ElectricalBossPro Blog — Scheduling & Dispatch

On-the-Way Texts for Electrical Service Calls: Fewer Calls Asking Where the Tech Is

Ask anyone who answers the phone at an electrical company what the most common call is, and a lot of them will say some version of “is the electrician still coming?” The customer took the morning off, it is 10:30, and nobody has told them anything. Every one of those calls takes a few minutes, interrupts something else, and usually ends with the office calling or texting the tech to find out.

The on-the-way text answers that question before it gets asked.

Fewer Skips, Fewer Calls

The previous guide, When a Tech Taps Skip: Putting Missed Electrical Calls Back on the Schedule, pointed out that the best way to reduce skipped jobs is to make sure customers know the van is coming. On-the-way texts are a big part of that.

How It Works

In ElectricalBossPro, the tech app sends on-the-way texts automatically as the tech works through the route. The tech does not type anything. As they head to the next stop, the customer at that stop gets a text that the tech is on the way.

Because the text follows the tech's actual progress, it stays accurate even when the day changes. If a same-day call was added ahead of a customer, or an earlier stop ran long, the on-the-way text still goes out when the tech is really headed there, not at a time somebody guessed in the morning.

Why It Matters for Electrical Work

Electrical service is mostly inside work. The tech needs to get to the panel, the outlets, the attic, the garage. That means somebody has to be home and ready to open the door. An on-the-way text helps in several ways:

• Someone is at the door. A homeowner who knows the tech is coming is there to let them in.
• The path is clear. A customer with a few minutes' warning can move the car out of the garage or clear the area in front of the panel.
• Pets are put away. A dog that is safely in a back room is one less thing for the tech to manage.
• The office phone is quieter. Customers who know the tech is on the way do not call to ask.

The Customer Chooses Their Alerts

Not every customer wants every text. In ElectricalBossPro, customers choose their alert preferences: a reminder the night before, a text when they are next and a text when the tech arrives. Some want all three. Some want only the arrived text. The automatic messages follow those choices. For more on the choices, see Night-Before Reminders and Customer Alert Choices for Electrical Appointments.

The Live Map in the Customer App

Customers who use the customer app get more than a text. They can open today's route on a live map and see where they are in line: “You're stop 12 of 20 — the crew is 5 stops away.” For a customer who wants to plan their morning around the visit, that is often more useful than any single message.

Replies Come to the Office

Sometimes a customer replies to the on-the-way text: “Can you give me 15 minutes?” or “Side gate is open, come around back.” Those replies come back to the office through two-way texting, not to the tech's personal phone. The office can pass the message along, adjust the route order if needed, or update the access notes on the address for next time.

That keeps the tech focused on driving and working, and it keeps a record of the conversation with the customer.

Keeping Texts Short

Texts are billed by segment, and every ElectricalBossPro plan includes a monthly text allowance: 500, 1,000 or 2,000 segments sent and received on Start, Pro and Crew. Short, plain messages go further. The automatic on-the-way message is built to be short and clear.

Texting is available for customers in the US and Canada.

On-the-Way Texts on Commercial Jobs

For commercial accounts, the person who needs the heads-up is often a store manager or a facilities contact rather than the owner. Make sure the right contact is on the account so the text reaches someone at the building who can open the back door or the electrical room.

A Small Text That Saves a Lot of Calls

On-the-way texts are one of the simplest things an electrical company can do to look organized. The customer feels informed, the tech gets in the door faster and the office phone rings less. To see how customer texts fit with the dispatch board and routing, visit the ElectricalBossPro electrician scheduling software page.