Inbox/Messaging for Desktop & Mobile

Article Sections

  1. Common Use Cases
  2. Inbox for the Web - Dispatchers to Customers
  3. Inbox for Mobile- Dispatchers to Customers
  4. Inbox for Internal Messaging
  5. Technician to Customer Inbox Messaging
  6. Sign up for Inbox for your Business

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Inbox is an in-app messaging product allowing company Dispatchers to communicate with customers directly inside the Mobile and Web applications. Inbox is a simple and direct way to communicate with homeowners (especially those that won't answer their phone!).

Common Use Cases

  • Confirm or reschedule appointments
  • Get more details from customers about the symptoms of an appliance before appointments
  • Request photos from customers of equipment needing service
  • Send a friendly reminder to customers about submitting the survey
  • Send a "Thank You" message for being your customer

The "Messages" you send to your customers are sent as text messages and/or emails to the information they have on file in Dispatch and does NOT require customers to download or install any applications in order to communicate with you.  

Inbox for the Web

On all of your jobs, you will now find a Message section on your customer & contact records.

When you click on the message button, it will bring up a small window at the bottom of your screen.

From the chat window, you can type a message to the homeowner, and hit the ENTER key on your keyboard to send it. By clicking on the chat bubble symbol to the right of where you type your message, you will also see that there is an option to send a pre-written template message. Templates include messages for sending reminders for appointments, requesting customer open availability for appointment scheduling, and a message that the tech is running late.

Alternatively, you can write out any message you wish to send in the Message {Customer Name} field of the window and press ENTER/RETURN on your keyboard.

You'll receive replies from your customers & contacts inside the same window, allowing you to view the timestamp of the message along with where the reply originated.

You can even see what notifications the customer was sent, including appointment information, Technician 'On My Way', and Survey requests.

A listing of all messages is stored under the Inbox tab on your navigation side-bar. In this view, you can see the date & time stamp as well as the phone number and/or email address that the message was sent to.

Alternatively you'll find a quick-glance view by using the icon at the top of your screen. This icon will open an overlay window so you can see the most recent messages.

Inbox for Mobile

Inbox is also available on the Dispatch Manager mobile application. To view your messages, simply tap the Inbox icon at the bottom of your screen. From this screen, you can see a list of any new or previously received messages. You can also tap the red " +" button to search for a customer in your database and from there you can initiate a message.

**Note that Technician messaging is not available in our Dispatch Manager mobile app at this time. More information on Technician Messaging below.*** 

When you have a new message, you will see a little numerical icon on the Inbox icon, as seen in the image below.

Inbox for Internal Messaging

Dispatcher to Technician Messaging


With our Inbox feature, you also have the ability to communicate directly with you Technicians in the field! Similar to how you would message a customer, you will also see the option to select your Technicians in the drop down message section.

Note this the only place at the moment where a new Technician message can be created. After selecting "New Message" you'll see a new chat window appear. You can search for the tech who you would like to message and create a new chat session.

If your technician has push notifications enabled for the Dispatch Field app, they will receive your message similar to how a text message is delivered, even if the Field app is closed. If they would prefer to not have push notifications turned on, your technicians can find your messages in the "Messages" section at the bottom right of the app next to "Settings". If no messages are showing, you can pull up on the screen to refresh. Technician's responses will be visible to any Dispatcher via our Work web application ( https://work.dispatch.me/).

Few points to keep in mind regarding Dispatcher to Technician messaging:

  • A technician does not need to have a phone number on their user profile to receive a message. The message comes into the Field App directly.
  • Technicians need to have Push Notifications enabled for the Field app to be alerted of a message outside of the app.
  • Technicians need to be running Dispatch Field v4.5.0 or newer. This applies to both iOS and Android devices. You can check which version on the app you are currently running by going to "Settings > Help".
  • Technician messaging is not available via the Dispatch Manager app at this time. The messaging is between Dispatchers working out of our Work web application and technicians using our Dispatch Field mobile app.

Technician to Customer Inbox Messaging

Updated: Feb 1, 2024

  • Existing Functionality: Dispatchers/Both users communicate with customers via inbox messaging (if subscribed to inbox messaging)
  • New Functionality:Technicians will be able to communicate with customers via inbox.

    • This will be enabled for your business if you:

  • Have access to inbox messaging functionality now or subscribe to inbox messaging functionality.
  • Let us know that you'd like this enabled for your business. 

    •

    Requirements

    • Your organization must have inbox messaging functionality
    • Technicians mobile app must be updated to version 5.1.0 at a minimum to use this feature, once enabled.

    Functionality details

    • Technician to customer messaging will be available to techs in the Dispatch Field app if their organization uses inbox messaging.
    • Technician and Customer conversation must be initiated by the technician. 
    • Technician is able to message the customer at any point between when the appointment is assigned to the technician until the appointment is completed.

    Visibility

    • When technicians message customers through Dispatch’s inbox feature, there will be a conversation record on the job, which is visible to the team members in the Dispatcher or 'Both' role (those who can login to Work.Dispatch.Me).
    • Team members in the Dispatch or 'Both' role (those who can login to work.dispatch.me) will be able to view the messaging history between the technician and the customer.

    When an inbox messaging conversation has occurred, there will be a button labeled as 'Appointment Conversation History' shown on the job/lead.

    Dispatcher or 'Both' users can click on that button to view conversations which are associated to any appointments on the job or lead.

    Note: The 'Appointment Conversation History' button will not be shown if an inbox conversation between the technician and the customer has not occurred.

    When a Dispatcher/Both user clicks on the appointment conversation history button, they will be shown a drop-down menu with each appointment and assigned technician if there are multiple appointments on the job or lead.

    When the Dispatcher/Both user selects an appointment, they will be shown the conversation between the technician and customer for that appointment.

    Team members in the Dispatcher or 'Both' role are not able to join the conversation, while they can view any conversations between the technician and the customer and they are able to start their own inbox conversation with the technician or the customer.

    Common Questions

    1. I'd like to use inbox messaging for my business. How do I get access?
      If you do not currently have access to inbox messaging, you're able to subscribe to this functionality here.
    2. What if the customer sends a new message to the technician after the appointment has been completed?
      The conversation is closed once the technician completes the appointment. This means that if the customer tries to send a new message to the technician after the appointment has been completed, they will receive an automated response which notifies them that their message could not be delivered to the technician and directs them to contact the office. 
    3. What if the technician sends a message to the customer after the appointment has been completed?
      The conversation will reopen when the technician sends a new message post-completion. The conversation will be active again and the customer will be able to reply for 24 hours from the time the technician sent their message. 
    4. I use call masking, will call masking still work?
      Yes, call masking will still be in place. Any masked numbers will remain masked as the conversation takes place through the Dispatch application for the technician and the customer will see a Dispatch-owned phone number as the sender and not the technician's personal phone number. 
    5. What is the expected benefit of this functionality?
      Today, technicians are able to text the customer directly from their personal phone, as long as call masking is not enabled. When technicians message customers through Dispatch inbox, there will be a record of the conversation on the appointment, which is visible to users in the Dispatcher or 'Both' role. 

    Sign-up for Inbox Messaging for your Business

    If you'd like to enable inbox messaging for your business, check out single feature subscription options here. If you have questions or would like to learn more about your subscription options, check out our bundled plans with even more premium features included! 

    Questions? Contact: Support@dispatch.me 

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