Cure This “Business Cancer”, Tech Cell Phone Addiction
Don’t allow your techs to text away your 5-star reviews! Learn how to implement a rock-solid home service staff cell phone policy and protect your company’s image.
KickStart: Cell phones are addictive. Accept it! Be reasonable, but set boundaries to avoid negative reviews and win customer cheerleaders.
When your tech rings the doorbell, this homeowner is already on edge. The red wine has spilled on their carpet, their AC is blowing warm air, they’ve got ants in the pantry, (better than in their pants😦) or their toilet is completely blocked. (I’ll spare you the photo!) 🫣
This means our clients are inevitably stressed, vulnerable, and now they have a complete stranger in their inner sanctum, their precious home! Due to this high-emotion environment…
🗝️ Never forget, every action of your tech is being subconsciously watched, judged and tallied by the homeowner!
I call these often-subliminal impressions “Moments of Truth.” Create tons of POSITIVE Moments of Truth and you’ve got yerself an almost guaranteed ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ review! 🎊🎉💖🎈 But WAIT!
It is time now to cue up the menacing sound score from Jaws…
Negative Moments of Truth will sneakily, silently doom your company!
“Seriously, Steve?” Silently’?” Because most clients that have been turned off by your tech will silently “fade away”. They just won’t call you again… and tragically you never will even know! 😢
NOTE: The above paragraph brings up a host of issues we’ll touch on in future KickStarts. So if you haven’t subscribed yet… sign up HERE!
Right now? There is a hidden cancer in our industry that is creating massive negative Moments of Truth in your home services business every day!
☠️ I’m talking about cell phones!
LISTEN CAREFULLY: The cell phone issue is a minefield! Today’s employees (including your residential techs) are totally addicted to their phone screens.
NOTE: Young cell phone users ages 18–24 (likely the age range of your techs)) average 109.5 total messages sent and received daily. (Many of them during working hours!) Let’s analyze this…
Productivity Analysis: Suppose your tech gets 1/3 of these messages while in your clients’ homes. That’s 36.5 messages and if each one requires 3 minutes (likely more) that’s one hour and 49 minutes (almost 25% of their 8-hour day) when your tech isn’t working! But it gets worse… ☠️
🗝️ Picture this: Your customer feels they are paying top dollar. They walk into the kitchen and see your tech leaning against the counter, furiously texting with a goofy smile on their face. Or worse, a wildly inappropriate, loud ringtone goes off at the same time!
Boom. Instant HUGE negative Moment of Truth! The homeowner immediately thinks, “I’m paying $493.00 for this guy to text his girlfriend?” Not to mention the obvious—if they are texting, they aren’t working!
So, how do we fix this problem without causing a full-blown employee mutiny? After all, your techs ARE “addicted”, and addicts need to get their fix, right? 🤷🏼♀️
Draw a firm line in the sand by creating a rock-solid home service technician cell phone policy. Here is how you handle it like a home services pro:
The “Truck Only” Rule: Personal cell phones stay in the truck during a service call, period. If techs need a device for invoicing and/or checking in with dispatch, provide a locked-down company tablet that only runs business apps.
Sanitize their ring tones: If a tech absolutely must have a phone on them for safety reasons, mandate that it stays on vibrate. No loud music, and absolutely NO offensive custom alerts that will offend clients. (Imagine the 1-star review!) 🥹
Schedule “fixes” for their addiction: Give your team designated times to check their personal phones—between jobs, on lunch breaks, or while parked safely in the van.
Steve’s Takeaway: Want to transform your everyday service calls into a ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ review machine? Then you MUST manage the small (that really can be HUGE) Moments of Truth! STOP 🛑 allowing a palm-sized piece of glass to silently ruin your company’s hard-earned image!
Next Week: How to handle your "meh" employees. (Without going crazy!)
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