A lot of work goes into a moving business, especially during peak season. You have to think of all your clients and the relocations you’re performing for them, you have to plan and execute marketing strategies, you have to take care of all your equipment, you have to train new moving crews… And sometimes, it just feels like there aren’t enough hours in the day to do everything you need to do. That is why you need to save some time with the best moving company software and some great workflow automation for movers. But what does workflow automation mean in the moving business and how can you achieve it? Let’s start with the basics.
What is workflow automation for movers?
Workflow automation refers to the use of technology for repetitive, rule-based work. Typically, when we talk about automation, the image of robot arms in industrial production is the first that comes to mind. This is, indeed, one form of automation. But both technology and industry have evolved since automation first became a relevant concept. These days, automation can take different forms. Many of them revolve around computer-based work.
We may, for example, automate data entry, data analysis, some aspects of digital marketing for movers, even certain forms of customer service. The key is identifying a task that follows a certain logic and pattern, then implementing software that can do the work instead of your employees.
How does workflow automation for movers save time?
Workflow automation comes with plenty of benefits. One of the biggest is the fact that it saves massive amounts of time. In the moving industry, where some tasks simply cannot be automated (yet), having more time means taking on more clients which leads to more profits. So it’s definitely in your best interest to save time by implementing some form of automation.
Less time spent on menial tasks
The most obvious way in which automation saves time is by reducing the number of hours your employees spend on menial tasks a computer can do just as well.
- For example, an average business spends more than 10 hours every week on data entry. You can reduce that number to zero with a good piece of software! That leaves your employees with 10 more hours to focus on other tasks that require their attention. In addition to data entry, you can automate such tasks as the nurturing of top moving leads, all kinds of marketing, social media activity, estimate calculations, billing processes, and more. This frees up your employees to do things computers cannot, like providing personalized support for your customers or creating content for marketing.
Streamlined business processes
Humans often do things a certain way purely out of habit. Because of this, it is sometimes hard for us to improve our workflow even when we know there’s a faster or more effective way to achieve the same results. Machines do not have a problem with this. When you automate certain tasks, the technology you’re using will opt for the fastest, most effective way to complete the process. You’ll do away with unnecessary tasks and trim the fat off your business processes, thus making them more efficient and saving even more time.
Better communication
Without automation software, you rely on your employees to constantly report their work to you. Not only does this take time away from their day, but it is also an unreliable system. Sometimes, people forget to send an email or they don’t give you all the information you need. With automation, this isn’t an issue. Everyone can access the same automation software and monitor what others in the team are doing. You’ll save time by cutting down unnecessary internal communication and reducing the chance of miscommunication.
Higher productivity
Machines and AIs are often much faster than people when it comes to repetitive tasks. Your automation software will, therefore, be more productive than your workers. This, in turn, means you’re doing work faster which leaves you with more time in the workday. But that’s not all. Repetitive tasks dull the senses. So when your workers are performing them, they’re actually gradually becoming worse at their jobs. By automating these tasks, you will free them from the rut and they’ll be able to work better, faster, and more creatively on other things.
Fewer mistakes
Human error is unavoidable – even the best employees make mistakes sometimes. But computers don’t! Your website quote calculator can’t add up numbers wrong or forget the weight of a certain item. And when you make fewer mistakes, you spend less time correcting them too. You’ll never have to go back and waste time on identifying issues and fixing them when they aren’t there in the first place.
More strategic planning
Every year, you need to come up with a new annual business plan. You develop this plan based on data and insights from your previous experience. By streamlining your work processes, cutting them down to the basics, and opening up new possibilities for productivity, workflow automation fundamentally changes how your business operates. This shouldn’t scare you – it’s a good thing! In fact, it allows you to better understand your business and how it operates. Then, you can use this new knowledge to develop better and more strategic plans for the future.
Implementing workflow automation for movers
Since workflow automation for movers saves time, it’s always a worthy investment. But like any other big change, it’s not something you implement overnight. First, you’ll need to identify which tasks you can automate. While computers still can’t move furniture, they can help you keep your customer database up to date, for example. Once you’ve found the right tasks to focus on, you need to find the perfect automation software. CRM software is a great automation tool but what you choose will depend on the tasks you’re automating.
Finally, you need to go through the process of onboarding or retraining. The employees that automation is replacing will either need to learn how to work with your new software or move on to different tasks. Either way, it’s up to you to find a new place for them in your company.
