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05/28/2009
InTow Manager or QuickBooks - How to Decide
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Often I hear the statement that accounting software is all you need to run your towing operation.
That the cost of vertical market towing software is not justified, when you can buy QuickBooks
for under $1000.00. Yes QuickBooks is a great piece of software and is a business partner of
OnScene Solutions, but I want to address some of the differences between QuickBooks (which
is a great accounting system) and towing dispatch software designed specifically for the towing industry.
Here is a partial list of features available in InTow Manager, but not available in
QuickBooks:
1) Automatic Driver Commission Calculations - With tow dispatching software, as calls are entered, a
commission is automatically calculated for the driver based on the commissionable services
selected on an invoice. You can setup commissionable & non-commissionable services, assign
a flat rate commission to a specific service, or have multiple commission rates per driver and
pay based on call type - i.e. Motor Club calls - 30%, Police Calls 27%. This feature eliminates
the manual calculation and potential errors related to payroll and commission.
2) Vehicle Impound Lot Management - With towing software programs like InTow Manager, as
calls are entered into the the system and vehicles are placed in your impound, the calculated
daily storage rates begin to track the length of time and auto-price the storage fees. You can
setup as many storage rates as you like in the software (as different contracts have different
rates) and also vehicle size may determine the rate to assign.
As part of the impound process, certified letters are often required to be sent to the registered
owners and interested parties on the vehicle. InTow Manager notifies you that the letters are
due to be sent, and prints a separate letter for each party concerned.
Barcoding of vehicles as cars come into the impound can be implemented in towng software
programs and can make inventory counts in large yards less painful, and more accurate.
Managing your impound and lien process is vital to the success of the storage yard. Much
money can be lost or stolen from improper management and "lose rules" surrounding the
management of your yard.
3) Color Coded Dispatching - As calls are received via phone or web-based customer direct call
requests, the active calls can easily be managed by the dispatcher in a color coded dispatch
window. The dispatcher knows the status of each call, what calls are overdue, what calls are
future dated, the active and available drivers and trucks.
4) Integrated GPS, Mapping and Messaging with Drivers - As a dispatcher enters call
information, integrated Mapping allows the dispatcher to find the call location quickly. They can
also find the best truck for every call if integrated with the Navman Wireless GPS solution and
InTow Manager. They can find route information, calculate both EnRoute and InTow mileage
and send driving directions and call details directly to driver cell phones, pagers, Blackberry's,
the Navman M-Nav750 messaging terminal or in-truck laptops. This communication layer with
drivers GREATLY reduces the amount of radio or phone traffic in the office.
5) Searching the Database - Being able to quickly find information in your database is key to
good customer service. Being able to lookup information based on Plate, VIN, Invoice Number,
etc, etc. and supply information quickly to customers or management helps reduce time in
finding information in the office.
6) Service Rate Setup and Custom Price Book per Customer - Being able to setup Services
based on your contracted rates with each customer eliminates the manual calculation of
invoices. For example, being able to select a LIGHT DUTY TOW and having the system
automatically know the price for the customer means anyone in the business can enter calls. In
addition, being able to setup different types as services such as a FIXED RATE so it can't be
over-ridden, or a CALCULATED RATE SERVICE so you can simply enter the billable miles on
an invoice and the math is done for you and added to the invoice. This reduces errors inherent
in the manual calculation of invoice totals. No more will you need pieces of paper hanging on
the wall or a price book with various contracted rates that needs to be referenced every time an
invoice needs to be created.
7) Driver Tow Ticket Management - Being able to assign a book of tickets or invoices to a
specific driver or truck, allows you to properly manage your invoices. Knowing what tickets have
been used and are still outstanding can help to eliminate the misuse of your invoices. Each
driver is assigned a book of tickets and dispatchers will know the next ticket that should be used
before the driver even calls the invoice number into the office. If a discrepancy occurs, it can be
addressed immediately.
8) Tracking Call Times and Driver Efficiency - Being able to track the Call Time, Dispatched
Time, OnScene time, Into time and Cleared time of each call can assist with reporting to Motor
Clubs, Police Departments and indicate whether you need to re-evaluate your Eta's or a specific
drivers training requirements. You can run reports based on Driver Call Efficiency or Customer
Call Efficiency. Being able to produce reports for a customer to show them your performance is
a nice marketing tool and contract negotiation tool.
9) Associating Pictures to Call Records - The ability to assign a photo or multiple photo's of an
accident scene can help you to justify your invoice price with insurance company's or to defend
fraudulent claims of damage from disgruntled customers.
There are multiple other benefits to running a properly architected towing software program over
an accounting system. Running QuickBooks for instance, on it's own is great for Accounting,
but it was not designed specifically for running towing operations. Some application's (including
ours) integrate with QuickBooks so all invoice, payment and credit information can be
synchronized with your QuickBooks database, but the information and business requirements of
a towing company is much better managed in towing specific software.
For more information or a free demonstration of these and other features, please contact
sales@onscene-solutions.com or call “Sales” at 330.220.8111 x212
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