Irrespective of different industries or business domains, optimizing field service could be challenging for businesses that are not leveraging technology. Moreover, one cannot deny the continuously evolving field service management software solutions that are impacting the industry.
But yeah, choosing the right technology for your business can make a difference. Moreover, if your business is continuously growing, it becomes inevitable for you to gradually start upgrading your system with emerging technology and tools to improve field service, remain competitive, and drive efficiency.
So, before we move ahead, let’s peep a decade back at how technological innovations came into existence and how organizations started imbibing them to impact business growth while cutting down costs.
The transformation took place when cloud-based solutions were being adopted in the form of CRM (Customer Relationship Management) and ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning). With this adoption, cloud-based FSM (Field Service Management) solutions couldn’t remain back.
The concept of process automation, data intelligence, and real-time visibility encouraged businesses to switch from legacy business solutions to cloud-based ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) and CRM (Customer Relationship Management).
To support the field and marketing campaigns, businesses started adopting tools like Email Marketing and Field Service Management etc. Initially, many businesses started with legacy field service management solutions but later understanding the rising need for real-time data visibility, workforce collaboration, and process amalgamation compelled the businesses to upgrade their legacy FSM solutions to cloud-based FSM solutions.
Along with this, we cannot deny the continuous technological innovations as well as their inclusion by business solution vendors to reinforce modern business needs. Such technological innovations can be named AI (Artificial Intelligence), ML (Machine Learning), AR (Augmented Reality), VR (Virtual Reality), IoT (Internet of Things), etc.
So, these technologies are innovated, introduced, and included distinctively in different business solutions to streamline and personalize the growing business needs and satisfy the continuously changing customer anticipations. When it comes to Field Service Management Software, these emerging technologies helped the FSM vendors to facilitate the FSM solution to support and overcome the associated challenges.
Now, it’s time to turn the flow of this blog toward – how these technologies can be used to improve Field Service along with potential use cases.
How to Use Technology to Improve Field Service?
SaaS (Software-as-a-Service)
With the continuous emergence and adoption of the cloud, SaaS-based solutions have been becoming the backbone for organizations today. Leveraging SaaS-based Field Service Management solutions, you can centralize your data to improve data visibility, effectively manage your workforce, and increase productivity.
So, if you are managing your field operations on a global level or comprising remote operations, SaaS-based Field Service Management software can help you seamlessly and effectively manage your field operations. However, SaaS-based Field Solutions are just an initial stage, there is a lot to consider in terms of technology to improve your field operations. Therefore, continue reading this blog, you will get to know a lot.
Again, you cannot deny considering your growing business needs. You can initially start anyhow, but to ensure your participation in the race of your competitors, adopting SaaS-based Field Service Management Software for Growing businesses is a must-have deal for you. Considering this rising impact, many businesses started migrating their legacy system to the cloud.
Here at LionOBytes, we offer full-proof and highly equipped SaaS-based Field Service Management Software for growing businesses that helps improve visibility across your data, people, and processes.
AI (Artificial Intelligence)
If you are not leveraging AI capabilities in your field operations, you are missing the most crucial thing in your business. AI technology uses past data, user behavior, and buying patterns that enable you to serve your customers what they want in the current and what can satisfy them in the near future.
An AI-enabled FSM system can help you with predictive analysis, eliminate the scope of errors, and automate the repetitive tasks that ensure productivity, accuracy, and efficiency.
Furthermore, by leveraging intelligent insights, you can make informed decisions as well as allow everyone in your organization to make instant decisions. Since everyone in your organization will be accessing the same data and insights. They can have a clear and seamless picture of what happened in the past, what is going on, and what is going to happen.
You can even ensure process delays due to automation, reduce your workforce dependency, and ensure seamless workflow across your organization.
With the inclusion of AI in LionO360 Field Service Management software, you can automate your tasks such as work assignments, technician field visits, route scheduling, and more. So, you can see how you can automate your field workflow, level up your workforce productivity, and elevate the efficiency level across your field practices.
IoT (Internet of Things)
To drive effectiveness in your field operations, there is a need for seamless connectivity between your frontline workers, in-house team, and your FSM software. Here IoT plays a vital role along with Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning technological capabilities. Deploying IoT in your FSM system can help you drive predictive maintenance, schedule technical visits through automation, and track people and processes through connected IoT devices.
Here, Statista’s insight can give more clarity- The number of IoT-connected devices was recorded at USD 8.6 billion in the year 2019, which is further listed as USD 13.14 billion in the year 2022, and now it is expected to reach USD 29.42 billion by 2030.
Thus, the above insight clearly reveals how IoT-configured solutions are being adopted by the global market to simplify and improve their day-to-day business operations.
VR (Virtual Reality)
To support remote field work, Virtual Reality is the technology that can improve your customer experience when there is a need to showcase new products virtually yet in a realistic way while being in the field. Thus, by leveraging VR, you can demonstrate and promote your products through field visits irrespective of location or distance.
Secondly, when your field representatives are in the field, they need more information and seamless connectivity with the in-house team as well as should be capable of presenting and serving the dynamic information needed by the customers. Thereby, it requires seamless communication and collaboration with the backend team as well as with their field coordinators or managers.
Here, Virtual Reality can be leveraged to ensure improved customer experience, increase efficiency, and level up the outcomes.
Mobile Solutions
In today’s age, mobility solutions are the most considerable and efficient technological way that you need to imbibe in your FSM solution. From the very first activity of your field executive, such as moving out in the morning to reaching the very first customer to finishing their very last visit, they need to access data and information using any device with real-time efficiency wherein mobile devices seem handy and obvious.
By upgrading your system with a mobile-based FSM solution, you can efficiently plan, manage, and optimize your field operations. For instance, you can track your executives in terms of whether they are following the scheduled automated routes, at what time they are visiting the customer, and how much time they spend with each customer they visit.
Using LionO360 Field Service Management Software, you can easily create territories across your global locations wherein you embrace field operations. Moreover, you can effectively track and monitor both your field executives and field operations simultaneously.
In our FSM system, territories can be created and defined easily using a web version which can be allocated to the associated workforce. Further, you can plan, schedule, and automate routes to be followed by your field representatives to perform customer visits seamlessly while reducing driving time and fuel costs. Using our system, you can create and plan customer visits in an efficient way.
For instance, your executive can begin and ensure their very first and last customer visit near to their home eliminating the need to reach the office as they can access their scheduled visits using their mobile devices and perform accordingly.
In addition, you can even track once they check-in to and check-out from the customer location. With the help of digitized questionnaires that prompt on your executives' mobile devices (equipped with FSM solution) once they register their check-in to the customer location, you can ensure the accuracy and reliability of your customer surveys. Our LionO360 FSM system also allows you to track and perform visits to nearby available customers using built-in GPS.
Improve Your Field Service with LionOBytes
Thus, it doesn’t matter where you start from, but you can’t say no to your continuously growing business necessities. Once your business starts growing, you need to support your growing business needs in terms of field operations.
Since your field representatives are the front face for your customers, performing their tasks with dedication and efficiency is needed to hear and perceive your customers and their future anticipations. This can help you to work on your customers' needs and wants and improve their experience which in turn ensures productivity and increased business revenue.
So, if you are willing to improve your field operations with the help of a technology-equipped FSM solution, LionOBytes can help. To know more about LionO360 Field Service Management Software, talk to our experts, we can reveal and implement an efficient FSM solution for your business.
