If someone were to tell you to think about a plumbing business or an electrician's business or a carpentry business, you would probably have a pretty clear idea of what that business looks like but you probably wouldn't associate it with any cutting-edge technology.
Why is that?
It's because the trade industry, for a long time, has stood still.
As one of the most traditional, long-standing career paths, those who work as tradespeople have been slow to pick up on new technology and implement it into their businesses.
The fault does not solely lie at the boots of our service personnel, however. Part of the problem has been that the technology just hasn't been there.
Our tradies have been criminally underserviced. But today, times are changing.
CRMs, quoting and job management software
Perhaps the best example of this technological lag can be seen through the continued persistence of paper quotes, excel spreadsheets and tedious, time-consuming bookkeeping that many tradies still use.
While other industries have welcomed new technology, making use of advanced CRM systems that can manage all their customer communications and admin needs, many tradespeople still don't know what this technology is.
In case you are unaware, CRM stands for customer relationship management and refers to any system used to manage interactions between a business and its customers. It can also refer to internal software used by employees to manage business processes.
The truth is, the technology for tradespeople is out there and for those who embrace it, the opportunities are vast.
But how does it actually work?
The opportunities for tradespeople
Let's break down some of the tasks that tradespeople complete day to day.
One of the most common tasks tradies have to do is pricing jobs. This involves assessing a job, totalling up the costs and sending the customer a quote.
If we consider how this process has traditionally been completed, it involved a tradesperson speaking to the customer, making some notes and sending out a piece of paper with a price scribbled on it (although admittedly not every quote is this bad).
There are a couple of issues here. The process of designing the quote is inefficient with no structure in place to make uniform well-designed estimates. What's more, poorly designed quotes look unprofessional to the customer and can give a bad impression.
This is where CRM technology shows its value.
When tradespeople use CRM they can create digital templates that are saved within their account. They can design, smart, professional-looking quotes that they can send out instantly to the customer.
For those who use this software, they are able to convert far more of their quotes, increasing conversion by 10% or more. Even for those who are concerned about the cost of paying for a CRM subscription, just a 10% increase in conversion equates to a return on investment of well over 100%.
Furthermore, with this technology, those who use the software can add additional products and services to the quotes meaning they can upsell to their customers. This allows users to significantly increase the value of every job, meaning they make more from the same work.
The impact on trade businesses
The impact of this technology is significant. Of course, there is the headline benefit of increased profits, but some of the other benefits are also incredibly valuable.
Job management software allows a business to save time by reducing the admin time spent organising jobs, designing quotes and managing projects. With a job management system, all the work processes are managed through one platform. This frees up business owners to focus on their customers or reclaim their free time.
Many tradespeople have to work long hours, spending time on the job and then further time running their businesses. The right technology can give tradespeople their lives back while improving their businesses.
Finally, the tide is turning, as more and more tradespeople are embracing this technology and incorporating it into their processes.
For an industry that struggles to attract young talent, the opportunities to make working as a tradesperson more appealing through tech can help to address this issue and take the industry forward.
Payaca is a Bristol-based company who are trying to address this technological imbalance. Their CRM and job management software allows trade businesses to manage all their business processes from one platform (available via an app or online).