Roofing CRM Software vs Generic CRM Software: Why Contractors Struggle with General Platforms

With so many software options on the market today, you need to understand which is best for your roofing business. Customer relationship management (CRM) software is essential to your operations, so you must ensure you are choosing a solution that fits your unique business needs and makes day to day work as seamless as possible. 

A common mistake contractors make is assuming that all CRMs are designed the same way, but this is not the case. Basic CRM platforms provide baseline sales and customer relationship management features, however they are not designed to reflect vertical-specific processes, and often require significant customization to work adequately for residential roofing businesses. Roofing CRMs offer a more tailored experience for contractors. Not only do they eliminate the need for customization, but they also offer a workflow that reflects the common processes roofing contractors follow. 

Since AccuLynx—the industry’s first residential roofing-specific CRM software—hit the market back in 2008, this type of technology has only grown in popularity, offering contractors an end-to-end business management system that powers their entire business. Choosing an industry-specific CRM like AccuLynx eliminates the hassles that come with generic systems, setting the stage for growth and long term profitability. 

Why generic software misses the mark in roofing

While generic CRMs cover the basics of the sales process, they aren’t built to support the unique workflows of a roofing business. Many different aspects of a roofing project, such as crew scheduling, ordering aerial measurements, or having access to real-time material pricing, all need to take place outside the software, defeating its purpose. Generic software also usually requires complex and expensive customization. Business owners who choose a generic platform typically have to hire third party developers or consultants to build the program out for them.

Pushing teams to adopt these platforms can lead to frustration due to their lack of functionality, ultimately making compliance plummet. This frustration can lead to a total abandonment of the software. 

Where generic CRMs break down in roofing 

Generic CRMs break down in multiple areas throughout a roofing job. Here’s a look at the areas roofing contractors commonly struggle with and how roofing software fills the gaps.

Project management

Many CRMs operate on a linear sales pipeline. Once a deal is marked as Sold, the software considers the job done. This makes project management difficult, as tasks like scheduling crews and tracking the overall progress of the job must be managed through a different system entirely or done manually. 

Standard CRMs also do not account for the specific nuances and processes required for insurance restoration jobs. From photo tracking to inspections to a means for managing supplements, the decision to use a non-industry specific CRM often means you will have to pay for and maintain multiple third party applications. 

• The roofing CRM solution: Once you win a job, roofing CRMs seamlessly transition to the next steps. You do things like schedule crews, share photos, and manage supplements all within the platform. Roofing CRMs like AccuLynx also integrate with hail tracking apps to help you see where more potential jobs are due to storm damage. Furthermore, when you’re working on an insurance job, roofing CRMs include dedicated sections to put insurance details, keeping everything organized in the same file.

Estimating

Putting together an estimate can be more difficult using generic software. These platforms lack a way to automatically pull in roof measurements and material pricing. Without this critical automation, the roofing job quoting process is much more time-consuming, putting you at risk of losing jobs to competitors. 

In addition, generic CRMs make it much more difficult to build “good, better, best” pricing that can cater to the homeowners needs and even help you upsell. The intense customization required to build an estimate in a generic platform will only slow you down.

• The roofing CRM solution: Roofing software eliminates manual entry of measurements and material costs through integrations with aerial measurement providers and material suppliers. With AccuLynx, measurements and material prices populate directly in the estimate. Having access to these tools combined with “good, better, best” templates allows you to produce a job estimate much quicker. These tools also help you maximize your revenue by offering multiple pricing options to increase the probability of you winning the job.

Material ordering

Once you win the job, ordering the materials is where production could be stalled using a generic CRM. Generic CRMs would require you to build out your own integration with your preferred material supplier or manage the process outside of your CRM. This can slow down your operations by having to call suppliers for pricing and manually calculate it. 

• The roofing CRM solution: AccuLynx offers direct integrations with material suppliers such as ABC Supply, QXO, and SRS Distribution. Placing orders to these suppliers through AccuLynx can be done in just a few clicks, ultimately saving you multiple hours on a job.

Easily scale your business

The difference between generic CRM software and roofing CRM software goes back to simplicity and usability. Generic CRMs demand intense setup and heavy tailoring to work well for roofing companies. This is why AccuLynx established the roofing CRM category almost 20 years ago. So that roofing companies were equipped with the technology-based tools that would help them operate more effectively and scale to new levels. 

By implementing a roofing CRM, you reduce the stress that comes with software adoption and make your onboarding process more seamless. If you’d like to see how an all-in-one roofing software like AccuLynx can help you scale your business, schedule a demo today.