For Ron Crabtree, Rilla has been a game changer.
Since implementing the AI-powered virtual ride along software at the retail locations of Benjamin Franklin Plumbing, One Hour Heating & Air Conditioning, and Mister Sparky Electric, Ron, vice president of retail sales and operations, says he's seen a $53 average ticket increase for service calls and a $600 average increase in sales prices.
"It's just the age-old problem for us, not really looking at what's going on out there and just looking at the results," he says.
Ron is no stranger to traditional in-person ride longs with techs. But he admits they take a lot of time to perform. With Rilla, managers use the Ride along feature in the app to listen to service calls and leave feedback for techs.
Ron says it now takes him about 10 minutes to do a ride along, and it’s even allowed managers to pinpoint new techniques used by employees that are working particularly well.
“Systems evolve, and now we have it at our fingertips to find out there might be something out there that works a little bit better than what we’re doing,” Ron says.
At the end of the day, Rilla allows owners and manager to see what their team is doing out in the field.
"If you're not out there with them, this is the second best thing, and listening to how they’re communicating and seeing what their problems really are," Ron says.
How Rilla Helps Improves Communication Between Techs and Customers
Ron’s team started using Rilla in May, and it quickly became a valuable communications tool.
Onboarding was quick—as easy as hitting record so Rilla can pick up the techs’ voices during calls and distinguish them from the customers—and both the app and web version of Rilla are easy to navigate.
Ron tells techs Rilla is just another important tool in their toolbox.
“This is actually a tool for their communication,” he says. "You can be the best technical person in the world, you can fix everything under the sun, but if you don't have a way to communicate that in a way that makes sense to the customer, they're not going to spend their money with you. All that technical knowledge you have goes to waste.”
Rilla can also be a way to protect techs from customers who become angry or threatening, Ron adds, since everything is recorded.
Why Employees and Customers Love Rilla
Ron and other managers use Rilla’s AI bot, “Rick,” for quick summary of service calls. He and other managers can ask Rick questions, like how did the close of the sale go, and it will run through the conversation’s bullet points.
“I can ask it, hey, did we offer financing on this call? And it’ll tell me yes or no, and it’ll take me to the point in the conversation where we talked about financing,” Ron says.
Rilla’s translation feature is another asset. Ron says his teams service a lot of Spanish-speaking customers, but not many of them speak Spanish, so Rilla closes the language barrier.
Ron says he has a few Rilla superstars on his team, employees who are very excited about the app, recording everything they do and eagerly awaiting feedback.
“The biggest thing for them is they’re able to listen to themselves,” he says.
Customers love the accountability factor.
"If I'm recording the conversation, how likely do you think that I would be to tell you something that is not right?" Ron says.
“I’d be really bold to be a person who is knowingly recording the conversation and telling you lies. So I think the customers have a little bit more of a relaxed feeling because they know it’s being recorded and they’re not going to be ripped off.”
Get Started with Rilla Today
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