Customer Texts and Automatic Reminders in Orcatec: A Complete Beginner's Guide

Reading time: ~8 min

Customers want to know two things before a visit: when you are coming and who is coming. Orcatec answers both with text messages, some you send by hand and some that go out on their own.

This guide is for office staff and dispatchers. It has two parts:

• Part 1: Two-way texting in the Messaging tab, for conversations with customers
• Part 2: Automatic notifications in Settings > Notifications, for reminders, En Route texts and other event messages

Before you start: business texting registration

US carriers require businesses that send text messages from software to register first (A2P 10DLC registration). You do this once, then buy a number your team texts from.

Setting up texting takes four steps:

1. Go to Settings in the web app and open Communication Center > Phone Numbers. Settings is not in the mobile app.
2. Complete your business's Brand and Campaign registration (10DLC). You will be asked for your business information, contact details, messaging use case and sample messages. If you are not sure where to start, contact Orcatec support.
3. Wait for carrier approval. It can take several business days, so start early.
4. After approval, click + Buy a New Number, choose an area code and follow the steps. The Messaging Center tutorial shows these screens in more detail.

Settings > Communication Center > Phone Numbers with the + Buy a New Number button

Why does registration take days? Optional

Carriers review each business before allowing it to send texts. Start registration a week or two before you need texting, especially before a busy season.

Part 1: Two-way texting in Messaging

Messaging in the top menu is your text inbox. Customer conversations stay in one place, linked to the contact, so anyone who picks up a chat can see what was already said.

Messaging tab with the chat list on the left and an open conversation on the right

The chat list (left side)

The conversation (right side)

Message composer with the Characters and SMS Parts counter

Sending your first text

1. Click Messaging in the top menu.
2. Click New Chat and choose the contact.
3. Type your message in the Message box and watch the counter.
4. Attach a photo or file if needed.
5. Click send.

Part 2: Automatic notifications

Automatic notifications live in Settings > Notifications. The page has two tabs: Setup Template and Templates.

Settings > Notifications > Setup Template tab with the sending window and industry list

Step 1: Set the sending window

At the top of Setup Template is Time of sending notification. The default is 10:00 AM - 07:00 PM. Change it to match the hours when your customers expect to hear from you.

Step 2: Pick the industry

Notification settings are per industry: HVAC, Home Services, Automotive, Electrical, Garage Doors, Plumbing, Appliance Repair, Food Services and Tree Services. If your company runs more than one trade, open each industry and set it up separately. A plumbing reminder can say something different from an appliance repair reminder.

Step 3: Review each event

Each event has a default template, and you can choose a different template for it. When the appointment status changes to En Route, Orcatec lets you send the En Route notification to the client. With Pop up reminder to send notification turned on for the En Route Event, a pop-up reminds you to send it.

Setup Template events list with the Default Template column and pencil icons

Step 4: Set the automatic reminder time

In Automatic Reminder Event, the setting Send event reminder automatically before controls how early the reminder goes out. The default is 24 hours.

Editing templates

Templates are the actual wording customers receive. Open the Templates tab in Settings > Notifications. The public Custom Notification Templates tutorial walks through creating a template step by step, including the email and SMS versions.

A few rules that keep templates working:

1. Give each template a clear name, such as "Plumbing - reminder".
2. Use data tags, such as the customer or technician name, instead of typing names by hand.
3. Delete a whole tag if you do not need it, but never edit the text inside a tag.
4. Preview the template before you save it, and send a test to your own phone.

Settings > Notifications > Templates tab with the list of templates

One template per trade or one for everyone? Advanced

If your trades need different instructions, make separate templates. A plumber may ask the customer to clear space under the sink, a garage door tech may ask them to move the car out, and an appliance tech may ask for the model number. Assign each template to the right industry in Setup Template.

Real example messages

These show the format of Orcatec automatic texts, with placeholders where your company and technician names appear. Your wording will follow your own templates.

The En Route text works because it names the technician, so the customer knows who is at the door before they open it.

Holiday-week tips

Holiday weeks mean guests, full kitchens and busy drains, so plumbing and appliance calls often stack up. A few settings checks help.

• Confirm every appointment. Make sure the automatic reminder is on for each industry you use.
• Check the sending window. If you run early or late shifts over the holiday, adjust Time of sending notification so reminders are not held until the next day.
• Update templates early. Changes apply only to future events, so edit wording a week before the rush.
• Text delays by hand. When a tech runs late, send a short message from Messaging with a new ETA instead of letting the customer wonder.
• Watch the red !. Check for failed messages every morning and resend or call.

Frequently asked questions

Can customers reply to automatic texts?

Replies come into Messaging as a normal conversation, so your office can answer from the same inbox. In our demo account, appointment notifications show up in the contact's Messaging chat, and the client's replies land in the same thread.

How far in advance is the automatic reminder sent?

24 hours before the appointment by default. Change it in Settings > Notifications > Setup Template under Automatic Reminder Event.

Why did my template change not show up on an existing appointment?

Template changes apply only to future events and projects created after the change. Existing appointments keep the settings they were created with.

Can I set different reminders for plumbing and HVAC?

Yes. Notification settings are per industry, so each trade can have its own templates.

Checklist for your first week of texting

• Finish business texting registration and buy your number
• Send yourself a test text from Messaging with New Chat
• Check Time of sending notification matches your business hours
• Review every event in Setup Template for each industry you use
• Confirm the automatic reminder is set to the lead time you want
• Rewrite the reminder and En Route templates in your own voice
• Preview each template before saving
• Check for red ! failed messages every morning

Holiday weeks put all of this to the test. Read Brown Friday Is Coming: A Holiday-Week Playbook for Plumbing Companies for staffing, stock and customer texts to plan before Thanksgiving.