The 7 Best Home Service CRMs for Trade Contractors

Investing in a customer relationship management system can be transformative for home service businesses that have traditionally managed customer relationships through disparate spreadsheets, phone calls, emails, and paper documents. 

For example, CRM software can solve common challenges such as:

• Workflow inefficiencies: Time wasted on tracking down customer information (e.g. work orders, estimates, invoices), and entering and re-entering the same information into multiple apps, spreadsheets, etc.

• Poor communication & customer experiences: Failing to correspond with customers in a timely manner, or lacking the ability to communicate with customers through their preferred channels (text, email, phone, etc.). 

• Lost revenue opportunities: Difficulty tracking sold and unsold estimates, and failing to follow up on and convert open opportunities. 

However, within the broad category of CRM software, there are generalized solutions such as Salesforce, Pipedrive, Zoho CRM, and HubSpot CRM that serve tons of different industries but aren’t built specifically for home services. And then there are CRM solutions that are built for home services — such as our platform, ServiceTitan, which specializes in serving contractors in HVAC, plumbing, electrical, roofing, landscaping, and select other trades.

In this post, we’ll focus on CRM solutions for home service businesses. First, we’ll walk through how our CRM platform, ServiceTitan, can help home service businesses optimize their process for managing interactions with customers. Then, we’ll share six other CRM software options that focus on supporting home service businesses in the trades. 

Best CRM Software for Home Service Businesses

1. ServiceTitan

2. Housecall Pro

3. Jobber

4. Service Fusion

5. Kickserv

6. FieldEdge

7. Successware®

1. ServiceTitan

There are many features within ServiceTitan that support customer relationship management. To simplify things, we’ll focus on the five basic categories that have the most customer-specific touchpoints:

• Call Booking and Customer Pages: Make better first impressions, streamline CSR workflows, and convert more calls into booked jobs.

• Customer Experience: Meet the booking and communication expectations of modern customers.

• Follow Ups: Maximize revenue by increasing close rates on unsold estimates.

• Customer Portal: Enable customers to view job histories, book appointments, and pay invoices online.

• Marketing Pro: Drive more revenue with done-for-you email marketing campaigns.

Call Booking and Customer Pages: Make Better First Impressions, Streamline CSR Workflows, and Convert More Calls Into Booked Jobs

ServiceTitan’s user-friendly platform begins to optimize customer service from the moment a call comes in. 

Before a customer service representative picks up the phone, they can see the customer’s name and number in real-time — regardless of whether the customer has previously called. This allows CSRs to make a good first impression by greeting every customer and prospect by name.

ServiceTitan also displays details about the caller’s property, such as the age and size of their home, providing insight into potential sales and customer service opportunities. 

For example, if you run a plumbing business, your CSR might be able to see that the caller likely has an aged water heater that’s due for replacement — a potential high-ticket sale.

If the caller is an existing customer, CSRs can see their customer page, which displays their complete service history, including: 

• Customer details (such as their name, address, contact information, and billing information)

• History of scheduled appointments and jobs

• Estimates, outstanding work orders, and invoices

• Maintenance agreement status

• And more

Whether the caller is a long-standing or new customer, all of their customer data is automatically logged and stored in our cloud-based platform — rather than in a disconnected system of spreadsheets, emails, notes, and file folders.

In addition, all customer calls are automatically recorded so that all team members (CSRs, dispatchers, field technicians, etc.) can reference those customer interactions and access the detailed context and information they need to provide the best possible customer satisfaction.

ServiceTitan seamlessly links this workflow to scheduling and dispatching, work order management, and more. 

Customer Experience: Meet the Booking & Communication Expectations of Modern Customers

Modern customers — people who use Uber, Netflix, and Amazon — have preferences and expectations about how they should be communicated with. They want seamless booking experiences, real-time updates about the status of their service, and transparent communication.

ServiceTitan offers a suite of tools for service businesses to provide exactly the type of customer experiences consumers are looking for — starting with online job booking. 

ServiceTitan users can add a Web Scheduler or Chat to Text widget to their website and give customers an easy way to schedule a job or start a text conversation online.

Then, contractors can set up automatic SMS text notifications to confirm appointments and/or remind homeowners of a scheduled service visit, according to their preferences: the day before, 12 hours before, an hour before, etc. 

In addition, users can schedule pre-arrival text notifications to introduce the assigned technician to the customer with a tech bio — providing customers with a greater sense of comfort and security, and allowing them to learn more about the person who will be working in their home. 

Our GPS tracking feature allows home and business owners to track their tech’s arrival in real-time. This gives customers pinpoint accuracy about when their tech will arrive, freeing them up to plan their day while enhancing their overall customer experience.

Combined, this suite of CRM tools allows service businesses to create happy, loyal, and repeat customers — generating word of mouth that is invaluable for service businesses.

Follow Ups: Maximize Revenue by Increasing Close Rates on Unsold Estimates

A huge challenge and potential missed opportunity for many home service businesses is lead management, including the tracking, following up, and closing of unsold estimates. Business owners often leave a lot of money on the table by simply lacking the right systems to follow up on open leads in their sales pipeline.

ServiceTitan provides a suite of automation tools for managing follow ups, closing more of these deals, and ultimately increasing profitability.  

For example, when a new lead opens an email containing an estimate or proposal, our software sends an automatic notification to the contractor and/or their staff, prompting them to reach out to the homeowner at that crucial moment to answer questions and close the sale. 

In the event that an email wasn’t opened or bounces back, our Follow Up features offer notifications and reminders to fix these issues and follow up accordingly.

In addition, Follow Ups help meet other business needs, such as enabling service providers to send automated text and email reminders about upcoming preventative maintenance events, expiring memberships, expiring credit cards, and more. 

Combined, ServiceTitan Follow Ups save CSRs time, improve workflow efficiency, and help contractors maintain a steady, essential flow of revenue throughout the year.

Customer Portal: Enable Customers to View Job Histories, Book Appointments, and Pay Invoices Online

ServiceTitan offers an array of features to help users get the most out of their customer relationships remotely and on-demand through our Customer Portal. 

Many of our users like to encourage their clients to make use of the customer portal by providing a link on their invoices. Once they’ve signed up, customers can use it to view and download invoices, upload credit card information, make payments, and view work and billing history. 

Through the portal, customers can also view maintenance agreements details and check on appointment times for upcoming visits. Businesses can set up their portal to allow existing customers to submit requests for new appointments as well — offering another scheduling option that suits modern customer needs and doesn’t require any time from your CSRs.  

Marketing Pro: Drive More Revenue with Done-for-You Email Marketing Campaigns

Getting the attention of customers in today’s fast-paced environment requires a dynamic, multi-channel approach. Beyond phone calls and text communication, email marketing is one of the most effective ways to reach the right customers at the right time with tailored messages to drive more business.

With ServiceTitan’s Marketing Pro add-on, service businesses have the ability to quickly and easily generate professional, targeted, and timely email marketing campaigns (leveraging a continually evolving library of templates developed by our in-house service-industry marketing and copywriting experts). 

Email campaigns can be created for any purpose, but some of the most popular options include unsold estimate follow ups, membership agreement renewals, and equipment replacement.

Businesses can quickly and easily build tailored target audiences based on conditions such as: Memberships Expiring within 30 Days, Unsold Estimates within 5 Days, or Air Conditioning Systems Turning 10 within 6 Months.

Then, they can choose from (and customize!) our prebuilt templates that correspond to their campaign type — such as seasonal equipment service calls or expiring membership updates.

Once they’ve selected a corresponding template, users can choose to send a one-time message or set up their campaign as a recurring series, defining the terms under which a campaign will continue or stop. 

For example, they might have it stop when an email has been opened, or only after a customer has renewed their membership, booked a job, or inquired about a quote.  

Altogether, Marketing Pro features have boosted users’ membership renewal rates by 15%. Subscribers have also seen a 10% increase in conversions for unsold estimates and 12% growth in year-over-year revenue. 

Transform Customer Relationship Management and Home Service Operations with ServiceTitan

In addition to the CRM and business management tools we’ve outlined in this post, ServiceTitan can help home service businesses with much more, including: 

• Unique features to automate scheduling and dispatching

• An intuitive mobile app 

• Customizable reporting dashboards

• Customer financing

• Construction project management tools 

• Built-in warranty and inventory management systems

• Accounting integrations with Intacct, QuickBooks, and Viewpoint Vista

• And more

If you’d like to learn more about ServiceTitan pricing and how we can help your home service business become more efficient and grow revenue through improved customer relationships, schedule a free demo today.

2. Housecall Pro

Housecall Pro is a mobile field service management solution for home service businesses. Similar to ServiceTitan, it offers a wide range of features outside of invoicing, such as scheduling and dispatching, estimates, QuickBooks integration, and more. 

However, when compared to Housecall Pro, ServiceTitan offers:

• Deeper native pricebook functionality

• Ability to drill down further into reporting metrics and trust your numbers

• Automated tagging features that help increase revenue

• Gated work sequences and customizable forms to facilitate accountability across the organization

• Offline functionality that allows techs to use our mobile app when out of cell service zones

3. Jobber

Jobber is a home service scheduling software that also offers a wide range of other features for running a home service business. Like ServiceTitan, it offers functionality for estimating, quotes, scheduling, invoicing, and more.

However, when compared to Jobber, ServiceTitan offers:

• More robust, native pricebook functionality

• In-app access to top industry supplier equipment catalogs

• Extensive marketing functionality that reduces the need for third-party marketing hires

• More flexibility and customizability for membership plans and recurring services

• Offline functionality for our mobile app that allows techs to work seamlessly (even when they’re out of cell service zones)

• Deeper reporting capabilities that allow business owners to drill down into the sources of their data

4. Service Fusion

Service Fusion describes itself as an “All-In-One Field Service Management Software.” Like ServiceTitan, it offers a wide range of features, including estimates, invoices, customer management, scheduling and dispatching, and more. 

However, when compared to Service Fusion, ServiceTitan offers the following as a part of our base product (while Service Fusion charges extra for many of these features):

• Robust membership billing capabilities (bulk membership billing, and automated monthly or annual billing options)

• Scheduled report automations

• Call booking automations for easier job booking and better customer experiences

• Property data to spot sales opportunities and drive revenue

5. Kickserv

Kickserv is another field service management software offering a variety of tools for large and small businesses. Like other FSM software, it provides a mobile app as well as desktop features for job management, scheduling, managing your workforce, and more.

However, when compared to Kickserv, ServiceTitan offers:

• Mobile app with customer convenience features with stable offline functionality

• Customizable forms and pricing tools in the field

• Two-way SMS texting for customer inquiries and scheduling changes

• Pre-appointment GPS Tech Tracking for accurate arrival times

• End-to-End presentation mode: A visual pricing tool and estimate builder with good, better, best options

• And more

6. FieldEdge

FieldEdge is a field service management software and field service app for service businesses. They offer a wide range of features like ServiceTitan, including functionality for quotes and invoicing, scheduling and dispatching, service agreements, and more.

However, when compared to FieldEdge, ServiceTitan offers:

• Integration with Google Local Services Ads

• Seamless access to membership information during call booking

• Adjustable capacity planning to optimize schedules for max profitability

• Real-time technician tracking

• Greater customizability and drill-down capabilities for reports

7. Successware®

Successware® is a business management solution for the trade industry, serving HVAC, electrical, plumbing, and other trade businesses. It offers features such as call booking and CRM, dispatching and scheduling, a mobile app, and other tools for running a service business.

However, when compared to Successware®, ServiceTitan offers:

• Integrations with top accounting software used by service businesses such as QuickBooks and Intacct

• Clean, reliable, easily accessible data through practical and customizable reports (e.g. employee performance scorecards, service agreement reports, call conversion reports, etc.)

• Robust customer experience features such as technician GPS tracking, technician bios, and SMS text updates that can be automated or managed through the dispatch board

• Marketing ROI reports that show which campaigns, geographic areas, and incoming calls are generating the most revenues

• A customer support team focused on building businesses — not just answering software questions