The New Customer Intake SOP
Purpose
A standard operating procedure (SOP) is the written, repeatable process everyone follows the same way, so the result does not depend on who happens to answer the phone. New customer intake is the first one a shop should write down, because the first contact sets up every job that follows. A complete intake means the tech shows up to the right address, for the right problem, with the customer already expecting them. A sloppy one means a wasted roll, a wrong part, or a lead that goes cold because nobody wrote down the callback number. This SOP defines the minimum that must be captured before a new customer's first contact is considered handled.
Scope
Applies to every first contact from someone not already on file: an inbound call, a web form, a text, a walk-in, or a referral passed to the office. Covers what is captured, how it is confirmed, and where it is routed. It does not cover repeat customers already in the system (confirm and update their record instead) or the quote itself (see the estimate-to-approval process).
Roles and responsibilities
| Role | Responsibility |
|---|---|
| Office / CSR (customer service rep) | Answers the contact, captures the full record, sets expectations |
| Dispatcher / Lead | Confirms the record is workable, schedules or routes it |
| Owner / Manager | Sets the qualifying rules (service area, job types), handles exceptions |
Procedure
1. Capture contact details before anything else
Get the name and the best callback number first, before the story. Calls drop, forms get abandoned, people talk over you. If you have a name and a number, you can recover anything else. Read the number back out loud to confirm it. Ask how they prefer to hear from you, call or text, and confirm they are fine being contacted that way.
2. Get the service address and how to reach it
The service address is not always the billing address. Confirm where the work actually happens, then capture the access details that decide whether the tech gets in: gate code, unit number, parking, a dog, a call needed before arrival. A right job at the wrong address is a lost morning.
3. Record the problem in the customer's own words
Write what they say, not your translation of it. "Water under the sink since yesterday" tells the tech more than "plumbing issue." Note when it started, whether it is getting worse, and anything they already tried. If it sounds like a safety hazard (gas smell, sparking, no heat in a hard freeze, sewage backup), flag it now for priority handling.
4. Qualify against the shop's rules
Confirm this is work the shop does, in the area it covers. Those qualifying rules belong to the owner and should be written down, so every CSR answers the same way instead of each person guessing. If it is out of scope or out of area, say so kindly and refer them elsewhere. Do not book a job the shop cannot serve well.
5. Set expectations and the next step
Tell the customer what happens next in plain terms: when they will hear back, whether a visit is booked or pending, and what that visit involves. If the shop charges to diagnose or dispatch, say so now, described plainly, never sprung at the door. A customer who knows the next step does not call back three times to ask.
6. Create the record before the contact ends
Enter the customer and the request into the system while you are still on the line, not from memory an hour later. Memory is where leads die. A record made live can be read back and corrected on the spot.
7. Route it to the right place
Hand the completed record to dispatch or scheduling with any priority flag attached. A hazard or a hot lead does not sit in a queue. Intake is done when the next owner has everything they need to act without calling the customer back for basics.
Watch out for
- Taking the story before the number. If the call drops, an unnamed problem with no callback is nothing. Contact first.
- Assuming the billing address is the job site. Confirm the service address every time.
- Each CSR qualifying by feel. Write the service-area and job-type rules down so the answer is the same regardless of who picks up.
- Verbal-only intake. If it is not in the record, it did not happen. Enter it live.
References
- See related: The Estimate to Approval SOP
- See related: The Customer Complaint Handling SOP
- Trade-standard practice for field-service customer intake and lead capture