Is your hydrovac business as profitable as you'd hoped, or do you feel like you're in over your head?
Vacuum truck businesses can be fantastic revenue generators, but they also come with challenges, including:
It's also a competitive industry, with a growth rate of around 7% each year, meaning even minor oversights could result in one of your customers jumping ship for a competitor. That's why preparation is the key to overcoming the industry's struggles.
Preparation starts with awareness. So, if you're looking for quality, no-nonsense advice, we've got three tips to keep top-of-mind as you work to grow your hydrovac business.
Customers are the lifeblood of any company, but managing a hydrovac business and keeping your customers satisfied takes extra finesse. Providing exceptional customer service comes down to two things:
To start, you need to be able to route new work to your trucks and operators at the drop of a hat, which requires wise management of your scheduling, maintenance, and operators.
Using a centralized job management software like RapidWorks can help dispatchers quickly see which trucks and operators are available so you can confidently and quickly book new business.
When it comes to being consistent, perhaps the most important element is communication. This means every interaction — booking the job, confirming the job the day before, on-the-job communication from operators, signing off on job tickets, and billing — must be clear and consistent. To impress customers enough to beat the competition you need a process that's smooth from start to finish.
So what can you do to lock in processes that keep customers satisfied? Here are a few tactics:
The key to successful customer retention in the hydro excavation business is balancing consistency with agility. It's not easy to predict when new jobs will pop up, so you must keep a fleet that's maintained and ready to go. Remember, even small delays can lead to customers crossing over to a competitor.
Success in the hydrovac industry means completing jobs safely, correctly, and on time — every time. To achieve this, you need operators you can trust.
There's no easier way to lose clients than sending out team members who are sloppy, lazy, or inexperienced. Building a team of all-stars begins with effective hiring practices. You want your team to have a record that reflects safety, cooperation, and strong communication skills.
Bringing aboard the right people requires thorough vetting and background checks. To start, build a detailed hiring questionnaire to vet potential operators during the hiring process.
These questions can include:
Additionally, while hiring always ask for references and work history. This allows you to review the candidate’s performance objectively and get a sense of their ability to handle customers and follow safety protocols. If they refuse to provide references, it can indicate a poor track record.
But hiring good people is only the first step. You also have to invest in your staff so they can actively improve at handling customers and adding value. Here are a few tips for making customer service part of the work culture for your crew:
The hydrovac business can be lucrative, but overhead isn't cheap. In addition to equipment maintenance and basic operational costs, there are many smaller pieces to the organizational — and financial — puzzle that are easy to overlook, including:
Managing all this requires time and money, but staying on top of these parts of the business will help keep your business afloat if something goes wrong.
Let's focus on insurance, as too many businesses skimp in this department. For vacuum truck businesses with significant safety risks, it's essential to research and invest in a good umbrella coverage plan that goes beyond general liability and includes the following:
Whether you're researching insurance policies or reviewing licenses, the little things help prevent massive financial hits later on. However, keeping track of it all can be challenging. That’s where it's helpful to use a system for filling out and logging digital safety forms required by insurance providers and regulators. Digital tools like RapidWorks can make managing safety forms easier. By requiring your crew to submit digital DVIRs and JSAs before every job, you can be sure you always have access to your safety documentation should you need it.
The hydrovac business is as demanding as it is rewarding. With so many moving parts, the right technology is critical to locking in agility and communication as your pillars of success.
RapidWorks lets you provide your operators with the best tools for handling every client with the utmost care. Our digital solutions help minimize the mountains of safety paperwork and documents needed to track certifications, insurance claims, and licensing.
Our dynamic hydrovac management tools modernize workforces, streamlining the following processes:
RapidWorks is the ultimate solution for removing communication barriers and keeping your hydrovac businesses on track and organized for success. Our software gives you more control over each stage of a job’s lifecycle, allowing you to provide a truly unmatched experience for each customer.
The best part? You don't have to take our word for it. Check out how it works for yourself and schedule a demo to see RapidWorks in action.