Are you the owner of your dream workshop? That’s incredible, but maintaining the burden of all the ongoing tasks of bookkeeping, appointment scheduling, inventory management, repair orders, and all must be quite exhausting. 😮
I understand how it not only affects the work-life balance but also sacrifices your productivity at work due to juggling between different tasks.
One thing that can save you from this nightmare is workshop management software, and if you are considering buying one, you my friend have landed in the right place!
In this blog, We will cover everything related to the features of workshop software. I will take you through the features, benefits and everything about workshop management software. Before buying automotive repair software for your garage, you should read this blog!
What is a Workshop Management Software?
Being in the automotive business, you must have heard a lot about the term workshop software. But many of you are still confused about what it actually is.
Management software that is specifically designed for workshops is simply explained as a tool used by mechanics and auto repair shops for efficient management of inventory, work orders, invoices and appointment scheduling.
That does sound quite impressive but believe me, that’s not all. There is still a lot left on the table that we will focus on gradually.
You may be thinking here that what’s the difference if I can do it with my Excel sheet or my manual bookkeeping methods (Even if you are not thinking about it never mind, I am still going to answer it )
It is true that you can keep track of Excel sheets and traditional manual methods but look at the extra time, effort, and energy it consumes. It limits the time constraint that your technicians can have to work on an extra work order.
Repair garage management software can save you from all, as it automates everything for you, keeping you free from all those extra weekend repair orders.
It is quite simple to understand that the more time you have, the more jobs you can perform, and the more jobs it is, the more profit you earn. Who would not want that? 🤔
Why Should You Choose Garage Management Software?
There must be so many why’s in your mind before investing in the auto repair software, and it should be as this counts as shifting the module of your workshop, so being particular about it does make sense.
Instead of jumping to any lengthy paragraph explanation, let’s think of it this way. It’s the peak season for your workshop, and you have more than the usual number of cars in your repair shop to get the job done.
In the hassle of managing different jobs, you get a call from another customer for brake repair services done and demand from you a quick estimate before he can visit the garage.
All your technicians are busy working on cars, and you do not remember the exact labour hours that could be spent on this particular job. What now!? This is what a typical person would do in this situation.
You will go to a technician and disturb him asking for the details, will get an estimate ready and forward it to the customer. After getting the repair order for that specific job, you realise that the braking pads required are not in your inventory. It not only increased the waiting time for customers but also affected the productivity of technicians, the stress of not having the required parts available and delays in the job.
On the other hand, an efficient person who knows the use of workshop software will start making the estimates on his mobile screen immediately with the help of saved data. Without disturbing technicians, keeping an eye on available inventory items and decreasing the customer waiting time.
What sounds more smart and efficient? Let’s get help from his table to see how many ways workshop software can help your business.
| Management | Updating Customer Information | Monthly or Weekly Reports | Productivity, Bookkeeping |
| Technicians | Getting help with estimates | Inventory Management | Adding labour, parts and inspection notes |
| Customers | On-time response | Appointment reminders | History of Repair Orders Available |
| Reception | Appointment Scheduling | Creating Repair Jobs | Follow up on customers for appointment and payment reminders |
This software helps in retaining customers at your repair shop as it helps in providing the best services. It is as important as getting the quality tool set for your technician.
Knowing how important professional mechanic tool sets are for technicians, I would recommend you to never compromise on that and choose the best one for you.
Getting back to the topic, let’s get into what features you should look for in auto repair shop software.
Invoice Management
This is my personal favourite one. Believe me, it makes tracking of your invoicing and bookkeeping easy breezy. 😎
With the help of mechanic invoicing software, you can simply keep track of all the paid and unpaid invoices. You won’t have to go nuts by going over manual methods. By automating it through software, you can eliminate the chances of human errors.
It will save your energy from running behind customers and asking for pending payments. You can send quick reminders to your customers about payments and get track of all of them.
As your invoice is something that represents the image of your brand, it is always best practice to make it customised according to the value and image of your repair shop.
With auto repair invoicing software, you can customise them on the go without wasting any additional time on them. Getting digital signatures and forwarding the invoices to your customers in a click makes it more suitable for your repair shop.
Quick Estimate Approvals
Getting approvals on estimates is a big thing for auto shop owners. It’s like when they call you for estimates, it’s not only you… They must have asked three more places for estimates.
The one who sends the quickest and most accurate estimates wins the game. That makes it clear that you CAN NOT take risks with that.
Your estimates should be on their phone screens before they make up their mind for any other shop. So, what can you do here? None other than the best automotive estimating software. They literally work as ‘Star of the Show’
Using estimating software for your repair shop becomes necessary to get the position of best in the eye of your customers. Because you may lose your potential customer as he might look elsewhere to get their vehicle fixed in case of delayed estimates. Estimates include things like labour costs, time needed and part prices.
Ease of Inventory Management
Being an auto repair shop owner, you must be struggling with inventory management. It is no doubt time taking, exhausting and boring.
Who would like to go back into inventory storage and look for the parts and number of units available?
Workshop management software can take that task for you. It not only efficiently manages your inventory but also makes it easy for you to order the required parts without even leaving the screen of your software.
It will spare time for you to focus on other tasks and keep up with all the appointments of repair orders. Instead of panicking over a shortage of required parts while working on a vehicle, you will be able to order it while making estimates.
Workshop management software is the future of auto repair shops, as they are being adopted by almost all businesses. That makes it clear that ignoring it at the moment can make it difficult for your business to survive in the market.
According to a report by Markets And Markets:
“Automotive software market was valued at USD 21.7 billion in 2022 and is expected to reach USD 40.1 billion by 2027, at a CAGR of 13.1% during the forecast period of 2022-2027”
Tracking Repair Orders
Tracking your job orders and the productivity of technicians often gets difficult in workshops. But auto repair shop software works as a rescue here.
You can simply use repair order software to create job orders and assign them to specific technicians. That’s it your job is done, rest all is automated.
As technicians will be working on it, you can track how much time each technician takes to complete a job. This also helps you to get aware of the strong and weak points of your technicians like you would know which job takes longer for technicians and on which job they have grip.
Moreover, this will also help you to keep track of the status of all the jobs. You can get a quick glance at technician portal and see if you have any free technicians to take an additional job or if all are occupied.
Believe me, when you keep non-booking appointments without considering the availability and stamina of technicians, it not only makes it difficult for you to handle but also makes customers angry.
Cloud Based Software
With technological advancement, it becomes necessary to go for cloud-based solutions. Imagine being on vacation with your family and keeping an eye on every moment at your repair shop.
That will surely make your life easy. You don’t have to sit in front of your system every time to get access to your auto repair management software, instead getting access to it anytime, anywhere is possible with the help of cloud based software.
While investing in a software solution for your repair shop, do keep in mind to consider one that is cloud based.
Closing Thoughts
Workshop Management software helps in EVERY task of your repair shop. It helps in the smooth management of repair orders, technician tracking portal, invoice management and what not?
It makes your life easier and takes the majority of the burden from your repair shop. You should keep in mind that the software that you choose for your business should incorporate all the required features according to the demand of your business.
Torque360 is well known for being a complete solution for automotive repair shops, providing comprehensive solutions for all needs of your business. You can explore it more to see how it fixes the requirements of your business.
