SolarCleaningBossPro Blog — Recurring Cleanings

Reminders Before Every Solar Cleaning Plan Visit

A plan customer agreed to be cleaned every six months. That does not mean they remember when six months is up. If the truck shows up and the gate is locked, the dog is in the yard and the homeowner is confused about why someone is on their roof, the plan is in trouble. Reminders fix most of that before it happens.

Why Plan Customers Need Reminders

Seasonal Timing for Recurring Solar Cleaning: Spring Pollen, Summer Dust and After Storms covered when plan visits should land. Reminders make sure the customer knows they are landing.

With a one-time cleaning, the customer booked it recently and is expecting you. With a plan, the cleaning came due on its own, the office put it on a route, and the customer may not have thought about solar cleaning since the last visit. A short heads-up turns a surprise into a welcome visit.

Reminders also protect the route. A locked gate or a dog in the yard means a skipped stop, a return trip and a plan that slides toward overdue.

The Three Customer Alerts

SolarCleaningBossPro customers choose which alerts they want:

• Night before. “Your solar panel cleaning is scheduled for tomorrow.” Time to open the side gate, move the car out of the way of the ladder, and bring the dog in.
• When they are next. The crew is on the way to their house. Useful for customers who are home and want to know when to expect the truck.
• When the tech arrives. An arrived alert when the tech starts at their address, so nobody is surprised to see someone on the roof.

Reminders go out automatically by text and email. Nobody in the office has to send them.

The Live Route Map

For customers who like to watch, the customer app shows today's route on a live map: “You're stop 12 of 20 — the crew is 5 stops away.” That is especially handy for commercial property managers who need to meet the crew, or homeowners who want to be home for the cleaning.

It also cuts down calls to the office asking when the truck will get there.

Two-Way Texting for Replies

Customers reply to reminders. “Can you come Thursday instead?” “New gate code is 4412.” “We sold the house.” Those replies come back to the office through two-way texting, where someone can move the job, update the access notes or end the plan.

Updating access notes from a reply is worth making a habit. Once the new gate code is on the address, every future visit shows it on the tech's phone. More on what carries over is in Panel Details That Carry Over to Every Recurring Solar Cleaning Visit.

Texts, Segments and Your Allowance

Every SolarCleaningBossPro plan includes a monthly text allowance: 500 segments on Start, 1,000 on Pro and 2,000 on Crew, counting texts sent and received. A short reminder is usually one segment. Longer messages and replies use more.

Keep reminder wording short and plain. Email reminders are a good backup for customers who prefer them, and they do not count against texting.

Texting is available for customers in the US and Canada.

Reminders for Commercial Accounts

Commercial plan visits often need more coordination: a front desk to check in with, a parking lot that should be empty for carport cleaning, or a roof hatch someone has to open. Make sure the right contact on the account gets the night-before reminder, and put check-in details in the access notes so the tech knows who to find.

For property owners with many sites, reminders for each site plus one monthly statement keep everything clear on their end.

After the Visit

Reminders are half the conversation. After the visit, the customer can see the invoice in the customer app, pay online if there is no card on file, and rate the service. Before-and-after photos give them a reason to stay on the plan.

Check the alert settings when a new plan customer signs up. Some people want every alert; some only want the night-before text and nothing else. Respecting that choice keeps reminders welcome instead of annoying, and a customer who feels in control of their alerts is far less likely to tune them out.

It is also worth reading the replies that come in after reminders go out each evening. A handful of quick answers the night before a route can save several skipped stops the next day.

No Surprises, Fewer Skips

Plan customers who hear from you before every visit stay longer and cause fewer skipped stops. To see how reminders fit with the Waiting List, routes and billing, visit the recurring solar cleaning software page.