyone on the phone.
The web scheduler tool still collects all the necessary job details that a CSR would on a call.
Customers simply select the service category they are in the market for and then zero in to identify their issue type, adding a brief or detailed description. The widget then collects their contact information and address and gives them the option to choose an appointment time that’s convenient for them.
The available appointments that appear in the web widget booking interface perfectly reflect the customized advanced planning capacity that plumbing business owners have already set up.
The customer then reviews the details and books the appointment. Jobs scheduled through the ServiceTitan web widget are automatically booked into the plumbing dispatch board, and customers can manage their booking themselves, using text and/or email to reschedule, update, or cancel.
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Integrated Scheduling & Dispatching with Other Business Operations
Our software does much more than scheduling and dispatching. It integrates these features with other business operations, offering:
Payroll features that decrease payroll prep time by automatically providing time tracking (while syncing with the dispatch board); calculating overtime, commissions and bonuses; and helping you track and monitor crucial job-costing data in real-time.
Accounting software integration with Viewpoint Vista, QuickBooks®, and Intacct.
Customer relationship management (CRM) tools that help improve office organization and workflow (in addition to improving the customer experience).
Service Agreement Software that helps you grow and manage preventative maintenance contracts.
Field Reporting Software that helps you monitor key financial performance indicators (KPIs), such as: CSR and technician metrics, revenue trends, and more.
To see why ServiceTitan is trusted by 100,000+ service professionals, schedule a call to get a free one-on-one walk-through of how our plumbing software can help you schedule more efficiently, work smarter, and grow revenue.
2. Service Fusion
Service Fusion describes itself as an “All-In-One Field Service Management Software.” Like ServiceTitan, Service Fusion offers a wide range of key features in addition to scheduling and dispatching, including estimates, invoices, customer management, and more.
Learn more about how ServiceTitan compares to Service Fusion here.
3. Jobber
Jobber is an all-in-one field service management software that’s widely regarded as user-friendly.
Jobber is customizable to fit your process, so you can schedule jobs, optimize routes, send quotes and invoices by text, and get paid on-site via the software’s mobile app.
Jobber is popular with small businesses that want a simple, easy-to-use solution.
Check out our comparison article: Jobber vs. ServiceTitan
4. Housecall Pro
Housecall Pro is a field service management software that includes scheduling and dispatching features among other tools for managing plumbing businesses.
This solution supports all aspects of the workflow, including scheduling jobs, assigning technicians, managing customer information, invoicing (including QuickBooks Online), and payment processing.
5. FieldEdge
FieldEdge is a field service management software with scheduling tools for service businesses. As well as scheduling and dispatching, FieldEdge offers a wide range of features like ServiceTitan, including functionality for quotes and invoicing, service agreements, and more.
Learn more about how ServiceTitan compares to FieldEdge here.
6. FieldVibe
FieldVibe is a simple scheduling software app for home service businesses that want the basic functionality of a scheduling tool but don’t need the full features of an all-in-one field service management software. FieldVibe lets you store client details, job histories and send automated text reminders to customers.
Because it is a mobile device-only tool that’s free to use (on the basic package), this is a good option for sole traders just starting out.
7. Setmore
Setmore is a scheduling platform for a range of industries, including home services businesses. Plumbing contractors can set up a booking page, sync it with their Google calendar, and share a link that allows customers to book appointments themselves. Setmore also offers payment processing, automated email and SMS confirmations, and appointment reminders.
Setmore is free and could be useful for sole plumbers who want a basic, standalone appointment booking system.
Want to see how ServiceTitan streamlines your plumbing business operations? Schedule a call to get a free demo of the features covered in this article.
ServiceTitan Plumbing Software
ServiceTitan is a comprehensive plumbing business software solution built specifically to help service companies streamline their operations, boost revenue, and achieve growth. Our award-winning, cloud-based platform is trusted by more than 100,000+ contractors across the country.
