BTService Quick Start Guide

Tasks

Steps

1. Know Your Resources

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Training & Professional Services

Complimentary BTService On Demand Classes are included in the price of your BTService subscription. These pre-recorded sessions provide an orientation to the BTService setup, workflow and concepts, as well as a detailed review of end-user data. Length of the session varies based on the topic covered. On Demand classes are available 24/7, 365 days a year. Select this link to take the classes on your own schedule:

Take Now!        

Feel the need for individualized attention?  Custom training is your answer!  A member of the BTLearningCenter team will work with you to document your team’s workflow processes and then deliver training on how to use the BTService product within your processes.  Contact us at btlearningcenter@buildtopia.com for a services proposal.

Customer Support

Just have a quick question?  Can't remember where you saw a certain field?  Want to request a custom report?  Give our Customer Support Center team a call at 1.800.773.0711 or email them at support@buildtopia.com

Data Environments

Your subscription provides you access to two data environments.

Application Environment.  The application environment is your standard environment – where you will log in each day to manage your work.

Log in to www.buildtopia.com

Select Customer Login.  Enter Company ID, Username, and Password.  Select Submit.

Training Environment.  The training environment is your practice environment.  It is a copy of your application environment where you can work risk-free to explore the database and test your data.

Log in to training.buildtopia.com

Follow the same steps to login as you do for your application environment.

2. Schedule & Complete Your Training

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Whether you take advantage of the standard online classes or leap at the chance for training customized to your unique workflows and team structure, the BTLearningCenter is poised to bring home your success. Contact us today!

Administrator

Who will manage the data you enter into BTService?  Who will oversee the processes and workflows and also ensure other team members are using BTService to capture and report your data?  This person (or persons) will be your BuildTopia Administrator and is likely the person who will complete all of the data templates or will enter the data directly into the application.

The BT Administrator should complete all three of the BTService classes to gain the big picture and necessary details for setting up and implementing the BTService product.  Ideally, the administrator will complete these classes prior to completing the data templates or completing the direct entry of data into the application.

Warranty Service Team

The members of your warranty service team should attend the BTService On Demand classes.  These focus on an introduction into the product and the end-user “how-to’s” and typical workflows, including communication points with your trade partners.

The warranty service team should complete training after the administrator has entered your data.  Viewing your data in the application increases learning and retention.

Trade Partners

And speaking of trade partners, the Trade Partners III class is focused on responding to and updating assigned service requests.  Encourage your online trade partners to enroll as soon as you are ready to assign service orders in BTService.

Stakeholders

Often, senior members of your company want a quick-hit session that gives them an overview of what the product is all about – without delving into the workflow details.  BTService I is designed to provide the big-picture view of the product – key concepts and broad strokes of the end-user application.

3. Enter & Upload Your Data

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Gather Your Data

Decide what historical or current data you want to enter into the BTService database.  Here are some suggestions of data that you will likely reference during this process.

1. Warranty service team members, titles, emails, phone numbers, as well as the communities/projects they service

2. List of owners, contact information, project/lot information

3. Copies of active warranty packages across all projects

4. Standard emails or letters you use to communicate with owners and trade partners

5. Punchlists used before and/or after settlement

6. List of trade partners who complete work during the warranty service period

7. Reports you currently use to monitor the success of your warranty service program

Choose Your Data Entry Method

Data Templates.  This is the preferred way to enter your data because it allows you organize your data into a single spreadsheet.  If you are eager to use BTService to its fullest and having all your data “at your fingertips” is a must-have, this is the right option for you.

With these templates, you can first upload the information in your training environment.  Test it out.  See if you like the way it looks, if you like the way it works and flows.  Make any necessary tweaks to your data within the templates and then upload it into your application environment.

Contact your Implementation Manager to obtain the data templates.  We will also provide you a services quote to upload your completed templates into the application.

Direct Entry.  This is a quick way to get data directly into your application environment.  If you are ultra-organized or only want to get started with a few quick bits of data, then direct entry will work for you.  We recommend that you obtain the data templates from your Implementation Manager, as these templates have all the information you need to reference as you enter the data directly into the application.

Decide What Data is Most Critical

Only you know what data is most important and will yield you the desired return on your investment.  Below is our top ten list of required and recommended data to get you started.  Feel free to add to the list to meet your needs.  Reference the BTHelpSystem for all the “how-to’s.”

1. Projects.  Add each community.

2. Warranty Service Team.  Establish warranty service roles with permissions that make sense with your workflow.  Then add each team member as a user, assigning appropriate roles and projects.

3. Warranties.  Add your warranties so they are easily associated with projects and owners.

4. Email Templates.  Don’t miss this opportunity to automate your communication with your owners and trade partners.  It is a key advantage to using BTService.

5. Aging Levels.  Gives you a dashboard view of all your open service requests categorized by your quality standards.  See the data templates for examples.

6. Origins.  Allows you full tracking of how you receive requests.  See the data templates for examples.

7. Dispositions.  Allows you full tracking for the closing status of requests.  See the data templates for examples.

8. Request Custom Fields.  Reap the rewards of defect analysis through the use of custom fields.  See the data template for a complete sample listing of defect codes.

9. Lists/Walkthroughs.  Allow the database to auto-populate your pre- and post-settlement punchlists and walks as service requests.

10. Trade Partners.  Add the vendors and contractors who complete the work during the warranty service period.  Remember to include your internal team(s) as a trade partner and track all service requests assigned and completed internally.

What About Historical Data?

Rather than starting fresh from today, you may have historical data that you want to enter into BTService.  Absolutely, we can do that!  Contact your Implementation Manager for a services quote to enter any or all of the following types of data.

Owners – basic contact information for primary and co-owners

Sales Information – the unit type and options selected by owners during the sales process

Service Requests – requests, the items within requests, and any notes you have documented

Trade Partners – vendors and contractors who worked on the house during construction and/or during the warranty service period

4. Reap the Rewards

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Reports

It’s time to measure your successes!  Use BTService’s standard reports or build your own reports using the On-Demand reporting functionality.  It’s easy to explore BuildTopia’s world of reports but don’t hesitate to contact your Implementation Manager or our Customer Support Center for assistance.