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After a job, follow up in a fixed order: close the job record, send the receipt and a thank-you, ask for a review once, check in on bigger jobs after a few days, put warranty dates in the customer record, answer the review, and schedule the next service. Assign each step to one person, so none of them depends on someone remembering.
Key takeaways
- Follow up the same way for every customer, because the steps that matter are the ones that usually get skipped.
- Give each step an owner and a trigger, such as job marked complete, so the work does not depend on memory.
- Ask for a review once, from everyone, and never offer anything in exchange.
- A check-in a few days after larger jobs catches problems before they reach a public review.
- End every job with a next date in the customer record: a maintenance visit, a warranty check or a reminder.
The job is not finished when the crew drives away. Between the last photo and the next call there is a short stretch where a customer decides whether to review you, refer you, call you back or call someone else. Each step below names who does it, when, and the usual way it gets skipped. Put the list in your CRM as tasks that fire when a job is marked complete, so the steps do not depend on a busy owner remembering them. For the pre-job side of this routine, see the estimate appointment checklist.
1. Close the job record the same day
Who: the tech or crew lead. When: before leaving the site or by end of day. Photos, notes on what was done, parts or materials used, and anything the customer should know. How it gets skipped: the crew finishes late and plans to write it up tomorrow, and by then the details are blurry. Make "complete" impossible to tap until a photo and a note are in, so every later step on this list works from facts.
2. Do a short walkthrough before you leave
Who: the lead on site. When: at the end of the visit, when the customer is home. Walk the work with them, point out what was done, and ask one question: "Anything you'd like us to look at again before we go?" How it gets skipped: the customer is at work, so you leave without a word. In that case, send a photo set and the same question by message the same evening, so the chance to fix something quietly is not lost.
3. Send the invoice or receipt with the work summary
Who: the office, or your system automatically. When: the same day. Include a plain description of what was done and how to reach you if something is wrong. How it gets skipped: invoices go out in a weekly batch, so customers get a bill days after the visit and with no explanation. A receipt that arrives with the work summary reads as service. A bare invoice reads as a demand.
4. Send a thank-you within hours
Who: automatic, signed by a named person. When: a few hours after completion. Keep it to two sentences: thanks, and how to reach you. Compliance: text messages need the right consent, and rules differ by message type, so read our guide to texting rules before turning this on, and use email for customers who have not agreed to texts. How it gets skipped: it is not on any list, so nobody thinks of it. The thank-you note templates give you wording.
5. Give an aftercare sheet
Who: the lead, or an automatic message with a link. When: at the walkthrough or in the thank-you. A short list of what the customer should expect and do: how long things need before use, what normal looks like, and what means "call us." How it gets skipped: techs explain it out loud, and the customer forgets by evening. Write it once for each service, keep it to one screen, and put the same sheet in every follow-up.
6. Ask for the review once
Who: automatic. When: within a day, after the walkthrough. Send the same request to every customer, with a direct link, and offer nothing in return. Google's content policy prohibits reviews posted because of an incentive from a business, and the same policy says merchants should not require or pressure customers to leave reviews while on the premises, so send the link afterward. Our review request templates have the wording. How it gets skipped: it only goes to customers who seem happy, and Google's policy lists selectively soliciting positive reviews as prohibited. Set the trigger to the job status so it goes to everyone.
7. Check in after three days on larger jobs
Who: the project lead or owner. When: two to five days after any job that costs the customer real money or disruption. A short call or text: "How's everything holding up?" Ask for the concern, not the compliment. How it gets skipped: it feels like bothering them. Keep it short and it reads as service, and a small issue caught now can save you from a one-star review later. Record what they say.
8. Put the warranty in writing and in the record
Who: the office. When: before the invoice goes out. State what is covered, for how long, what voids it and how to make a claim, in plain language. Enter the end date as a task in your CRM. Our guide to warranty policies covers the content. This is general information, not legal advice, and warranty rules vary by state. How it gets skipped: the warranty exists only in the owner's head, so nobody remembers the end date.
9. File manufacturer registrations and product paperwork
Who: the office, with the tech supplying serial numbers. When: within a week. If the job involved equipment or materials with a manufacturer warranty, register them where the manufacturer requires and give the customer a copy. How it gets skipped: the tech writes the serial number on a work order that gets lost. Take a photo of the data plate on site and attach it to the job record, so the information exists when the office needs it.
10. Route any complaint to the owner within a day
Who: whoever hears it. When: the same day. Any message that signals a problem goes to one named person who calls the customer back the next business day. Read how to handle customer complaints for the conversation itself. How it gets skipped: a tech or office worker handles it informally and nobody records it. Log the complaint and the fix, so you can see the pattern in your own work.
11. Reply to the review when it appears
Who: the owner or the office manager. When: within a few days of the review. Thank the reviewer by first name, mention one detail they wrote, and leave out offers, links and private details, since Google says replies must follow its content policies. Our positive review reply templates help. How it gets skipped: nobody owns it. Put ten minutes on the calendar every week.
12. Ask before using job photos
Who: the lead or the office. When: before anything is posted. If you plan to feature the job on your website, Business Profile or social accounts, ask the customer. Do not show house numbers, faces, license plates or anything that identifies the home, and keep a note of the answer in the record. How it gets skipped: techs post photos straight from the job. Make permission a checkbox on the job, and post only what is checked.
13. Set the next date in the record
Who: the office, at job close. When: every job, even one-offs. Put a date on the customer record for the next maintenance visit, seasonal reminder or warranty check, and attach the reason. A reminder that says "your gutters were last cleaned in October, here is a link to book" works because it is specific. How it gets skipped: a one-time job feels finished. See how to win back past customers for what to send when that date arrives.
14. Record how they found you and ask for a referral once
Who: the office. When: after the check-in, once the customer is clearly satisfied. Save how the customer found you in the record, because it is the only way to know which marketing pays, and see how to track lead sources. Then ask once: "If a neighbor needs something like this, we'd appreciate the introduction." If you offer a thank-you for referrals, check your state's rules. How it gets skipped: the ask feels pushy. Ask once and leave it.
Where to start
If you can only fix three things, pick these. First, step 1: no job gets closed without photos and a note, since every other step depends on it. Second, step 6: the review request goes to every customer, automatically. Third, step 13: every job ends with a date in the record for the next contact. Then add the three-day check-in (step 7), because it catches problems early. Our custom CRM runs these as tasks that fire on job status. If your office is small, the end-of-day office checklist can carry the daily pieces.
Frequently asked questions
How soon after a job should I follow up with a customer?
Send the receipt and a thank-you the same day, and ask for a review within a day. For larger jobs, check in by phone two to five days later.
Should I follow up with customers who had a problem?
Yes, and with the same steps as everyone else. Skipping unhappy customers means they hear nothing from you, and Google's rules also treat asking only the happy ones for reviews as a problem.
How do I make sure the checklist actually gets done?
Assign each step to a named role, trigger it from job status in your CRM, and review a few completed jobs each month to see what was skipped.
Do I need permission to text customers after a job?
Rules depend on the kind of message and can vary by state. Get clear permission when the customer books, honor STOP replies and read our texting rules guide.
Sources
General information for service-business owners, not legal, tax or financial advice. Rules vary by state; check with a qualified professional for your situation.