8 must-have mobile features for propane mobile applications

Photo: iStock.com/David Jones

There are many ways mobile applications benefit the propane delivery business, along with eight specific features that are indispensable for success.

That number is an advantage to companies and clients alike, and this is where every relevant organization in the United States should pay attention to the following advice. Given the proliferation of applications for smartphones and tablets and given people’s familiarity with these devices, we can transform the propane delivery business for the better.

To start, let us look at the delivery process itself, where drivers and administrators can now print tickets, track trucks and wirelessly upload sundry documents and invoices. In so many words, that feature is the essence of convenience. It makes communication seamless, efficient and productive.

Then there is the issue of service. The mobile revolution makes this matter a top priority by streamlining inventory tracking with a secure and dependable system. This process ensures that clients get the attention they deserve and the quality they expect to receive.

Consider, too, the power of having access to a database of all the safety and maintenance issues associated with your propane tanks (with photos). That intelligence alone is invaluable, proving that the right application can expedite procedures and enhance your overall risk profile.

I would be remiss if I did not also mention having digital access – from your smartphone or tablet – to attorney-verified gas safety checks, leak checks and trenching agreements. Put a different way, what would otherwise be a pile of paper is a touch or tap from immediate access and confirmation of the same.

Fifth, the right application can issue proposals, invoices and estimates for current and prospective clients.

In addition, there is a fuel tank spotter feature that combines the ability to identify and archive all fuel tanks in your market area and digitally file associated documents, and manage a mobile installation calendar for maximum effectiveness. This four-in-one option is one of the principal highlights of having – and using – the right mobile application for the right series of mobile devices.

Then there is the subject of driver-vehicle inspection reports that, when completed, show the office how healthy each of its capital-intensive vehicles are, thus ending a very tedious and cumbersome responsibility.

And finally, there is the freedom for you to receive and for customers to enter orders for more propane. Think of this eighth feature as the culmination of a quest to make mobility the governing principle of this revolution. Picture it as the fulfillment of everything mobile technology is, of all mobile technology should be.

Taken together, these features are the way forward – they are the future made present – for an industry that should be at the forefront of technology and communications.

These features make that scenario a reality, converting the possible into the probable, empowering propane drivers and dispatchers throughout North America with the strengths they seek and the outcomes they desire.

Bill Stomp is vice president of business development at Digital Dispatcher. He can be reached at 888-426-6764 or billstomp@digitaldispatcher.com.