Why Salesforce Field Service is booming
“We are the experience we provide to customers,” — this is how Augie
Ray, VP of Customer
Experience of Gartner, describes the importance of client satisfaction. Creating a seamless
experience for the customers of on-site service companies is the ultimate goal of Salesforce
Field Service Lightning (FSL). FSL transforms a service delivery process, which not only
streamlines workflows but also helps companies win potential clients’ favour.Poor customer experiences cause big losses — they cost US businesses $62
billion every year.
So, let’s figure out why it’s time for field service companies to start leveraging efficient
field service management solutions, such as that of Salesforce FSL.
Salesforce Field Service Lightning at a Glance
Before we discuss Salesforce Field Service Lightning, let’s first
clarify what field service
management is exactly. It’s establishing and maintaining the efficient operation of a
company’s on-site employees.So Salesforce Field Service Lightning is an all-in-one solution that unites customers,
agents, dispatchers and field workers on a single platform to improve the efficiency of
field operation and streamline the customer journey.Salesforce introduced this solution in 2016, and it has since become the company’s best
seller. One year later, Gartner included FSL into its 2017 Magic Quadrant for Field Service
Management.
At the heart of the solution, there is an AI-based scheduling and resource optimisation
functionality that is guided by the nature of a task, the available inventory, and workers’
location and skills. As a single solution, Salesforce Field Service Lightning meets the needs of all service
process participants:
Image 1. Gartner’s 2019 Magic Quadrant for Field Service
Management
Source: servicemax.com
FSL brings together powerful management software for office personnel, a full-fledged mobile
app for field employees and a user-friendly web application for customers.- Customers make and monitor service requests and consult with agents.
- Office employees have a 360-degree overview of all appointments, check if orders are assigned to proper technicians, manage work orders, and monitor SLA compliance and employee productivity.
- Field employees have real-time information on their daily schedule, traffic, appointment details and inventory, use the knowledge database, and capture all required data as notes or photos.
The Businesses Salesforce Field Service Lightning Serves
Seamless Customer Experiences The customer is always the boss, and business success depends entirely on client
satisfaction. This is especially true of service-oriented companies, which is why businesses
must make delivering frictionless customer experiences their top priority. For companies that provide on-site services, intelligent automation of client interactions
is a must as it helps them create a much more flawless customer journey. Similarly,
Salesforce FSL nurtures an easy, ongoing conversation between a company and its
clients. Turning to businesses that rely on FSL, clients don’t waste time to schedule service
appointments; instead, they interact with a company, create and manage their requests via an
advanced customer portal. Return customers have an even easier time: data from their
previous visits is stored, so they can arrange an appointment with only a few
clicks. The scheduling functionality powered by artificial intelligence ensures that customers get
their issues fixed as quickly as possible and by technicians that have the most relevant
expertise. Automated scheduling also eliminates the human factor, which ensures that all
requests are processed and appointments aren’t mishandled. Will clients turn to an on-site service company with antiquated processes after they have
tasted all the benefits of FSL? Unlikely, provided that the quality of the field service
itself is excellent.
High Employee Efficiency
Employees are the most valuable asset for any company, and depending on how a company treats
the asset, its productivity may rise or drop. Businesses that supply their employees with
FSL make significant investments in their productivity. Image 3. The look and feel of Salesforce Field Service Lightning
software
Source: salesforce.com
Cost Efficiency
Seamless customer experiences not only contribute to client loyalty but also increase
revenue as more customers come on board. FSL helps businesses attract as many clients as
possible; their management doesn’t cause inconvenience as the solution makes the most out of
companies’ resources. In addition to growing profits and not losing trades, the solution also helps companies
rationally use their resources, which lowers their overhead and reduces operating costs. There’s a slight hitch: FSL is not a free tool. However, the grand total of growing profits
and decreasing operating expenses significantly surpasses the cost of the software. Outstanding Business Performance
No factor contributes to the efficient performance of a field service company more than the
high productivity of its employees and the constant increase in customers. FSL helps companies achieve both objectives: seamless order placement and management
contribute to positive customer experiences, while the elimination of waste work boosts
employee productivity. Also, Salesforce stats show that with FSL, companies resolve client’s
issues 48%
faster as field employees come on site prepared for the task. In conclusion, the company enhances its processes and improves customer loyalty; as a
result, the business stands out from the competition and its financials skyrocket.The Businesses Salesforce Field Service Lightning Serves
Ensuring frictionless customer experiences has become the primary
concern for an increasing
number of companies, and growing expenses on CX technologies demonstrate it.
Image 4. Spending on CX technologies worldwide (in billion
dollars)
Source: statista.com
What are the companies that can make the most out of FSL’s field service automation? These
are the companies that provide on-site services — especially those that have a lot of
employees working in the field and requiring to be connected to an internal process
management solution. Field Service Lightning can be used in a wide variety of business domains and by companies
of all sizes — from SMEs to large market players. An increasing number of energy and health
care providers, manufacturing, life sciences, financial and consumer goods companies are
coming on board. As to technical limitations a company may have, the solution fits any IT infrastructure: FSL
is platform-agnostic and enables deployment on premises and in the cloud. Moreover, Field
Service Lightning is a part of an extensive Salesforce ecosystem, which is why businesses
that already use the CRM will probably benefit from FSL the most.Be Ahead of the Field with Field Service Lightning
Recently, the field service market has been growing exponentially
and soon solutions for
on-site service delivery automation will become a prerequisite for efficient business
performance. For companies that seek to make a mark in their market, now is the perfect time
to introduce an efficient solution for their field operation management.
Considering the advantages that FSL provides to businesses, it’s safe to say that this
solution will soon become the leader in the field service management market. FSL opens the
incredible potential for streamlining the conversation between customers, field technicians
and internal order monitoring service. That’s why we recommend that on-site service
companies automate their service delivery processes with FSL to add value to their
businesses.To get Field Service Lightning license pricing and implementation quote, or make sure that
Salesforce FSL is the right solution for you, feel free to contact us.
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