You've found software that looks like it could work for your team. But before you sign, ask what happens next.
Onboarding can look very different from one software provider to another. Some teams will work closely with you to understand your sales process, set up the system, and train your reps. Others will expect you to do much more of that work yourself.
You want to know which one you're getting before you commit.
Here are the questions to ask and what to look for when evaluating a software provider's onboarding process.
Your first onboarding call shouldn't just be a software walkthrough.
Before anything gets configured, the onboarding team should understand how your company sells today.
Most established contractors already have a sales process. The problem is that parts of it may still live in the owner's or sales manager's head.
Your team knows what questions to ask during an inspection. They know which photos to take. They know how products should be packaged and what needs to happen before a rep can present a price.
A strong onboarding team will take the time to understand those details before deciding how your company should use the software.
The person helping you should also understand home improvement sales.
They may have worked with roofing, bath, window, or other home improvement companies with a similar sales process. That experience gives them context when they see something that could work better.
They can show you how other companies have handled the same problem and let you decide whether that approach makes sense for your business.
That's different from simply having someone teach you how to use software.
Understanding your sales process is one thing. Turning it into a system your reps can follow is another.
And this is where the onboarding experience can differ considerably between software providers.
Some providers may train your team on the software and leave you responsible for configuring the rest.
Others will work with you to take the process you've already built and put it into the platform.
Ask what that actually looks like.
If your estimating process includes specific steps your reps need to follow, how will those make it into the system? If part of your process currently lives in spreadsheets or in your sales manager's head, who helps turn that into something repeatable?
You shouldn't find out after signing that your team is responsible for a much larger implementation project than you planned for.
New software may expose parts of your sales process that could be improved.
That can be valuable.
But onboarding shouldn't automatically mean throwing away a process you've spent years developing and replacing it with the software company's preferred way of doing things.
Look for a team that starts with what already works, then brings recommendations based on what they've seen work with companies like yours.
Software onboarding requires work from both sides.
Your team will need to provide information and make decisions. The software company will have its own work to complete.
You should know exactly where that line sits.
By the end of kickoff, you should understand:
This sounds basic, but it's worth asking about before you sign.
If responsibilities aren't clear, implementation can quickly turn into a series of follow-ups where everyone is waiting on someone else.
“Fast onboarding” doesn't tell you much.
You need to know what happens between signing the contract and putting the software in your reps' hands.
Find out what the major milestones are.
When will they learn your process? When does configuration happen? When will your team review what has been built? When does training happen? What needs to be completed before go-live?
You should also know what could delay that timeline.
Maybe the provider can't move forward until your team sends over pricing information. Maybe your sales manager needs to approve the setup before training can begin.
Knowing that upfront makes it much easier to plan around the implementation and keep it moving.
“Training included” can mean very different things.
It might mean access to a video library. It could mean a standard group training session. Or it could mean hands-on training built around the process your company will actually use.
Ask before you buy.
Your reps aren't going to use the software sitting in a training room with unlimited time.
They're going to use it across the kitchen table from a homeowner.
They should have a chance to work through the process they'll use in the field before that happens.
That also means training should go beyond where to click.
If the new process asks reps to do something differently, they should understand why. A rep is much more likely to follow a new step when they understand how it prevents an estimating mistake, protects their commission, or keeps the job moving after the sale.
Your team isn't going to adopt new software at exactly the same pace.
A rep who's comfortable with technology may pick it up quickly. Someone who's been selling successfully the same way for 20 years may need more time.
Find out whether additional training is available and how the provider handles reps who need more support before go-live.
This is easy to overlook when everything is going smoothly during the sales process.
Then implementation starts and you have a question.
Who do you call?
Find out whether you'll have someone assigned to your onboarding.
Ask how you reach them and what kind of response time you can expect.
More importantly, find out whether that person knows your business.
When you've spent several weeks explaining your sales process and building it into a new system, you don't want to explain the entire setup again every time you have a question.
Having someone who knows what you're trying to accomplish can make a big difference when something comes up during implementation.
Go-live is an important milestone.
It isn't necessarily the point when your team has fully adopted the software.
That's why one of the best questions you can ask a software provider is surprisingly simple:
What happens in month two?
Once reps start using the software across real appointments, you'll learn things you couldn't see during setup.
Maybe one part of the process isn't working as expected. Some reps may fall back into old habits. New questions may come up once the team starts using the system every day.
Find out who helps you then.
Will someone review adoption with you? Can they help retrain reps? Can you adjust the setup as your process changes?
There's a big difference between getting software live and getting an established sales team to consistently use a new process.
You don't have to wait until implementation to find out what kind of onboarding you're buying.
Ask these questions during the evaluation:
The answers will tell you much more than simply asking whether onboarding is included.
A software demo shows you what the platform can do.
It doesn't show you how your team will get from the process they use today to actually using that platform with homeowners.
That's worth evaluating separately.
At One Click Contractor, onboarding is hands-on and built specifically for home improvement companies. The team starts by learning how your company sells, then works with you to bring that process into the platform and prepare your reps to use it.
You also have people to work with after launch. One Click Contractor provides ongoing account management, support, and coaching as your team starts using the system and your sales process continues to evolve.
If you're evaluating contractor software, book a demo with One Click Contractor to see what the onboarding process looks like before you make your decision.