So, you’re looking for an app to manage your on-the-go business where you’re servicing clients at their homes. In this article, we will be discussing the ups and downs of using Housecall Pro, how Housecall Pro compares to PocketSuite, and what app would be best for your business based on your needs. Housecall Pro is famous for being especially suited to businesses that perform services onsite at a client’s home.
Since running a service business has a unique set of challenges, it’s important to choose an app or software that allows you to tackle these challenges head-on.
For example, some common characteristics of apps or software that allows you to manage your on-the-go service business are:
- Mobile-first design
- Scheduling
- Online Booking
- Estimates
- Invoices
- Marketing
- Etc…
It’s very easy to assume that just about any software that does scheduling and booking can help you. However, let’s take a look at the breakdown of two giants in this industry – Housecall Pro and PocketSuite.
Both apps are designed for pros that service clients at their location, so it’s worth your time to find out which one of these takes the cake in terms of value and pricing.
It’s important to choose wisely, as the software or app that you use will influence your clients perception of your business. You want that impression to be good, so this decision should not be taken lightly!
Let’s take a look at what Housecall Pro is capable of and how it compares to PocketSuite.
Housecall Pro
Features:
- Scheduling
- Estimates
- Online booking
- Dispatch
- On-my-way texts
- Live Map GPS
- Custom text and email
- Invoicing
- Follow-up marketing
- Payment processing
- Recurring service
- Instapay
PocketSuite
Features:
- Marketing – Google-driven results (Partnership with PocketSuite <> Google AdWords).
- Online Booking – Your customers can book you from their phone or computer.
- POS – Charge customer’s credit cards with our built in card scanner.
- Scheduling – One tap easy booking for you and your clients.
- Invoicing – Collect payment upfront and/or when the job is done.
- Discounts – Give specials discounts to brand new or existing clients.
- Sales Tax / Surcharges – Uncle Sam’s payments are taken care of auto-magically.
- Gratuity – Let your clients make it rain ☔ by giving you tips!
- Custom Fields – Whatever customization you need on your appointments, PocketSuite has the power to make it happen.
- E-Contracts – Send clients contracts over text or email and get them signed within 24 hours.
- Forms – Complete private notes on the job and save them for future reference.
- Recurring Appointments – Keep them coming back for more and lock in repeat clients.
- Appointment Reminders – Your clients will never miss an appointment.
- Multi-Services – Offer different priced services to your customers easily.
- Reservations – Let clients book you for multi-day jobs.
- Estimates – Send estimates with deposit requirements. Convert estimates into invoices and/or appointments with one tap.
- Packages – Custom packages have never been easier – get paid upfront.
- Subscriptions – Auto-pay is the easiest way to collect recurring revenue.
- Team – Easy to assign jobs, pay, manage your team from one app.
- Job Check In & Check Out – Keep tabs on your team and auto-update your clients on arrival times with location tracking.
- Group Messaging – Business at the speed of thought. Clients just see it as text, but it shows up in your app as a client message!
As is abundantly clear at this point, PocketSuite’s massive set of features is more than enough for any new or established business owner.
It is also important to take a look at the financial commitment that is associated with each of these software tools. After all, it’s important to make sure you’re not throwing money down the drain!
With Housecall Pro, the interesting thing is that you get limited functionality for more money as opposed to PocketSuite’s fully stocked premium offerings that are less expensive and more powerful.
Housecall Pro Pricing
PocketSuite Pricing
PocketSuite’s “Premium” Plan is for one person businesses. The “Team” plan is $34.99 for up to 2 team members, including SuperAdmin, and then $9.99 for every additional team member over 2.
Additionally, the features that PocketSuite provides eclipse Housecall Pro’s by a longshot.
Let’s take a looksie at some of these extra features that you would NOT receive with Housecall Pro:
PocketSuite Premium Version
- Unique Business # – Get a business phone number that you can put on your business cards and marketing.
- Group Messaging – No more fumbling to send dozens of the same message to your clients.
- Saved Message Templates – Easily send off messages based on custom templates.
- Class Scheduling, Auto Check Ins & Attendance Tracking – Easily track job check ins and check outs.
- Multi-day Jobs – Allow clients to reserve your time for multiple days. Viola!
- Tasks / To-Do’s – Always know what you need to get done and don’t miss a single task!
- Data Importing – Come on over. We’ll take care of getting your clients into the system.
- Questionnaires / Forms – Collect data from your customers with ease. Painlessly organize and sort it.
- Contract E-Signing – Need to send a contract out? Never fear, PocketSuite is here.
- Estimates – I’m estimating that you will love this feature, especially how you can convert estimates to invoices directly!
- Smart Campaigns – Follow up with your clients automatically – schedule follow-ups via SMS that bring folks back for more!
- Add-On Products – Now you can sell products alongside your services.
I’d also like to mention one thing that normally gets lost in the shuffle when it comes to choosing a piece of software or an app to help you manage your business.
As you know, the learning curve for new technology can be very high. For this reason, should you run into some roadblocks or headaches when it comes to switching providers, it is important to know that the new software or app you’re using has your back.
As an example, I am very impressed with the support I received from PocketSuite when I tried them out.
In fact, I would go so far as to say that their support team is best-in-class, and you shouldn’t hesitate at all to reach out to them if you have questions.
If you run into problems, just shoot them a text (415-841-2300). They respond quickly and are extremely helpful. They went beyond the call of duty to ensure that my experience with their app was a 6 star rating in every way. And as a business owner, that makes me feel taken care of and happy to be a part of the PocketSuite community of Pros.
When it comes to choosing a business management app or software, I need something that is easy to use when I’m on the go (like when I’m doing appointments at a client’s home) and has full-fledged functionality (so I don’t have to look for 10 other apps to get basic business tasks done).
Housecall Pro has limited functionality and is primarily desktop-based. PocketSuite, on the other hand, is mobile-first in design and has all of the necessary tools that I need to run my entire business from my phone, using one app. How neat is that?
Like this article? You’ll love our guide on how to generate leads for service businesses in 2022, and of course our Frustrations with Square article!
