The same call, twenty times a day
A customer rings to ask whether their event programmes will be ready for Thursday. The account handler does not know. They put the customer on hold, walk to production, find the job bag on the finishing table, check with the folder operator, and come back to say it is on track. Ten minutes later another customer rings about another job.
None of these calls are unreasonable. The customer has an event, a launch or a mail drop depending on the job, and they cannot see into your factory. But answered one at a time, the calls take over the account handler's day.
Status lives on the floor, not on a screen
The information exists. Production knows the job has been printed and is waiting for the folder. Dispatch knows it is booked for tomorrow. It simply is not recorded anywhere the office or the customer can see without asking.
- Job status in the MIS is updated rarely, if at all.
- Progress is visible only by walking the floor or finding the job bag.
- Customers are not told when a job moves, so they ring to find out.
- When a job slips, the customer often hears about it last.
- Account handlers cannot see all their jobs' status at a glance.
What the calls cost
Account handlers spend time relaying information instead of selling or looking after customers. Production is interrupted constantly by people asking about jobs. Worst of all, the calls usually arrive when something is already tight, and the customer's confidence drops if the answer is 'I will find out and call you back'. Customers who have to chase remember it when they next decide where to send their print.
Job tracking from production events
- We identify the moments that matter in your workflow: artwork received, proof sent, proof approved, printed, finished, packed, dispatched, delivered.
- Each moment is captured where it already happens: the proof approval, a station marking a step done, a courier booking. Where nothing is captured yet, a scan or tap at the station adds it.
- Account handlers get a dashboard of their live jobs with current status and projected dates, and jobs at risk of missing their date are highlighted.
- Customers receive short updates at the points you choose, by email or text, through a service such as Twilio.
- An optional customer page shows each job's progress, reached from a link in the order confirmation.
- When a job's projected date slips, the account handler is alerted first, so they can call the customer before the customer calls them.
| Event | Captured from | Customer told? |
|---|---|---|
| Proof approved | Proof approval system | Confirmation sent |
| Printed | Press station | Optional |
| Finished and packed | Finishing and dispatch | Optional |
| Dispatched | Courier booking | Tracking link sent |
| Date at risk | Schedule | Account handler decides |
A quieter phone
Customers see progress without asking, and the calls that remain are about real problems. Account handlers start the day with a list of jobs at risk rather than a list of voicemails. Production is interrupted less. And when a job does slip, the customer hears it from you early, with a new date, which is a very different conversation from being found out.
Do you hear this question too often?
- Account handlers walk to production several times a day to check jobs.
- Customers ring for status more than for anything else.
- Job status in your MIS is usually out of date.
- Customers sometimes learn about delays before you tell them.
- Nobody has a single view of every live job's progress.