The definition of field service has evolved in today’s digital world. Traditionally rooted in the manufacturing industry, field service tended to consist of fixing and managing broken parts and machines. But now, field service includes all sorts of mobile workers, from home health care aids to furniture delivery installers. And in some cases, going into the “field” may not be necessary at all—technicians can diagnose and fix many problems remotely thanks to digital technology. 

To meet these ever-evolving needs, Salesforce has added new tools to its field service management platform. This article will cover the latest additions to Salesforce Field Service and explain how they benefit companies in this mobile-first world. 

Let’s get started.

Overview of Salesforce Field Service 

Salesforce Field Service gives organizations a comprehensive service offering to connect customer data and service experts on a single platform. Virtual support, intelligent scheduling, and visual assistance features all help field service technicians address customer problems quickly. Even better, you can also integrate Salesforce Field Service with Slack to offer even more collaboration with your experts. 

If you’re looking for more introductory information on what Salesforce Field Service is and how it benefits mobile employees, dispatchers, and supervisors, you can check out our article, Salesforce Field Service Lightning—Your Service Operation’s New Best Friend

New Features of Salesforce Field Service 

Recently, Salesforce unveiled four new capabilities to help businesses respond to the mobile workforce. These changes include self-service features and video for troubleshooting issues. Here’s a breakdown of the latest tools:

Scheduling and Optimization Engine 

This feature allows organizations to manage complicated field service jobs that require multiple steps and technicians. You’ll be able to chain these steps together to ensure that dispatchers get a bird’s-eye view of the entire job, helping them better manage worker needs and capacity. The engine runs on Hyperforce, the latest Salesforce infrastructure architecture that delivers Salesforce Customer 360 on public clouds. 

Lightning Web Components

Businesses and partners can now customize the Salesforce Field Service mobile app with enhanced features and workflows to improve the technician experience. Taking advantage of Lighting web components also allows partners and system integrators to create industry-specific applications, such as workflows for industrial manufacturers or home security companies. 

Self-Service Scheduling 

Say bye-bye to time wasted while waiting on hold. Now, you can give your customers the ability to schedule, cancel, or reschedule appointments on their own time. Even better, when customers make these changes through self-service scheduling, technician schedules and service resources automatically adjust themselves. It’s like magic!

Visual Remote Assistant 

Two-way, real-time video features allow agents and customers to collaborate and troubleshoot issues almost like they’re there in person. Your agents can use the Visual Remote Assistant feature to show a customer how to fix a simple problem like restarting a home router, all without ever having to step foot in the home. This feature can also help your technicians in the field that might need additional support from co-workers.

Also New: DocuSign in the Field 

Along with these new features, Salesforce announced DocuSign CLM for Field Service. This allows customers to automate the process of tracking, enforcing, and updating contract terms while in the field. By bringing data on warranties and service level agreements from DocuSign into Service Cloud, you can look forward to automated service experience and contract execution. 

Salesforce Field Service: New Feature Timeline

Customers can start taking advantage of Self-Service Scheduling and Visual Remote Assistant now. Scheduling and Optimization is currently available in beta, while Lightning Web Components is on a pilot basis. DocuSign CLM for Salesforce Field Service is slated to arrive in 2022. 

Taking Advantage of Salesforce Field Service Features

If you’re ready to modernize your organization for the mobile workforce, Salesforce Field Service is the answer. Offering better management of complicated operations, improved user experience in mobile applications, and automation to boost efficiency, the solution can maximize operations and help you scale your business for the future. 

Our senior-level Salesforce consulting team has worked on implementations for many organizations to help them manage their workforce with more productivity. To find out how we can help you optimize your field service management setup, contact us today.