Step by step
- The customer opens the link from your email.
- The page shows your firm, Meter readings, the customer name and the date the readings are needed by.
- For each machine (make, model, serial, location, site) they type each counter. Each box shows the last reading and its date, or "No earlier reading".
- They fill in Your name and Date the counters were read (today by default).
- They tap Send readings.
What happens
Normal readings are saved on the machine straight away, as customer readings.
Readings that look wrong are held for the office to check instead of being saved: lower than the last reading, higher than a later reading, unchanged for 14 days or more, or much higher than usual. The customer sees "1 looks unusual, so the team will check it and may contact you."
They can send some meters now and the rest later: meters already sent show "Sent: …" (and "(being checked)" if held). When every meter has a reading, the request is complete.
Rules and messages
Whole numbers only, as shown on the machine; spaces, commas and dots are ignored. Otherwise: "Readings must be whole numbers, as shown on the machine."
At least one reading. The date must be within the last month and not in the future.
"All readings are in" when complete, "This link has expired" (ask you for a new one), "This link is no longer in use" when cancelled.
The page shows your phone and email under "Questions?".
Tips
- Send requests a few days before your billing run, with a clear due date.
- The page tells customers where to find counters (usually under Counter or Meter on the machine's screen).
Questions
Does the customer need to log in?
No. The link itself gives access to that request only.
Where do held readings go?
To the office for review in the meter reading requests screen. Accept or correct them there.
Can the customer send readings twice?
No, each meter is accepted once per request. Ask them to contact you to correct one.
The link expired. What now?
Send a new request from the office.
Works together with
- Ask a customer for meter readingsSend the customer a link where they type the counters of their machines, without needing an account.
- Meters & tonerEvery machine's counters, toner and errors, grouped by customer. Ask customers for their counters by link, check readings that look wrong before they reach a bill, and export the month's readings.
- Contract billingEach period: calculate a run for the dates, fix flagged lines, finalise, then create the invoices. The same dates can never be billed twice.
- The customer portalYour customers sign in to see their machines per site (status, toner, last readings), their service calls with the engineer's visit, the toner sent and their invoices. They can send meter readings, report a fault with a photo, order toner and pay online.