4 ways IoT is improving the field service industry
Oftentimes, focusing on keeping costs down while improving customer service relationships can be difficult for organizations in any industry.
But with exponential potential to improve the field service industry by providing real-time insight, increasing efficiency, and reducing costs, Internet of Things (IoT) technology can also drastically improve customer service.
IoT provides a way for field service organizations to achieve their cost-cutting, service enhancing goals. Explore 4 of the ways that IoT can improve your field service company.
1. Automation
Before IoT, lack of context and communication led to delays and customer frustration. Automation and IoT represent a huge breakthrough in customer service, enabling organizations to create lasting relationships.
Now, instead of a multi-step convoluted and cumbersome process, IoT lets you streamline workflows. With IoT, when a device needs service, it independently contacts the field service agency providing specific diagnostic details, which enables the technician to arrive with all the necessary parts to immediately solve the problem.
2. Inventory management
IoT-connected devices now signal operations teams and warehouses when they need a new part. Thanks to mobile technology’s connectivity, technicians in the field can connect to the warehouse directly in real time for accurate inventory insights.
According to research by the Aberdeen Group, mobile technology adoption in the field has resulted in a 33% increase in response time to unexpected events. Additionally, organizations’ ability to tackle more service requests increased by 29%, with a 65% overall increase in improved customer service.
3. Reduced inspections
Did you know that, for 75% of service calls, technicians need a return visit either some or all the time? And the number one reason for those return visits is that the technicians don’t have the right tools/parts required.
Conversely, devices enabled with self-diagnostic capabilities report on performance, reducing the need for in-person technician inspection visits. When a service visit is warranted, technicians arrive with exactly what they need, eliminating the unanticipated need for a return visit.
4. Redefine “Service”
The term “service” used to refer merely to fixing a broken or ineffective device. But with IoT focused on a proactive approach, it can also help anticipate needs and identify things before they become an issue. By utilizing mobility, cloud technology, and big data to optimize predictive maintenance, “service” is now evolving to provide help before an issue is identified.
Learn how to integrate IoT into your field service business, how the future of IoT will impact your business, and gain insights and additional data on how IoT is already improving the field service industry in our eBook, Leading the future of field service: Connecting field service management to the Internet of Things.
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