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May 10, 2021

Five ways to take your restoration business to the next level

5 minute read

Guest post from Restoration Business Coach, Scott Miller.

Scott Miller is the founder of the Growth League. A focused training coaching program helping restorers maximize profitability and build sustainable operations.

By Scott Miller

As a restoration business coach, I help restorers improve their business’ processes to improve their bottom line. In discussions with my clients, I have come to notice that there are 5 commonly overlooked topics that net large returns.

1. Implement an easy-to-use field technology

We all know that good documentation starts in the field. But how do you get your field technicians to accurately document the job? The best way to get their buy-in is to find a tool that makes their day easier. I recommend field documentation tools like Encircle because documenting losses is literally as easy as taking pictures and voice-to-text notes. Even better, those photos and notes are instantly shared on the Encircle platform, allowing your admin team to create reports within minutes.

Save time and money by avoiding complicated systems. A technology that is too complex for your team to use, will not get used and end up costing your business more in the long run.

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2. Build relationships with adjusters

I find this to be low hanging fruit that restorers often overlook. I encourage my clients to build relationships with the adjusters that they have worked with on previous jobs. I ask them, were these adjusters happy with your work? Why not stay in touch? To that end, I challenge them to reach out to two different adjusters everyday for 15 days and see what happens. The results are impressive. My clients are winning more business and higher value jobs - all from a simple phone call.

3. Impress adjusters with thorough documentation

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Now that you are building relationships with these adjusters, impress them with your solid documentation practices and remote abilities. Thorough documentation helps them understand and justify the mitigation steps your team took on the job. Plus, if you’re using a tool that allows you to share photos and reports instantly, you’re going to stand out from other restorers who are relying on a digital camera and a fax machine.

Thorough documentation is one of the biggest challenges for restoration contractors. Often field technicians are not scoping the job while they are onsite. Instead, scopes are written a day or even a week later. Even more troubling, some are still using pen and paper or tick sheets, and missing so many line items in the process.

This is one of the biggest opportunities your business has to make more money. Using an easy tool like Encircle’s scoping sheets lets you scope the damages thoroughly right then and there - ensuring you capture all the line items.


4. Remotely triage the job and get signed work authorizations before you are even onsite

Use Encircle to pre-sell the job. What does that mean? First use Encircle’s Link tool to develop a relationship with the policyholder. Link is a game-changing tool within the Encircle platform that connects you with policyholders via a link that has been sent by text or email. This link inturn connects them (the policyholder) to the Encircle platform without having to download an app, enabling them to start documenting their loss. 

As you are able to see the photos remotely and in real-time, you can walk the policyholder through documenting the loss, and offer reassurance that you can handle the issue. You can also triage the loss and proactively plan your mitigation strategy. This will give the insured confidence in your ability to solve their problem as you are able to talk about the restoration plan with them.

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Next, seal the deal by sending a work authorization. With Link, policyholders can easily review and sign documents remotely. By using Encircle’s Link tool you’ll be able to assess the loss and sign the job before your team is even onsite. This is far better than sending a tech or two and hoping that they sign the job when they arrive.


5. Get paid faster.

Be ready to bill the day that job is done. Faster billing means faster payments. Free up your cash. Do not build the estimate once the job is completed. As mentioned previously, with Encircle the scope can be created in the field and instantly available to your office staff. Before the tech is even back to the office, your admin staff can start writing the estimate and immediately send it to a TPA or the adjuster.

Another benefit is that a production manager can review photos of jobs while they are in progress and collaborate with field staff (ex. add specialty equipment, perform additional demo, direct further general cleaning, etc.) The ability to review the job’s progress in real-time helps ensure that your team is following best practices and leaving no money on the table.

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