Running late, sorted in one sheet
When a job runs over, tap "I need more time" and say how much longer. See You Soon lists each later job with its booked time and its new time. "Update my day" moves them in your calendar. "Keep everyone informed" then writes a text for each customer kept waiting, and you send each one.
Running late
How much longer?
- 15 min
- 30 min
- 45 min
- 60 min
The rest of your day
Mrs Patel
Late14:0014:30D. Hughes
Late15:3015:45S. Byrne
A few minutes later16:3016:35R. Ahmed17:15
Can't tell
Update my day
Keep everyone informed
- Mrs PatelText them
- D. HughesRing them
2 customers still to tell.
How it works
Say how much longer. On the job you are on, tap "I need more time". Pick 15, 30, 45 or 60 minutes, or set a time. On the job you are driving to, it is offered once you are more than a minute past its leave time.
See the rest of the day. The sheet lists each later job with its booked time, its new time and a marker: "Late", "A few minutes later", "On time" or "Can't tell". Gaps in your day absorb the delay where they can.
Move the jobs. "Update my day" writes the new times into your calendar.
Tell the customers. "Keep everyone informed" lists each customer kept waiting. "Text them" opens the running-late text, written and unsent. "Ring them" shows where the number can't take a text.
Finish early or on time. "Finished" ends the job now in your calendar and plans the rest of the day again. The app then offers a text to the next customer, saying you could be early, you're on track, or you're running late.
The facts
| Quick answers | 15, 30, 45 or 60 minutes, or a time you pick |
|---|---|
| Counts as "Late" | A new start more than 5 minutes after the booked start |
| New times | Rounded up to 5 minutes |
| Markers | "Late", "A few minutes later", "On time", "Can't tell" |
| Repeating jobs | Only that day's occurrence moves |
| A job over its booked end | The card asks "Still on?". With location allowed and a fresh position 500 metres or more away, it asks "Finished at" the booked end |
| The running-late text | Sorry, I'm running behind, so I'm likely to be with you about until rather than booked. |
What it needs
- A travel time for each journey. From the first journey without one, later jobs are marked "Can't tell" and are not moved.
- A calendar that allows changes, for "Finished" and "Update my day".
- A customer number that can take a text, for "Text them".
What it doesn't do
- It never sends a text. Each one opens unsent, for you to read and send.
- A cancelled or deleted job can't be brought back in the app.
- A job in a calendar that can't be changed is not moved. The sheet names it.
Questions
Does it text my customers for me?
No. It writes the text and opens it unsent in the iPhone's message sheet, addressed to the customer. You read it, change it if you want, and send it.
What happens to the jobs after the late one?
The sheet shows each one with its booked time and its new time. Gaps in your day absorb the delay where they can. "Update my day" writes the new times into your calendar.
What if a customer only has a landline?
Their row shows "Ring them" in place of "Text them". Landline detection follows UK number ranges only.
Why does a job say "Can't tell"?
The app has no travel time for a journey before it, often because a job has no address. From that journey on, jobs are marked "Can't tell" and are not moved.
Does it work on repeating jobs?
Yes. Only that day's occurrence moves. The rest of the series stays as it is.
Related pages
The full wording of every text is on Customer texts. The alerts that warn you first are on Alerts.
About See You Soon
See You Soon is a free iPhone app for tradespeople. It reads the calendar you already keep, works out when to leave for each job with travel times from Apple Maps, and writes the text to send when you are running late. You send it.
