When a technician heads to a job, Run a Call can text the customer automatically so they know someone is coming. The tech doesn't type anything — tapping On My Way in the mobile app sends it.

Before you start

  • Business texting must be active — see Registering your business for A2P 10DLC.
  • The on-my-way text must be turned on. Go to Automations, open the Texting folder and switch on Text the customer when the tech is on the way.
  • The customer needs a mobile number on their profile and must not have replied STOP.
Note

While your texting approval is still in progress, the Automations page doesn't list the texts one by one yet. It shows a Which texts do you want on when this is ready? card instead. Once texting is approved, come back and switch on the texts you want in the Texting folder. See Enabling SMS-based automations.

What sends it

The text goes out when a job's status changes to En Route:

  • Technician, mobile app: taps On My Way on the job.
  • Multi-day installs: the crew lead taps Crew is on the way on that day's visit. Each day's visit sends its own text.
  • Office: changing the job's status to En Route sends it too.

What the customer receives

Desert Valley HVAC: Hi Maria, your technician Carlos Rivera is on the way! Estimated arrival at 4521 Palm Ave, Indio shortly.

Your business name starts the text, followed by the customer's first name, the assigned technician's name and the job address. The text says the tech will arrive "shortly" — it doesn't include a clock time.

Add the tech's photo and bio

You can send the tech's profile photo with the text, and a short bio under it, so the customer knows who is pulling up. Both are off until you turn them on.

  1. Go to Automations, open the Texting folder, and click the pencil icon on Text the customer when the tech is on the way.
  2. Click the Send SMS step.
  3. Under the message, tick Include the tech's photo and/or Include the tech's bio.
  4. Click Save changes.

Send SMS step with Include the tech's photo and Include the tech's bio ticked

The customer then gets something like:

Desert Valley HVAC: Hi Maria, your technician Carlos Rivera is on the way! Estimated arrival at 4521 Palm Ave, Indio shortly.

About Carlos Rivera: 12 years in HVAC, NATE certified. Dad of two, Braves fan.

with Carlos's photo attached.

Where the photo and bio come from

  • Photo: the tech's profile photo. A clear JPEG or PNG headshot works best. Techs change it from the Profile tab in the mobile app; owners and admins from Settings → Team → ⋯ → Edit profile.
  • Bio: a line or two, up to 300 characters, on the same profile. Office users write their own in Settings → Profile; owners and admins can write anyone's in Edit profile. See Managing user profiles.

Good to know

  • A tech with no photo, or no bio, still sends the plain text. Nothing is left blank.
  • A text with a photo is a picture message (MMS). It costs a little more than a plain text and only reaches US and Canadian numbers. For anyone else, the photo is dropped and the text still goes. A photo too large for a picture message, or in a format phones can't open, is also left off; the text still goes.
  • The bio is added under whatever wording you use, including a rewritten message.
  • On a multi-day install, it's the crew lead's photo and bio.

The arrival text

A second automatic text, Text the customer when the tech arrives, goes out when the tech taps Arrived on Site (or the crew lead taps Arrived) — or when auto-arrive marks them arrived from their phone's location:

Desert Valley HVAC: Hi Maria, Carlos Rivera has arrived at 4521 Palm Ave, Indio and is ready to begin work.

Turn it on or off separately from the on-my-way text, in the same Texting folder.

No double texts

If the status flips to En Route again within 5 minutes — a double tap, or the office correcting a mistake — the customer isn't texted twice. After 5 minutes, setting the job back to En Route sends a fresh text.

Separately, Run a Call spaces out automatic texts to the same customer: an automatic text can be skipped if that number already got a text from you in the last 25 minutes.

Changing the wording

  1. Go to Automations, open the Texting folder, and click the pencil icon on Text the customer when the tech is on the way. The builder opens.
  2. Click the Send SMS step.
  3. Write your version in Override message (optional), using the variables to insert details like the customer's first name, the tech's name and the address. Left blank, the standard text is used.
  4. Click Save.

See Changing the wording of a built-in message.

Don't start your text with your business name — it's added automatically.

Tip

Turning off Text them the booking when you create a job stops the booking confirmation and day-before reminder for that job. On-my-way, arrival and job-done texts still send.

When the tech is running late

There's no automatic "running late" text. From the office, open the customer's conversation in Conversations → Messages, click More, and pick Tech running late — or click Send ETA above the message box for a heads-up with an arrival estimate. Edit the text, then send. See Sending and receiving SMS.