JunkBossPro Blog — Junk Removal Software

Item Counts and What's Going: Writing Junk Jobs the Crew Can Read

Load size tells the crew how much room a job takes. The item count and the what's-going line tell them what they're actually picking up. Together, they're the difference between a crew that walks in ready and a crew that walks in and says “Nobody said there was a piano.”

Beyond the Load Size

The load size scale is covered in Load Size on Every Job: From Min Load to Three Loads in Junk Removal Software. Right next to it on every JunkBossPro job are two more fields: the number of items and a plain description of what's going.

A half load can be one sectional and a recliner, or forty bags of clothes and a broken bike. Same room in the truck, very different job. The crew needs to know which.

The Item Count

The item count is just a number, but it does a lot:

• It sets expectations. Two items is a quick in-and-out. Twenty-two items is a real job.
• It catches surprises. If the job says six items and the crew counts eleven, something changed since the call.
• It helps pricing. If you price some jobs per item, the count is already on the job.

Count the way your crew would count. A mattress and box spring might be two items or one set, depending on how you price. Pick a habit and stick with it so the numbers mean the same thing every time.

Bags and boxes are the hard part. Nobody wants to count forty trash bags over the phone. A rough number with a note works fine: “About 30 bags plus a dresser” tells the crew what they need to know. The goal isn't a perfect inventory. It's a number close enough that the crew isn't surprised when the garage door goes up.

Writing a Good What's-Going Line

The what's-going line is a short, plain description the crew reads on their phone in the driveway. Good ones say what the items are and where they are:

• “Washer and dryer in the garage.”
• “Queen mattress and box spring, upstairs back bedroom.”
• “Sectional, two end tables and a treadmill. Basement, walk-out door on the side.”
• “Old shed, already torn down, pile by the back fence.”
• “Upright piano, ground floor, three steps at the front door.”

Weak ones say almost nothing: “junk,” “garage stuff,” “misc.” They save the person taking the call ten seconds and cost the crew ten minutes.

What the Crew Gets From It

When the what's-going line is clear, the crew can plan before they get out of the truck. Stairs mean two people. A piano or hot tub means the right dolly and straps. Appliances might mean a stop at the metal recycler. Bags of loose household junk mean gloves and a shovel. All of that comes from one sentence written at booking.

It also helps the customer. When the crew arrives already knowing what's going, they don't need a long walk-through, and the customer doesn't have to explain the job a second time.

Things to Ask on the Phone

The what's-going line is only as good as the questions behind it. A short list for whoever answers the phone:

1. What are the items? Go one by one.
2. Where are they? Garage, basement, upstairs, back yard, curb.
3. Any stairs, tight turns or long walks to the truck?
4. Anything heavy or awkward: pianos, hot tubs, safes, appliances?
5. Is it boxed, bagged or loose?

Some items aren't accepted at every dump. That's the dump's call, not the software's, so if a customer mentions something unusual, check with your local transfer station before you book it. The haul-to field, covered in the next guide, is where you note where each load is going.

Past Notes Do the Rest

When a crew finishes a job and writes a note, that note stays with the address. The next time that customer calls, the crew sees it under past notes: “Basement door sticks, lift and push,” or “Neighbor parks in front, ask them to move.” Over time, repeat customers and property managers' addresses build up a useful history without anyone writing a separate file. The way a crew reads all of this on the job is covered in The Junk Removal Crew App: The Day's Jobs, the Load and the Dump on One Phone.

Small Fields, Fewer Surprises

The item count and what's-going line take a few seconds to fill in. They save the crew from guessing, the customer from repeating themselves, and the owner from a phone call in the middle of the day. For everything else that goes on a junk job, head back to the JunkBossPro junk removal software page.