INSTALLERSUPPORT
RE-LAUNCHING SALES
& INSTALLATIONS OUT
OF LOCKDOWN
Post lockdown, the Covid-19 virus will
leave us with changes in the way that
we go about many every-day routines
and tasks. Some of those changes, whilst
perhaps pushed upon us initially, will have
long-term benefits. After all, the ability to
process key functions more quickly and
accurately at every stage of the window
sales and installation process, is damned
useful whatever the circumstances might be.
Rhonda Ridge
created AdminBase
Leads are Gold!
The AdminBase
sales app will
help you secure
contracts quickly
and accurately
» AND, MAYBE WE WERE OVERDUE
for a change up anyway says Rhonda Ridge,
creator of AdminBase.
When the lockdown was announced by
the Government, the British window, door,
conservatory and roofline industry closed
its doors overnight. The prevailing attitude,
from within, is one of a determination to get
back to work. The attitude of homeowners,
however, has yet to have been properly tested;
of course showing interest is a far cry from
actually allowing strangers into their homes.
Nonetheless, we are moving that way and
the interest in replacing windows and doors
and adding a conservatory, is growing quickly.
And, it is more crucial than ever, that every
indication of interest is captured and nurtured
to ensure that we make the most of every
opportunity.
I believe that AdminBase, the system that
I wrote originally more than 20 years ago,
could well have been developed specifically for
lockdown.
A great deal of imagination and innovation
has allowed installers to reach out to
homeowners pondering the replacement of
their fading, leaking window frames, with
sales being conducted via FaceTime and
Zoom and subject-to-survey quotations being
calculated with surprising ease on the part
of salesperson and customer. Styles, colours,
hardware…everything can be agreed without
the previously ‘essential’ home visit.
But just how slick and accurate was the
online, remote sales chat, probably undertaken
by a home-based rep? How much information
was missed or lost for example? And could the
call have been smoother, better structured?
The AdminBase apps cover each of the key
site-based functions: sales, survey, installation;
and post installation snagging and sign off.
Each app, using a tablet computer, takes
its operator through a logical, step-by-step
process that literally drills down through
every detail required to accurately price up
windows, doors, conservatories, roofline,
whatever.
The sales app is highly effective in making
remote selling and pricing slicker and more
dynamic - by as much as 70% faster and more
accurate, even compared to an experienced
salesperson using conventional forms or
notepad.
Once the dimensions have been entered the
sales app will calculate the price and produce
a sales contract that can be sent immediately
to the homeowner, even whilst they are still on
the call. The customer may then digitally sign
the contract, all without any physical contact
at any point in the process. The information
then passed on to the surveyor for the
inevitable home visit.
Of course, home visits are then essential
but, equipped with the special AdminBase
surveying app that has been uploaded with all
of the information entered by the salesperson
(and probably supervisor double-checked),
the key element of surveying the property to
be installed, is possible both quickly - and
crucially - accurately.
The
surveyor is
taken through
the process by
a series of prompts
and sizes and specifications are checked and
updated, with add-ons, trims and fitters
notes and risk assessments all added logically
and intuitively. The survey information is
then transmitted to the central AdminBase
system via Internet from the homeowner’s
property. An amended contract can then be
sent electronically back to the client with any
variance highlighted between sales and survey.
Once signed off – again electronically - survey
data can then be used to order digitally from
suppliers.
The mobile apps for Surveyor, Fitter and
Service Engineer are all similarly structured,
with each using a single set of data held
centrally, eliminating duplication, with
prompts guiding each process logically. No
more computer knowledge than the ability
to operate a smartphone is required. At
every stage of the process human contact is
minimised or even eradicated. The AdminBase
mobile apps feed all information directly into
and from the central AdminBase system. Even
the most technophobic users have found the
apps to be easy and intuitive to use, with no
previous computing ability required and the
cost is via a surprisingly affordable, monthly
subscription.
www.abinitiosoftware.co.uk
CLEARVIEW-UK.COM » JUN 2020 » 25