GarageDoorBossPro Blog — Technician App

The Arrived Text: Telling the Homeowner the Garage Door Tech Is in the Driveway

There is a moment on every garage door call when a stranger in a uniform walks up to someone's house. If the homeowner is expecting them, it is a relief. If they are not, it is unsettling, especially for someone home alone, or for a homeowner at work who sees a van on their doorbell camera. The arrived text takes care of that moment.

What the Arrived Text Does

The on-the-way heads-up is covered in Automatic On-the-Way Texts From the Garage Door Tech's Phone. The arrived text is its partner.

When the tech gets to the house, customers who have chosen the “when the tech arrives” alert get an automatic text saying the tech is there. As with the on-the-way text, the tech does not type anything. It goes out on its own as part of working the call.

Why It Matters for Garage Door Calls

Garage door calls have a few quirks that make the arrived text more useful than in many trades:

• Homeowners at work. Many garage door calls happen with nobody home, using a keypad or side-door code. The arrived text tells the homeowner the tech is there and working, so they are not surprised by an alert from their camera or the garage door going up.
• Homeowners in the house. A customer inside can come out, open the side door or move the car the moment the tech pulls up.
• Landlords and property managers. An owner managing rentals knows the tech has reached the house, even if they are across town.
• Peace of mind. Anyone home alone can check that the person at the door is the tech they booked.

Arrival and the Start Button

Arrival and Start belong together in the tech's habits. The tech pulls up, reads the card, taps Start in the driveway, and walks up. The homeowner knows the tech is there; the office knows the call is underway. One moment, two messages, no phone calls.

It also helps the office answer questions. If a homeowner calls to ask whether the tech made it, the office can see the call is underway and, with crew GPS, see the tech's location on the office map.

Choosing Alerts Customers Want

Customers pick their own alerts: night before, when they're next, and when the tech arrives. Some only want the arrived text. Others turn it off because they will be standing in the driveway anyway. Let them choose.

A few patterns tend to work well for garage door companies:

• Repair calls: all three alerts, since the customer is usually waiting on the fix.
• Yearly tune-ups: night before and arrived, so they remember the visit and know when it is happening.
• Commercial accounts: arrived texts to the site contact, so someone can meet the tech at the right dock.

Every plan includes a monthly text allowance that covers texts sent and received, so short, useful alerts are the right default.

When Plans Change on Arrival

Sometimes the tech arrives and the homeowner replies right away: “I'm running ten minutes late, can you wait?” or “Garage code is 2290, go ahead.” Those replies go to the office through two-way texting. The office can pass the message along to the tech and, if the code is new, update the access notes so it is right next time.

If the tech can't get in at all, the call becomes a skip with a note, and the office reschedules. Because the homeowner already got the arrived text, they know the tech really came, which makes that conversation much easier.

The arrived text also protects the tech. If a homeowner later says nobody came, the record shows the call was started and the arrived alert went out. Combined with photos and crew GPS, it gives the office a clear answer to any question about whether, and when, the tech was on site. That is one less awkward conversation for the tech and one less refund the office has to think about.

As with every automatic message, keep the arrived text short and friendly. It only needs to say who is there and from which company. Anything longer is better handled by the office through two-way texting if the customer replies.

Part of a Complete Picture for Customers

The arrived text is one piece of what the customer sees. The others are the night-before reminder, the on-the-way text, the live map in the customer app, and after the job, the invoice and online payment. Together they tell the customer what is happening from the day before the call until it is paid. That customer side of the app is covered in The Customer's Side of the Tech App: Live Map, Alerts and Paying Online.

Next comes the end of the call: charging the card on file when the tech taps Complete. For the full list of tech app features, visit the GarageDoorBossPro garage door technician app page.