Buildertrend

"Revolutionized my sales follow up"

Comentarios: I used other CRMs in the past, but love using BuilderTrend. Its simple setup has allowed me to keep track of my customers as well as provide better follow up to my clients. I just utilize the Sales section of BuilderTrend, but it has improved my client relationships and increased my overall sales.

Puntos a favor: Buildertrend is great--I love using the Activity Calendar and Lead Report to keep track of my follow up with my customers. I can use activity notes to remember what I discussed with customers when we last spoke, and this helps me engage in better dialogue when I follow up with customers. Our installation team loves using the project management feature to keep track of our installs and provide an easy transition from sales to installation.

Contras: The user interface is kind of clunky, especially on the app. Sometimes it is difficult to find stuff and the filters can get annoying.

"Now that our company has grown, this program meets our needs better"

Comentarios: Last year when we first were shown the program we decided not to go forward. Now our that our company has grown, we see that BuilderTrend will be crucial for keeping ourselves and our crews organized. The rocky portions of the software do not outway the usefulness to our company. There is a learning curve and a lot of things to iron out as we implement it, but I can see it being a huge asset compared to other programs once we nail it down. On top of that, I know their team will keep improving the features and adding more features to a program that is already rich with features.

Puntos a favor: The best feature in this program is communication and scheduling. Also, where other programs have to borrow from many 3rd party programs to achieve their functions, this program is able to incorporate all in one. We are using it for every step of the construction process, from sales to estimates, to job management and scheduling and invoicing. Other neat features include requesting bids to subs and vendors within the program, financing for customers, interactive and customize-able selections for customers within the program. There are other features not mentioned in this review as well. The main point is that this program offers all management needs for builders and contractors, and the software team continues to update and add features according to the requests and needs of those who are using the program.
Also, where competitors charge extra for each user, this company includes unlimited users in their package, as well as unlimited subs and vendors. Some of the functions you would have to pay extra for in other programs like scheduling for crew etc. are included in their main package. Therefore the price, and what you get for your money is way better.

Contras: This software is a little more difficult to learn than other competing programs, due to it's complexity and depth of features. At times it's a bit overwhelming, though that is to be expected with the level of depth. Also some other programs have a general appearance which makes the program more inviting and user friendly. That being said, we still moved forward with this program because of the need for more features without having to pay all the extra money.
One feature they really need to improve is their proposal builder. They have good formatting options and cost codes/ item catalogs where you can build price lists within the system, but when you add items into the estimate or create a big template, when you want to go and edit info like quantities etc. you have to go through an ocean of items that are not clearly formatted (they have a worksheet tab for editing items, and a format tab for grouping and changing layout for final appearance, but the worksheet portion is unformatted, and in the format section you cannot delete items or change them at all. Therefore I found the proposal functions to be a bit rocky to deal with. However, buildertrend users can vote on improvements for the program and so there is at least light at the end of the tunnel.

"Great for Customer UI"

Comentarios: Buildertrend makes managing multiple projects simple and efficient

Puntos a favor: Buildertrend has an exceptional user interface both for builders and the customers. It is fairly easy to learn as well.

Contras: There is a little bit of learning curve when it comes to the estimating side of the software. However, once implemented it is easy to maintain.

Comentarios: We are a boutique custom home builder; each project is unique and personalized. Although I was not involved in the selection of this software, my understanding is that we wanted a program that could be accessed by all the parties involved, handle the scheduling and move us away from paper checklists - ultimately allowing all users to be both informed of changes and to be able to plan for future events without having to directly communicate with each person. As far as scheduling goes this system has failed. It has caused more time consuming questions. My complaint is that you can only link item to item by a (or a couple) predecessor(s) that, ultimately, the program struggles with which item is next in the list if a few of them share the same linked task. Also in a best case scenario, this scheduled list is how you build a house - but in most cases something, whether it be trade related or whether related or inspection related, cause a task to be delayed but the other ones would continue on schedule however the program has linked the start date to the the delayed task and now the whole calender is messed up. Or perhaps the exterior of the house generally starts after framing and roofing but maybe a winter storm makes this impossible so you continue the interior for weeks. Then you try and adjust backwards and because your best case scenario template stated it should commence at framing completion and you delayed that. Thus your left with a domino affect of wrong dates. and a series of emails sent to vendors informing them of the delay that really didn't apply to them. So they change schedules and you are left with no trades to do the interior work that in your mind could and should be fine. I also find that the program doesn't offer enough flexibility in the selection section. It allows me to upload a previously created document to be stored that a homeowner could then log on and download. They then fill out and can't re-upload this document, so they are forced to fax or scan and email back to us. This is neither time effective nor practical. Perhaps it would be better if we were able to create a checklist that was interactive in this section, similar to the change orders where we type out the change and the client could update decisions. In our company we don't limit our clients to three choices of floor plans and two cabinet doors and 4 granite selections, they are free to choose anything they can dream of. As a result we cannot load a document that would apply to all builds. However, I believe the change orders tab is well thought out, easy to use and provides all the options to make it a valuable asset. The warranty section does a great job of tracking and notifying and saving time and assuring that service and warranty items are handled and accepted. The daily log and messaging capabilities that allow us to keep a record of notes or messages in one area logged by date and job site is extremely valuable and a good system. Furthermore, the software as a whole is easy to learn, has a logical and simple layout so even those who are not computer savvy can fumble through without creating errors and won't be too intimidated by the complexity of the software to attempt to use it. Finally, the technical support and training provided is always quick to help resolve an issue or aid in a question. New training is scheduled in a very quick time frame for free and is tailored to the person that requires it. This is handled exceptionally well in a time when often companies forget you exist once the purchase is complete. So, we have decided that we will use BuilderTrend for those things that they excel at and don't use it as a scheduling tool.

"Streamlines so many parts of our business"

Comentarios: Very good. If youre going to integrate BT make sure you take it on a section at a time. Dont try and open up too many sections to your team These guys have given a lot of thought to the software and it forms an amazing backbone for any client facing construction business. We couldnt last the day without it.

Puntos a favor: This software is outstanding in many different areas We initially purchased it initially to manage our clients selections for new homes and it quickly got integrated elsewhere to the point its the backbone of many of our processes We use this now to manage client change order (it pays for itself on this alone every month) selections, materials ordering from site, daily logs, H&S management, RFI's for the design team and photo storage and programming to name but a few We couldn't go back to the old ways of doing many of these There are a lot of different features and you'll certainly find many that'll make it worth your while to use Oh and the customer support is ace

Contras: Overall roll out is great and intuitive but you do need to comit to integrating BT to your business and this takes time and effort. THis is a software that gives back 10 fold what you put in, but it does need your comittment.