Considerations When Looking for a Restoration Job Management Platform

What is Restoration Job Management Software?

These restoration software programs help you better organize job information, communicate with clients, and report to adjusters. Before using restoration software to manage my clients and jobs, I’d constantly run into headaches such as forgetting to send an invoice, forgetting to pick up equipment, etc. The biggest pain was waiting for my team to return to the office or calling me just so they could review a job file and get updates on projects. A restoration job management platform is crucial when it comes to documenting and managing your jobs.

When it comes to Job Management/Production, proper restoration software provides a whole new automated toolkit. To compare restoration software here are some basic and advanced features

Restoration Job Management Software Features

5 Factors to Compare Restoration Software

Ease of Use & Customization

Nobody wants to learn and use extremely complicated software. User-friendliness is by far one of the most important aspects of any software. According to our case study, the average Restoration Business bleeds $447.17 per employee per month by choosing a very cumbersome and un-optimizable software. The opportunity cost is huge, there is no need to spend countless hours studying and learning a complex CRM.

Another common misconception is that if the software is simple and easy to use, it may not be robust enough.

Furthermore, a large issue that most software in the industry face is the lack of customization. No two Restoration businesses are alike, so why should each one of them follow the same workflow? In order for your restoration job management software to work seamlessly with your business, it needs to be tailored to your needs. Now, you are probably wondering, “David, does a customizable, optimal, yet easy-to-use software even exist?” Yes, yes it does.

Albi is a very good example of powerful and easy-to-use software. We believe it is our responsibility to continuously innovate and provide you with the most optimal CRM/Job Management Software.

Mobile App Functionality

In today’s society, we are always on the go, which gives our mobile devices the power to be another tool in our Restoration Toolkit. Most up-to-date restoration software has a mobile app, yet many experience similar issues. The app is either too cumbersome, very clunky, or simply unreliable. And let’s be honest, struggling with your much-needed work tool on the field is the last thing you want to struggle with on-site. You can’t afford for the app to go down whilst your technicians are about to clock in, or even worse when you need to acquire an E-Signature from the homeowner. These are all ongoing issues the average restorer faces. How do you prevent this? I’d strongly recommend asking Facebook Groups or other friends who use mobile apps about their experience. In the article, The Top 5 Restoration CRM/Job Management Software, A good way to rate each system’s Mobile App is by analyzing the following:

• UI (User Friendliness & Practicality)

• Responsiveness (How powerful and robust the app is)

• Reliability (How often it experiences outages & customer service)

• Innovation over time

Customer Service

If I had a dollar for every time somebody told me that their software’s customer service is horrible, I’d be a very wealthy man. Let’s face it, the software isn’t perfect. I can’t promise that there will ever be software free of issues, but I can promise that what really separates an exceptional software company from a decent one is the support provided to its customers. Even the largest tech companies such as Apple, Google, and Samsung all have bugs, glitches, and outages. Yet, what matters most is how fast they fix them and their communication with their clients. Customer support time is very important, as most of us are in the field working early on in the day. If something were to happen, we would require rapid customer service. A restoration job management platform should stand with you 24/7, 365. Here at Albi, our average ticket response time is 7 minutes. That’s one of the fastest customer service reports in the industry.

Price & Onboarding Cost

Pricing is pretty significant for the majority of us. Whenever we are interested in a product or service, the first thing we do is research the price. It’s human nature. Each business has different pricing and packages, but in the restoration industry, the average price for a restoration job management platform subscription is $50 per user per month. Many companies include an annual contract when subscribing to their services. Each of this restoration job management software may also charge onboarding fees ranging anywhere from a $500 – $5,000.00 one-time fee. When considering pricing, ask yourself if you really want the cheapest. If you’re mechanically inclined, you might buy the cheapest car, knowing that you could fix it yourself should anything go wrong. If you’re handy, you’ll buy a cheaper house, knowing that you could DIY your way through. If you’re not tech-savvy, do you really want the cheapest piece of software? Would that company really have the resources necessary to keep you onboard? Is the cost of an outdated solution really worth your time? These are all great questions to keep in mind!

Integrations

The old-school software mentality used to be, “Let’s build closed-off systems, so our users never leave and let’s try to build everything!”. The reality is, no matter how many development resources a software company has, it cannot be good at everything. Integrations and open API are very important and new way of doing software. This allows the end user to choose what functionality of which software they want. Let’s say you really loved software X, but Encircle’s moisture mapping feature is far superior. You want to have the ability to use software X in conjunction with Encircle.

Conclusion

Making a software switch or adopting new software is a big change that can yield enormous success within a restoration company. Making the right, educated decision is crucial. At Albi, we go above and beyond to ensure that we help everyone make the best decision for their business. Contact us below to book a strategy session.