The homeowner is not your customer, but rings you anyway
Your customer is the builder or roofer. But the scaffold is going up on a family's house, and they want to know when. Should they move the car? Will the wagon block the road? Is the scaffold staying over the weekend? When is it coming down, because it has been up since the roof was finished?
They get your number from the boards and ring the office. The office has to check the transport plan and ring back. Sometimes the builder has told them one thing and your plan says another.
Why the calls keep coming
Nobody tells the homeowner directly. The builder passes on what he remembers, and the dates move with the weather and with other jobs. The homeowner has the scaffold on their house and no information.
- Homeowner contact details are not recorded on the job.
- Erect and strike dates change and are not passed on.
- Access needs, like a clear drive, are mentioned on the day.
- Neighbours are not told when access is needed.
What it costs
Office time answering status calls, and gangs arriving to find a car blocking the drive or a neighbour refusing access. Complaints from homeowners reach the builder, who then complains to you. And good communication, which builders notice, is an easy way to stand out that most scaffolders miss.
Access problems caused by poor communication are also a hidden cost. A car left on the drive, a locked side gate or a neighbour who was never asked can add an hour to an erect, or send the gang away to come back another day.
The message flow we build
- At booking, the homeowner's contact details are recorded, with the builder's agreement, and a note of anything the homeowner needs to know.
- When the erect is planned, the homeowner receives a message with the date, what to expect and what to do, such as clear the drive or leave a gate open.
- If the erect date moves, a new message goes out once the office has confirmed the change.
- On handover, a message confirms the scaffold is up, with who to contact about it.
- When the strike is planned, the homeowner is told the date, and again if it moves.
- If you choose, the builder is copied on each message, so everyone works from the same dates.
- Replies go into the job record and the office is alerted.
| Event | Homeowner hears |
|---|---|
| Erect planned | Date and what to prepare |
| Date moved | New date and reason |
| Handed over | Scaffold up, who to contact |
| Strike planned | Date it comes down |
| Struck | Scaffold removed |
You write every message, and you decide whether homeowners are contacted at all on trade jobs.
What it changes
Homeowners know what is happening and what they need to do. Gangs arrive to a clear drive. Builders see you keeping their customer informed, which reflects well on them and on you. And the office phone rings less with questions the plan could answer.
For the office, the biggest change is that the transport plan and what customers are told are the same thing. When one moves, the other follows, instead of relying on someone remembering to ring.
Do homeowners call you like this?
- Homeowners ring asking when the scaffold goes up.
- Gangs arrive to blocked drives.
- Strike dates are not passed to homeowners.
- Builders complain their customers were not told.