GarageDoorBossPro Blog — Scheduling & Dispatch

On-the-Way Texts: Letting Homeowners Know the Garage Door Tech Is Coming

“What time is the tech coming?” is the question every garage door office hears all day. The honest answer is usually “sometime after the current job,” which nobody likes. The on-the-way text replaces that guess with a fact: the tech is heading to you now.

Rescheduled or Not, the Text Follows the Tech

Moving jobs around the board is covered in Rescheduling Garage Door Jobs Without Losing Track of Them. The reason rescheduling does not leave customers confused is that the on-the-way text is tied to the tech, not to a time someone guessed that morning.

In GarageDoorBossPro, the tech app sends the on-the-way text automatically when the tech heads to a job. The tech does not type anything or pick a template. They work their route, and each customer hears from the shop when it is actually their turn.

Why It Matters for Garage Door Work

Garage door visits often need something from the homeowner. Unlike a lawn crew, the tech usually cannot do the job without access to the garage:

• Someone home to open the house door into the garage, or to show the tech which remote or keypad is acting up.
• A clear bay. If the car is parked in front of the problem door, or inside it, the tech needs it moved.
• The keypad code working if nobody will be home.
• Pets put away before the door goes up.

It also helps when the problem is the door itself. A homeowner whose door will not open cannot let the tech in through the garage, so the tech will need the front door or a side door. A text that says the tech is coming lets them get to the right door in time, and a reply to the office can add “come to the side gate” to the job notes before the tech pulls up.

An on-the-way text gives the homeowner a few minutes to handle all of that. The tech arrives to an open, clear garage instead of a locked door and a car in the way.

Customers Choose Their Alerts

Not every customer wants every text. In the customer app, customers can set their alert preferences: the night before, when they are next, and when the tech arrives. The on-the-way text from the tech app adds the moment the tech heads over. Between them, a customer can choose anything from a single heads-up to the full set.

A homeowner who works from home might only want the arrived text. One who needs to drive back from the office might want the “when I'm next” alert for extra notice. Letting them choose means fewer people tune the texts out.

Same-Day Calls and Shuffled Routes

Where on-the-way texts earn their keep is on days that change. When a car-trapped call goes to the front of the route, everyone behind it moves back. Without automatic texts, the office would be calling each of them. With them, each customer simply gets their text later than they might have expected, at the moment the tech actually heads their way.

Customers who use the customer app can also see the live route map, with their place in line: “You're stop 12 of 20 — the tech is 5 stops away.” For more, see You're Stop 4 of 9: The Customer's Live Route Map for Garage Door Visits.

The same goes for installs. An install customer who knows the installer is on the way can back the car out, clear the shelves near the opening and make sure the kids and pets are clear of the work area before the van arrives.

Replies Come to the Office

Sometimes a customer answers the on-the-way text: “Can he use the side door?” or “I'm 10 minutes out, can he wait?” Two-way texting sends those replies to the office, not to a tech's personal phone. The office can answer, add a note to the job, or call the tech if it is urgent. Techs keep their hands on the work and their personal numbers private.

Texting counts toward the plan's monthly text allowance, which is 500, 1,000 or 2,000 texts sent and received on Start, Pro or Crew, in the US and Canada. A day of on-the-way and arrived texts for a two-van shop fits comfortably.

Fewer Calls, Fewer Wasted Trips

The office feels the difference first. Fewer “where is he?” calls means more time to answer the calls that are new work. The techs feel it next: fewer stops where nobody is home, fewer bays with a car parked in front, fewer return trips. And customers feel like they are dealing with a company that has its act together.

The arrived text is the other half of the pair, covered next in this series. For how customer texts fit with the dispatch board and routing, go back to the garage door scheduling software page.