How Aspire aids communication, quality, & client satisfaction in landscaping operations

With the evolution of the landscaping industry, the concept of 'technology as a tool' has become more widely accepted. In fact, many landscapers now rely on software to understand their actual costs, optimize day-to-day operations, analyze their business performance, and maximize their profitability. 

However, as growing numbers of contractors are embracing technology, many are finding its use is also becoming an expectation—or even a qualification—for some potential customers. Whether you're faced with answering questions on a request for proposal (RFP) or during a sales conversation, it's important to understand how Aspire not only benefits you as the business owner but also how it impacts your customers.

Now, let's take a closer look.

Because Aspire business management software offers true end-to-end functionality that spans all areas of your business, information from every department is input into one system for centralized access by users across the entire organization. This seamless integration provides full visibility to aid communication and improve efficiency so you can ensure the best possible customer experience.

It all starts with the estimate

In Aspire, all information originates from the estimate and flows through the system to ensure no details are lost in the day-to-day shuffle. Once complete, you can easily deliver estimates and accept signatures electronically via email or the client portal, and customers can view and approve bids directly within the portal. For smaller enhancement proposals, Aspire allows account managers to easily create proposals and capture signatures on the spot while in the field, right from their laptop or tablet.

Once an estimate is won, it becomes a contract for the customer to sign. Aspire automatically converts signed contracts into work tickets that are ready for scheduling. The system provides full visibility of the work tickets in your pipeline so you can plainly see upcoming resource requirements. It’s also nearly impossible to miss or forget to schedule a job with Aspire. The system will automatically flag a work ticket that hasn’t been scheduled to ensure nothing falls through the cracks.

Staying in sync

Aspire’s flexible, easy-to-use interface turns scheduling crews and planning routes to optimize travel time into a simple task. When scheduling work tickets, a production manager or operations manager can choose to add these jobs to the schedule one by one, or they may opt to use the recurring schedule feature which allows scheduling of an entire contract year’s worth of services in just a few clicks.

The schedule board in Aspire updates in real time to keep everyone in sync—from the office to the field—by providing an at-a-glance view of all jobs as well as their progress, allowing you to monitor and manage crew activity, understand your capacity for new work, and ensure jobs stay on time and on budget.

Making additions and/or changes is as easy as dragging and dropping the jobs onto a different day. The schedule updates immediately to display the latest information, and updates are sent directly to crews via Aspire’s mobile app. Users can also see what materials are needed across all projects in progress, and the materials and equipment required for each job are visible to crews’ mobile devices to help ensure they’re prepared for the day when leaving the yard.

Communicating clearly

Aspire’s site audit functionality allows account managers to visit client properties, identify areas of potential concern, and make recommendations accordingly—all while using a mobile device that seamlessly incorporates the results into your company’s workflow so you can promptly address and fix problems. In Aspire, account managers can turn site audit results into “issues” within the system, which are then communicated to the production team for follow up. They can also choose to communicate the issue to the clients to let them know it’s been identified and is being addressed.

Invoicing with accuracy

Once the work is completed and it’s time to bill the customer, Aspire helps ensure your invoices are not only correct but also sent in a timely manner. Because all information flows through the system and stages of work—from the estimate to the invoice—this means: 1.) No one has to re-key the data, duplicating work and opening the door for data-entry errors; 2.) You don’t have to track down an estimate on paper or in another format and do any calculations, creating another opportunity for error; and 3.) You can send the invoice with the click of a button, including as much or as little detail as necessary.

Integration for added value

Aspire also offers high-value integrations like GPS tracking. With this added functionality, you can conduct location searches directly from the schedule board to view vehicles’ GPS locations on a map, so you can confirm crews’ locations and ensure they’re on track for the day. GPS tracking can also help ensure proper billing by generating geofences on properties that allow you to monitor crew activity and verify that billed time correlates to the actual time on site

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With its end-to-end functionality, Aspire helps ensure your field and back-office operations run seamlessly so jobs are completed correctly and on time, invoices are sent in a timely manner, and your customers remain satisfied.

At Aspire, we understand that when you’re running a landscape company, it’s important to have the right tools for the job. That’s why we’ve developed an all-in-one, cloud-based solution with the functionality you need to keep your entire business running smoothly—and profitably. If you’re ready to take your company to the next level, contact us today!

Need help finding the right business management software? Download this helpful buyer’s guide to learn everything you need to know before selecting a solution, from initial research to final decision.