Industry White Paper for Field Service Communications One of the greatest challenges for a company with a mobile and distributed workforce is keeping employees connected, especially when they are spread out over large geographies. Managing workers who are frequently on-the-move requires constant communication to make sure that employees are on task, on time, giving regular updates from the field, and being held accountable for their work. These are critical needs for field service companies, and traditional push-to-talk (PTT) services are not delivering effective solutions to accomplish these day-to-day business operations. They don’t function well on today’s smartphones, and they lack the productivity features that are becoming essential for modern workers. 1 How Voxer Business Helps Field Service Companies ‣ Save time and money normally wasted on thousands of phone calls and expensive push-to-talk equipment ‣ Live voice that is simultaneously recorded helps technicians listen and respond to messages when appropriate ‣ Easy group creation allows users to quickly reach entire departments, regions, or functional groups with messages ‣ Text and photo functionality makes it easier to diagnose and troubleshoot issues while on-site ‣ Location sharing allows managers to know where their employees are and can have them remotely check-in ‣ Voxer for Web helps to efficiently dispatch and check on employees’ job progress from a desktop
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Industry White Paper for
Field Service CommunicationsOne of the greatest challenges for a company with a mobile and distributed workforce is keeping employees connected, especially when they are spread out over large geographies. Managing workers who are frequently on-the-move requires constant communication to make sure that employees are on task, on time, giving regular updates from the field, and being held accountable for their work. !These are critical needs for field service companies, and traditional push-to-talk (PTT) services are not delivering effective solutions to accomplish these day-to-day business operations. They don’t function well on today’s smartphones, and they lack the productivity features that are becoming essential for modern workers.
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How Voxer Business Helps Field Service Companies
‣ Save time and money normally wasted on thousands of phone calls and expensive push-to-talk equipment
‣ Live voice that is simultaneously recorded helps technicians listen and respond to messages when appropriate !‣ Easy group creation allows users to quickly reach entire departments, regions, or functional groups with messages !‣ Text and photo functionality makes it easier to diagnose and troubleshoot issues while on-site !‣ Location sharing allows managers to know where their employees are and can have them remotely check-in !‣ Voxer for Web helps to efficiently dispatch and check on employees’ job progress from a desktop
Voxer Business: Industry White Paper for Field Services
1. Unify SMB Communications Study: Uncovering the hidden cost of communications barriers and latency.
Problems with Traditional Push-to-Talk and Phone Calls
Nextel once represented the gold standard in wireless push-to-talk, but the service couldn’t keep up with advancing technology and usage was in steady decline before they shut down the iDEN network in 2013. Since then, Sprint, AT&T and Verizon have touted their PTT services running on 3G data networks, yet failed to provide a solution that combines utility with modern functionality. !CB radios are another solution that companies with technicians in the field have employed for easy dispatch of their employees. But radios (and cellular PTT) lack multimedia capability, are not interoperable with multiple devices and networks, and are missing GPS integrations to track your workforce. In addition, CB radios are typically stationed in a vehicle, and there are long periods of time when workers are not nearby. !The core functionality of push-to-talk remains incredibly useful, however its “live-only” state offers limited capability. When communication can only be live, important information is lost when an employee is unavailable. This wastes time and causes delays which can affect a company’s bottom line. !Many businesses with field service operations now give their employees smartphones or tablets, and use calling and texting as their primary means of communication. However, for dispatch-driven companies, this can mean employees and managers are making thousands of phone calls per day, which is incredibly inefficient, or sending thousands of text messages which can pose safety risks in the field. !There’s no faster way to connect workers in the field to headquarters than Voxer Business. It has a robust suite of features that address the limitations of traditional PTT and phone calls, and is already transforming how hundreds of field service companies operate on a daily basis. !Voxer Business is a modern-day push-to-talk service that works across iOS, Android and Windows Phone devices, as well as on a desktop browser. It’s an app-based solution that is flexible enough to work for companies who own employees’ smartphones and tablets, or companies who have bring-your-own-device policies in place.
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Using phone calls as the primary mode of communication is not cost effective and wastes an extraordinary amount of time. At a minimum, a business with 100 employees could be leaking $524,569 annually as a result of inefficiencies from communication like phone calls.1 !Voxer Business outpaces traditional PTT and phone calls by providing high-performance instant voice on a smartphone (or iPod or tablet) that costs less money, works on any data network (including WiFi), gives you multimedia functionality, consolidates everything to one device, and provides the flexibility to talk in real-time or hear everything later.
“…Service technicians use Voxer to stay “in touch” with their support team. Voxer allows efficient, simple communication between Roto-Rooter service technicians, supervisors and dispatchers.” !- Joyce Welage
Roto-Rooter Plumbing Services Company
Voxer Business | Field Service Communications
Listen Now or Listen Later
Traditional push-to-talk doesn’t allow users to simultaneously monitor multiple channels without missing information because there is no record of the conversation. Every message sent on Voxer Business is live and simultaneously recorded. You get the speed of half-duplex live voice with low latency, but you won’t miss anything, and you won’t need to repeat yourself. !In addition, Voxer Business will provide receipts for every message so the sender can know whether it was delivered, who listened to it, and when they heard it. !This unique form of communication, for which Voxer has over 120 global patents, gives field service workers communication that is never lost when an employee is speaking to a customer or focused on the task at hand. !Voxer Business also has alerts that can be customized to an employee’s preference. If a chat has urgent information coming in, the employee can turn on loud persistent alerts with Extreme Notifications. Conversely, if an employee is engaged with a customer or off the clock, they can turn off alerts and check messages at their convenience. !Connect Large Dispersed Workforces
Field service companies have to find efficient means of communicating with groups of employees distributed across large geographies. Radios work well within a limited area, but not when communicating with management and other team members distributed in multiple cities or other countries. !Using Voxer Business, you can create group chats by selecting participants from your contact list within the app, or you can quickly start a chat with our “Teams” feature. Teams function like distribution lists and connect individuals that are dispersed across different regions or departments.
3Voxer Business: Industry White Paper for Field Services
Once you add employees to the Voxer Business network for your company, an administrator can define functional working groups based on attributes such as geography or specialization. These groups immediately show up in your employees’ contact lists for easy one-touch communication. !Voxer Business also allows users to time-shift their communication efficiently because of its recording functionality. Talk to someone who is in another time zone or country, and if they are available, they’ll hear you as you speak. Otherwise, the message is there for them to respond at an appropriate time. !Multimedia Communication in the Field
Unlike live-only voice solutions, Voxer Business allows you to send text and photos alongside live and recorded audio. It’s a much more flexible solution that allows individuals to communicate in the best possible manner–whether that’s with just voice, or a combination of voice and other forms of communication. !They say that a picture is worth a thousand words, but a picture accompanied by a voice message can tell an even more powerful story. For example, many companies who use Voxer Business take a photo of something that needs to be repaired, such as a downed power line or a damaged good, and then send it to their team or manager to assess the situation. This can be particularly useful for new staff members who are being mentored.
Voxer Business | Field Service Communications
Field service companies that previously required their technicians to do a physical check-in at headquarters before they go out in the field, now have each employee send a vox when they reach their assigned job. Elevator repair company, Centro Elevator, reported that location sharing has resulted in significant savings for their business. !Turn Your Smartphone into a Walkie Talkie
Distracted driving is a big problem for many companies with employees who are constantly on the road. When individuals are busy using their hands, they may not be in a situation where they can legally engage with a phone, and as a result they may miss urgent messages. !Using our “Walkie Talkie Mode” feature, audio will stream aloud live from their phone, and an individual can respond immediately using a headset. Even staff members who like to work with their hands free can wear a ruggedized speaker on the shoulder, and easily talk back with the push of a button. !Voxer for Web: Push-to-Talk for Deskbound Employees
Voxer Business provides a browser-based app called Voxer for Web that allows users to manage multiple conversations from a desktop. Like the smartphone app, Voxer for Web allows you to send and receive live and recorded voice, text, and photos, and see location information. !For dispatchers, managers or administrators who are deskbound, Voxer for Web lets users make the most of computer real estate and see multiple conversations on one screen. Many companies with large workforces even use Voxer for Web as a tool for quality control. Employees send photos of completed jobs which are time and date stamped, and a manager can review and give feedback on the work that was performed.
Safety and Savings with Employee Location
Every message sent on Voxer Business is tagged with where it was sent from, allowing managers to easily assess the location of their employees during working hours and make sure that they are at the right place at the right time. Administrators can even see and hear recent messages from a map using the Voxer Business Manager. !Companies that require safety check-ins for their staff find this feature extremely useful, especially where check-ins were formerly done by making phone calls throughout the day. All it takes is a quick tap of the “Talk” button, and a geotagged message is sent through. !
4Voxer Business: Industry White Paper for Field Services
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"Last year, our only communication tool was the phone. After using Voxer Business during one storm this year ... I couldn’t imagine using anything else.” !
