Overview
Templates are digital checklists that apply globally to all properties. They are fully customizable and can be based off Housekeeping or Inspection checklists that your staff currently use while completing tasks at properties.
Before building a template, it's important to think about your goal for the task. Are you looking to provide your field staff with specific requirements as they move through the property? Are you looking to provide gentle reminders of what's most important for them to complete? Should the requirements be associated with the inventory at the property?
Anatomy of a Template
Templates can be organized into three levels, with requirements within each level.
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Sections: Sections are usually general area designations, and used primarily to organize a property into... you guessed it, sections! Examples include: Interior, Exterior, Mechanical, Safety. These are fully customizable.
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Rooms: Rooms are specific areas within the property. These are chosen from pre-loaded options such as: Kitchen, Bathroom, Bedroom, Patio, Laundry Room, etc.
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Item: Specific items at the property, which can be added to either a section or a room. Examples include: Dishwasher, bed, sofa bed, ceiling fan, coffee maker, etc.
Templates are global and will apply to all properties where they assigned. They should be as comprehensive as possible and cover the vast majority of actions that should be taken in all your properties.
When your team carries out tasks at a properties for the first time, the template will allow your staff to log information about what is or isn't present at each property. This will cause the template to customize to each property.
For example: If you included 'Hot Tub' as an item in your general inspection template, and a property does not have a hot tub, the first time someone inspects this property they will see the option to select 'Not applicable' and then 'Does Not Exist'. This is will eliminate the hot tub from displaying in that inspection template for that property in the future. We'll cover this more in depth in a bit.
Adding a New Template
You can create Cleaning, Inspection, and Maintenance templates. The process to set up templates is the same across all three departments.
1. Go to the Tasks page and select the department you want to create a template for.
2. Click on the Templates button on the right.
3. Click on the plus sign to add a new template, and make sure you chose the correct department for which you would like to create a template
4. Title the template, and create a short description (optional).
You can also create or associate any task tags you want when creating a template. This will allow you find any task using this template using the Task Tags filter.
Note: If you have an existing template you want to duplicate and work off of, you can do that by clicking the gear shift next to the template name.
Setting up Sections, Rooms, and Items
This is where you get to be creative!
When you create a template, you'll see there is a default 'General' section. Use the General Section for requirements that are not room/section specific. For example: lock all windows and doors.
To start building out your template:
1. Add a Section
We recommend first adding a section like 'Interior', then adding rooms like 'Bedroom' and 'Bathroom' to that section, and adding individual items to the rooms at the end. We do not recommend creating a Bedroom as a section instead of a room.
2. Once you have created the section, you can add rooms and items that exist within the room or section. To do that, click on + Add room or item or + Add item of the respective section or room.
Note: A section can have a room or an item. A room can only have an item.
In the example below, I have added:
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An item to the General section (Wifi Router)
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A section (Interior)
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A room (Kitchen) in the the Interior.
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An item (Microwave) in the Kitchen.
3. You can organize a template once it has been built. On the left side of the page, simply click 'organize' and then drag and drop to move items as needed.
The more detailed you are, the better. You will want to add more in this general template than might applicable at a particular house. If there is an item or a requirement that is very specific to one or just a few properties, you also have the option to add it as a Property Specific Requirements instead.
Adding items and rooms to the templates will help you build property inventory and remove unnecessary requirements simultaneously!
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As you go through the templates and complete the requirements at a property, you are telling the system that once you service the 'Hot Tub' at Condo 1, there is in fact a hot tub at the unit. Breezeway then knows to add a hot tub in Condo 1's Property Details.
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If you are completing the same template for the first time at Condo 2, which does not have a hot tub, you can click the "Not Applicable" box and then "Does Not Exist." This tells the system that there is not a hot tub at the house, and it will no longer be included in this or other templates assigned at Condo 2.
Adding Requirements
There are 7 types of requirements that can be formatted for your field staff, and to collect the information you are looking for. When adding any requirement, include some text to describe the result you are looking for.
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Condition: allows the user to select between Good, Dirty, Damaged, Not Working.
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Checklist: requires the user to acknowledge they've completed the task. You can add multiple checklist actions to allow users to confirm multiple actions once instead of each individually.
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Photo: requires the user to take a photo and show completion.
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Count: allows the user to include a count of a particular item.
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Text: allows you to ask an open-ended question.
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Yes/No: enables the user to answer a yes/no question.
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Rating: will display a 5-star rating for your team to select from.
Additionally, you have the option to require the user to take a photo at each of the requirements in addition to answering the question.
Users will not be able to Complete a task until every requirement has been satisfied.
Adding Reference Photos
Upload reference photos for users to reference while they are in the field. Keep in mind that reference photos should apply to every property.
This can be very helpful when you are training staff to ensure your brand standards are consistently met for things like: how to place amenities, how to fold towels, etc.
To add a reference photo:
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Select the requirement you want to add a reference photo of
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Click on 'Upload reference photo +'
Users will be able to click on the photo to enlarge it.
