Customer job page and messages
Messages to the customer at every step, with the invoice on delivery
Customers hear from you when the car is checked in, the estimate is ready, extra work is found, the car is ready, delivered and paid. Each message carries the link to their job page, and the delivered message carries the invoice. Messages go by WhatsApp, else SMS, else email, on every plan.
PlansEvery plan
The problem it solves
- Advisors spend the day calling customers to say the car is ready.
- Customers say nobody told them about the extra work, or the bill.
- Messages go from personal WhatsApp numbers and leave with the employee.
- You cannot check whether a message was actually sent.
How it works
- 01
Each step of the job card raises its message, from checked in to delivered and paid.
- 02
The message goes to the job card's customer on the first channel that works: WhatsApp when it is set up, else SMS, else email. A customer with a login also sees it in their notifications.
- 03
Each message has the job page link. The delivered message lists each invoice with what is paid or left, and attaches the invoice PDFs.
- 04
In Garage settings > Messages, click Garage Messages to switch each message on or off and choose its channels for the branch.
- 05
The Delivery Log shows every message sent, and why one was not.
Everything it does
Messages about the visit (every plan)
- Vehicle Checked In, with the job page link
- Estimate Ready: on Ask to Approve, or when the job card enters a Waiting for Approval stage
- Extra Work Found: work found during the job waits for the customer
- Waiting on the Customer: the job card is put on hold waiting on them
- Ready for Pickup
- Vehicle Delivered, with the invoices and their PDFs
- Payment Received, once per invoice; a part payment says what was received and what is left
- Rework Opened
- Free Storage Ends Tomorrow, Storage Charges Started and Storage End Reminder, only where the branch charges storage
More with your plan
- Growth: Appointment Booked, Appointment Reminder, Appointment Cancelled, Inspection Ready, Estimate Follow-up, Service Reminder, Garage Campaign
- Scale: Contract Renewal Due, Insurance Claim Update; the estimate of a fleet job also goes to the fleet's approvers
Channels
- WhatsApp first, then SMS, then email: the first that works is used; in-app for customers with a login
- Channels are not limited by plan: SMS and WhatsApp use paid message credits on every plan; email and in-app are free
- WhatsApp and SMS need your organisation's messaging set-up; WhatsApp templates must be approved by the provider first
- The invoice PDFs go as an email attachment and as the WhatsApp message's document. A provider that cannot send documents falls back to SMS with the link. If a PDF cannot be made, the message goes without it
- Templates per channel and language, with your own wording if you want it
Customers' choices
- Visit messages are work messages: they go out at once, at any hour, and a customer can only switch off a channel, such as SMS
- Follow-ups, service reminders, campaigns and renewals are offers: they wait for quiet hours and stop for a customer who unsubscribed
Who uses it
Where you use it
- WhatsApp, SMS and email to the customer; notifications on the customer's pages when signed in
- Web: Garage > Configuration > General > Settings > Messages > Garage Messages, and Notifications > Delivery Log
- Not built: two-way chat with customers on WhatsApp; replies are not brought into the job card
What you control
Settings
- Each message: on or off, and its channels, per branch
- Templates per channel and language
- Messaging set-up for WhatsApp and SMS: none until your provider is connected
Messages and alerts
- Vehicle Checked In, Estimate Ready, Extra Work Found, Waiting on the Customer, Ready for Pickup, Vehicle Delivered, Payment Received, Rework Opened: to the customer. By WhatsApp, else SMS, else email; in-app with a login
- Customer Decided Online and Vehicle Movement Alert: to staff; phone notification, in the app, else email
FAQ
Questions, answered.
Is WhatsApp only on the higher plans?
No. Every plan can send WhatsApp, SMS and email. SMS and WhatsApp use message credits you buy; email is free.
Does the customer get the invoice on WhatsApp?
Yes, when your WhatsApp template for the delivered message has a document header approved. Otherwise the message goes by SMS with the link, and the invoice is on the job page.
Can we stop one message, such as Ready for Pickup?
Yes. Switch it off for the branch in Garage Messages, or change its channels.
Can a customer stop all messages?
A customer can switch off a channel, such as SMS. Messages about their own car still reach them on the channels left. Offers stop when they unsubscribe.
Can we use our own WhatsApp number?
Yes, once your number and templates are approved by your WhatsApp provider. We set it up with you.
Related
Related features.
The customer's job page by a private link, no loginEvery plan
Every job card has its own page for the customer, opened from a link in their messages with no password. They see the status, the estimate, the photos, the damage, the readings and their invoices. It comes with every plan.
Approve line by line and pay online from the job pageEvery plan
On the job page, the customer ticks the work they want, types their name and signature, and approves or declines. Each decision is kept with how, when and by whom. When the invoice is ready, Pay now takes them to your payment provider and the payment lands on the invoice.
NotificationsEvery plan
SmartMy Garage tells customers and staff when something needs them. That can be the estimate ready, a test drive gone too far, a customer's decision or a request to approve. Each event has its own recipients and channels, and every message is logged.
Service reminders by date and by kmFrom Growth
Each delivered job card plans the next service of the car. It falls due by date or on the day the car is expected to reach the next km, whichever comes first. That day is worked out from the car's own readings. The customer is reminded before it is due with a link to book, and the reminder closes when they come back.
Invoices from approved work, part invoices and deliver only when paidEvery plan
Bill exactly the work the customer approved, in one invoice or in parts, with the taxes already on each line. Invoiced lines are locked, and a branch can choose to hand cars back only once the bill is paid.
Storage charges for cars left after the workEvery plan
A finished car that is not collected is charged by the night after free days, up to a maximum. A car kept with you for storage is charged by the day or the month. The charge grows by itself, the customer is told before it starts, and a manager can waive it.
Want to see it on your own job cards? Book a demo and we walk you through it with your workshop's work.