Winterization and spring recommissioning are two of the busiest times of year for a marine service provider, and they come with a lot of paperwork.
Boatyard makes it easy to collect the information you need from customers, get their digital signature on a contract, and turn all of that into an order, without a single phone call or paper form.
Our digital forms are perfect for winter storage or summer dockage agreements too!
Two ways customers can start the process
Customers can kick off a winterization or recommissioning request in one of two ways:
Through the Customer Portal, customers can request winterization or recommissioning at any time through your customer portal
Through a Service Reminder, an email that's automatically sent to a list of customers letting them know it's time to schedule
Both paths lead to the same place: a completed order in Boatyard with a signed contract attached.
How it works
In the Customer Portal
When a customer selects your winterization or recommissioning tile, they:
Log in (or create an account) and select the boat the request is for, or add a new boat
Confirm their address
Optionally add a credit card on file, if you choose to collect one at this stage
At that point, Boatyard creates an order behind the scenes. Then the customer fills out your custom form.
With Service Reminders
If you'd rather reach out proactively, we can help you bulk import your customer and boat list so a branded service reminder email goes out to everyone on it. The customer clicks to request service, confirms their information (adding a credit card if needed), and lands on the same custom form.
Your form, your way
Whichever path the customer takes, the form itself is built around your business.
You'll work with our support team to design it, and there's a lot of flexibility in what you collect. Forms can be as short or as long as you need. A typical form might include:
A short introduction with your instructions
Drop-off or pickup preferences and dates
Service options for the customer to select
Terms the customer agrees to
A digital signature
What you see on your end
Once a customer submits the form, it shows up as a new order in Boatyard for your team to accept.
Every completed form is attached to the order as a PDF, so you have a permanent copy of the contract with the customer's selections and signature. From there, you're ready to build out the order and send an estimate or invoice.
If a customer doesn't finish the form
Sometimes a customer starts the request but doesn't complete the form. Boatyard still creates the order, it just won't have the signed form attached yet.
To help close the loop, Boatyard automatically sends two reminder emails letting the customer know they need to complete the form to secure their spot, along with a link straight to it.
Managing high volume
Check out our companion video for tips on managing high order volume during these busy seasons.
Winterization and recommissioning season tends to bring a wave of orders all at once. Boatyard's bulk action tools let you handle that volume efficiently, including bulk re-sending the form link to every customer who hasn't completed theirs yet.