Search for and View a Customer or REP
The first step to managing your contacts is to locate and view them within the HomeGauge Dashboard. Here's how you can do it:
Log into your Dashboard at https://account.homegauge.com.
From the menu, click Contacts
Click Real Estate Pros or Buyers / Sellers. Your contacts will be listed here.
Click Search My Contacts to reveal the search options.
Enter your search criteria in the Search box and select an option from the Search By dropdown window. When finished, click Search.
Add a Customer or REP to your Contact Network
To ensure the accuracy of client details when adding a customer to a report, follow these best practices:
Use the correct email address for the client. The system relies on this email to generate their username.
Double-check that the first name and last name entered in the client details are accurate and match the client's actual information.
Expanding your network of contacts is vital for growing your home inspection business. You can add contacts to your network through appointments and reports:
Adding Contacts through Appointments
When creating a new customer or representative in the "New Appointment" screen, they will automatically become part of your contact network once the appointment is finalized. For more information on this process, please refer to the article Inspector Dashboard: Creating and Managing Appointments.
Adding Contacts through Reports
By including contacts in a report, they will also be added to your contact network once that report is uploaded to the HomeGauge Dashboard. For detailed instructions on this method, please look at the article Inspector Dashboard: Add, Remove and Troubleshooting a Customer or REP to a Report.
Edit a Customer's or REP's Account Information
Keeping your contact information up to date is essential for effective communication. If you need to make changes to a customer's or representative's details, follow these steps:
Note: If the report has not been uploaded, see: Report Writer Desktop: Add, Edit, and Delete Customers and REPs.
If the report has already been uploaded to the Dashboard with the incorrect information/email address, follow these instructions:
Find the report with the incorrect customer information
To the right of the customer's name is their HomeGauge user name. Click the user name.
Click Edit Customer/REP Info to change name, address, or phone number. Click Submit when finished.
If the customer or REP has logged into their account previously, instead click Submit Request, which will send an email asking them to log in and update their information.
The email address(es) are listed on the right of the page. Change the email address or add a new one, then click Update Email Addresses.
On the next page, click the Submit Change button near the bottom of the screen.
If you happen to receive an error, see: Inspector Dashboard: Add, Remove, and Troubleshooting a Customer or REP to a Report.
NOTE: Once a customer or REP has logged in with their username and password, their account is locked and inspectors can no longer edit the account information. This ensures the legality and security of signed documents and reports. For advanced troubleshooting or merging multiple accounts related to existing customers, consult a HomeGauge Support Agent to resolve any lingering email discrepancies efficiently.
Customers and REPs Can Edit Their Own Info
Empowering customers and REPs to update their own information helps maintain accuracy and ensures the privacy of their accounts. For more information on how Customers or REPs can edit their own information see these articles:
Customer Dashboard: Editing Account Information
Real Estate Dashboard: Editing Account Information
Note: If the customer or REP sees a message stating their "email is already in use", they have multiple accounts. Have them contact Support, so we can merge the accounts.
Remove a REP or Customer from your Network
Managing your contact network may require removing some contacts. Here's how you can do it:
Note: If you are in a multi-inspector firm and need to delete an outdated contact, you can remove the contact for everyone in your company.
Follow the instructions HERE to search your contact list for the account you would like to remove.
Locate the contact you would like to remove, then click Remove from Network.
Note for multi-inspector firms: Check the box Also remove contact from inspectors in my company to remove a contact for everyone in your company.
Edit Permissions for Customers and Reps
Setting appropriate permissions for your contacts helps control report access and ensures confidentiality. To modify permissions for a particular report, follow these steps:
Find the report you want to change permissions for on your Dashboard under My Reports -> All Reports.
Above the report name, click the Viewing tab, then Edit Permissions
Check the box in the Viewing column next to each person you would like to be able to see the report
Check the box in the Forward column next to each person you would like to be able to forward the report to another party
Click Set Permissions to complete the task.
Set Permissions Quickly
You can click the All or Clear buttons near the top of the Viewing column to set or clear all the checkboxes at once.
Set Default Viewing and Forwarding Permissions
To streamline the process of granting permissions, you can set default permissions for customers and real estate professionals. This will automatically grant viewing and/or Forwarding Permissions when a report is uploaded from the Report Writer Desktop. Default permissions should be done with caution since it could give a customer access to documents before you want them to have them.
From the menu on the left, click My Reports -> Upload/Email Options.
Check the desired boxes under Customer and Real Estate Pro to set viewing or forwarding permissions automatically when the report is uploaded. Customer and REP permissions can be managed separately.
After making changes, find and click Save Upload Document Options button located below the next section.
Download Customers and REPs Lists from the Dashboard
For your convenience, you can download your Online Contacts list from the HomeGauge Dashboard:
From your Dashboard, select Contacts
Choose either Real Estate Pros or Buyers/Sellers from the sub-menu.
Once in the desired contacts database, scroll to the bottom of the page and use the Export feature.
Choose whether you would like to download a spreadsheet containing contacts from all years or a specific year, then click Submit.
This will create a .csv file that can be opened with your MS Excel spreadsheet or Open Office program. (Open Office is a free download if you don't own Excel.)
FAQs
Why can't I edit my customer's account information?
Once a customer or REP has logged in with their username and password, their account is locked and inspectors can no longer edit the account information. This ensures the legality and security of signed documents and reports. For advanced troubleshooting or merging multiple accounts related to existing customers, consult a HomeGauge Support Agent to resolve any lingering email discrepancies efficiently.