Text guides

Local service work

Prepare visits, estimates and handoffs for work at a customer's location. Record access details and scope without promising work you cannot perform.

12 practical tasks. Each guide includes a sample request and a way to check the answer.

Prepare a question sheet for a first site visitList what you need to learn before you arrive, grouped by customer goal, site condition, access and constraints. Mark which answers the customer can give by phone and which you can only judge by looking. Bring the sheet and write answers down as you hear them.
Reply to a service-area inquiry clearlyCheck the customer's location against your own service area, then open the reply with a yes, no or not sure. Add the service you can offer, what you still need from them and how to book. Leave out anything you have not decided.
Explain how a customer should prepare for a visitGive the customer only the preparation your company actually requires, in the order they will need it. State the arrival window, what to clear or make available, who will let you in and how to reach you if plans change. Take every item from your own instructions.
Make a photo checklist for documenting a service jobDecide before the job which views you need and why, then ask the customer's permission to photograph them. Pair each shot with a purpose, such as showing the starting condition or the finished work. Frame photos to leave out people and personal items.
Explain the questions left by a service quoteGo through the quote one line at a time and write a question for every line whose scope, unit or exclusion you cannot state in your own words. Send the questions before accepting. Ask the provider to answer in writing so the answers sit beside the quote.
Collect scheduling constraints for a local jobList everyone who must be there, the hours the site can be entered and how long the task takes, then look for overlaps. Write the overlapping windows as candidates to offer the customer. A candidate stays a suggestion until both sides agree and it is recorded.
Draft a weather-related rescheduling messageA rescheduling note names the affected job, gives the reason you actually have, lists only windows you can keep, and asks for a specific reply. Leave out forecasts you have not seen and dates you have not confirmed.
Write a clear service completion summaryA completion summary lists the work performed, what you observed while doing it, any open items with an owner, and who contacts the customer next. Keep observations apart from conclusions about causes, and avoid wording that reads as a guarantee.
Follow up on an estimate without pressureA follow-up refers to the specific estimate, names the one choice still open, offers a useful clarification, and gives the customer an easy way to reply. It assumes no acceptance and adds no deadline or scarcity you cannot support.
Confirm materials for an already scoped jobBefore ordering materials for a scoped job, list each item with its specification and quantity, note where the customer's choice was recorded, and mark whether you have explicit approval to order. Anything that differs from the scope or the customer's selection needs its own confirmation.
Collect the inputs for a day's service routeBefore checking a route, gather one row per job: address, the window the customer agreed to, expected task length, any access limits and the best way to reach the customer. Gaps and overlaps show up quickly once those fields sit side by side.
Keep a useful record for a repeat service visitA repeat-visit record holds what helps the next visit: where things are, what was done before, what the customer prefers and what is still unanswered. Keep personal details to those the work needs, and write preferences as the customer stated them.

Related topics