Four hires. No desks.
Catbird Seat comes with a front office crew: Fran on the phones, Dotty on dispatch, Pete at the parts counter and Betty on the books. Here's what each of them does, what a shift looks like, and the rules they work by.
Works in the Shop
Every call
Front DeskFran
Fran answers every call and text with your shop's name, day or night, and writes down what the customer needs.
- Gets the name, address, problem and urgency on every call.
- Remembers every past call and visit, so your regulars never have to start over.
- Takes messages from the supply house, the inspector and your family, and files each one where it belongs.
- Texts the customer a recap so they know your shop heard them.
- On a call back, rings you first, then greets the customer with your shop's name.
- Emergencies get flagged to you right away.
- She never overwrites what's on file. If a caller says something different, you decide.
- She checks with you before putting a call through, and if you can't take it, she tells the caller.
"Furnace quit and there's a baby in the house." Fran gets the address, marks it an emergency and you're alerted.
Johnstone Supply calls: the coil is in. Fran takes the message and puts it on today's list.
Linda P. calls about the upstairs unit again. Fran already has June's visit in front of her.
Works in the Shop
Every call
DispatchDotty
Dotty books the job on the Board and confirms the time with the customer.
- Puts each job on the right truck, in the window you promised.
- Writes the Ticket, so your tech knows what they're walking into.
- Sends the customer a confirmation text they can reply to.
- Keeps every truck's day on one screen, the Board.
- Every job has a truck and a window before it's booked.
- When a promised window is at risk, you hear it from her before the customer has to call and ask.
Linda P. is booked on Truck 2 for tomorrow, 8 to 10 AM. The confirmation text goes out.
Linda replies C. Confirmed.
Truck 2 is running long. Dotty flags the 10-to-12 window so you can text the customer a new time.
Rides with the Truck
No typing
Parts CounterPete
Pete reads the plate, builds the parts list and writes the ticket from what your tech says.
- Your tech talks through the job in the driveway. Pete writes it up.
- Reads the make, model and size off a photo of the data plate.
- Builds the parts list from what went into the job.
- Marks the ticket done and hands it to Betty.
- Nobody types. Your tech talks, and Pete writes.
- The ticket is done before the tech is back in the truck.
Your tech shoots the data plate on Linda's unit. Pete reads it: Trane, 3 ton.
"Run capacitor was shot, swapped in a 45/5. She's cooling fine now." Pete writes the ticket and the parts list.
Ticket marked done and handed to Betty.
Works in the Shop
Paid faster
Back OfficeBetty
Betty turns the finished job into an invoice in QuickBooks and chases it until it's paid.
- Drafts the invoice from Pete's ticket, with the right items and tax.
- Keeps QuickBooks in step, so month-end has nothing to clean up.
- Follows up on unpaid invoices until the money lands.
- Nothing goes out to a customer until you tap.
- Your bookkeeper gets invoices that match QuickBooks.
Invoice 1047 for Linda P. is drafted: capacitor replacement, $286. You tap send from the driveway.
Still unpaid. Betty sends Linda a friendly reminder.
Paid. Betty marks it paid in QuickBooks.
AI on the job. Real people behind it.
Start with Fran.
Call her demo line any time, day or night, and play one of your customers. It takes about two minutes.