For retailers in the service industry, keeping track of service order schedules can pose some challenges. Some repairs take hours longer than originally planned for, technicians get overbooked, and when it comes time to invoice the customers some services can be left out. Managing the service or repair processes for your business with verbal communication, pen and paper, or different software systems increases the chance of errors. It also increases labor, which, let’s face it, we could all benefit from having a little less work.

So, you should let your POS system do that extra work for you. With the right tools, service management is a breeze. The following are the top 5 POS tools every retailer in the service or repair industry should use.

Automatic Conflict Checking  First, you should be able to assign specific technicians to jobs. Then, your POS should notify you if the technician you are trying to schedule for a job is already booked for those hours. This makes scheduling easier for you, and allows your employees to see their upcoming scheduled repair jobs.

Service Stages Unique to Your Process  When tracking the progress of a service order, you should be able to see accurate stages that reflect your actual business processes. If your POS system only shows “In Progress” and “Finished”, you do not know why the item is still in repair or when it will be finished. However, if you are able to input your own service stages, then you would know that that item is “Waiting for parts”, which adds time to the process, giving you and your customer a more accurate time estimation.

Ecommerce Integration  To have an item serviced, customers can either call your location to set up a time or can simply walk in. While these methods are effective, most people these days choose to do things online when possible. Ecommerce Integration allows your customers have an online order submission option.

Invoice Creation Right From Service Order  The service order shows all of the details of labor hours, cost of parts, and other expenses associated with the service. If you use a separate system for creating and tracking service orders than you use for accounting and finance, then you will need to manually input the information from the POS system into the financial system. This process not only increases the chance for errors, but also increases labor.

Electronic Supplier Connection  For different items, you may need to order parts to complete the repair. You also probably keep some parts on hand that need to be re-ordered every so often. Connecting electronically to your suppliers though EDI Updaters allows you to see updated inventory levels at all times. That way, if an item needs a certain part, you can see how many you have on hand and then order the part quickly and easily if needed.

With Microsoft Dynamics AX, All of These Tools Are Available

This video shows the ease of creating, processing, and invoicing a service order using Microsoft Dynamics AX.

Microsoft Dynamics AX makes running your service and repair business easy by offering all of the tools listed above.

• Microsoft Dynamics AX utilizes automatic conflict checking when scheduling technicians to jobs in the Service Management module. That way, you are never overbooking your employees and you can provide customers with accurate time completion estimates.
• Microsoft Dynamics AX enables you to create and edit the service stage processes in the Service Management module, providing you with service stages unique to your process. This manifests more transparent communication between you and your technicians, and allows you to more accurately determine the length of time needed for jobs.
• With the Enterprise Portal, ecommerce integration is easy. Not only does it allow you to track sales, customer history, and items left in customer carts, it also allows your customers to submit service requests online.
• Because Microsoft Dynamics AX is an all in one system, it has Accounting, Finance, Payroll, Accounts Payable, and Accounts Receivable modules built in. With these capabilities, you can create an invoice right from a service order with a few clicks of a mouse.
• With the Inventory Management module, electronic connection to any supplier is possible with Microsoft Dynamics AX.

To see some more capabilities of Microsoft Dynamics AX, watch our Business Management Overview, Task Recorder, and POS Cash Sale Features videos. You can also view Microsoft Dynamics AX on a mobile device.

If you would like to speak with a sales representative about Microsoft Dynamics AX, please email us or call us at 1-860-781-6045.