Josh Temple was building his family’s house from the ground up. He and a friend installed JELD-WEN windows, but as the new house began to settle, Temple couldn’t get one window to latch shut or another window to close properly.
“I was worried I’d screwed up,” says Temple, a longtime builder and home-improvement TV show host.
He gave JELD-WEN a call. Instead of asking Temple to describe the issue, the JELD-WEN technician sent Temple a text with a link to download JELD-WEN’s new app, OnSite.
Through OnSite, the technician looked through Temple’s phone camera to see exactly what Temple saw. The technician drew a circle on the screen to point out an adjustment screw. At his instruction, Temple gave the screw a quarter turn, and the window latched shut like a dream. Just as quickly, the tech resolved the second window’s issue. The entire call lasted about 20 minutes.
“It was amazing and super-easy,” Temple recalls.
But it’s not the way such issues typically get addressed. When builders run into problems installing windows or doors, they call the manufacturer and try to convey the situation to a customer care representative, who might be able to offer a fix over the phone—or might have to send out a technician in a few days’ time. The technician arrives, takes photos, and gets more info to diagnose the problem. Which then can require a second trip.
JELD-WEN’s OnSite app allows builders, installers, and homeowners to bypass the customer-rep call and the lengthy wait for a technician and instead connect directly with JELD-WEN’s experts. Through OnSite’s screen sharing feature, the technicians see through a customer’s phone camera (but cannot access the phone’s data) so they can record, take screenshots, zoom in or out, and draw on the screen to communicate with their customers.
“Our aim with OnSite was to help our customers in a moment of need and resolve their issues in real time,” says Rob Wollemann, director of customer care, JELD-WEN. “We’re on the jobsite with them.”
Technicians can each handle only a few in-person visits a day. With OnSite, they help more people in less time. That’s especially important, JELD-WEN has found, in light of the industry’s labor shortage and aging workforce. “This is a physically demanding job, but OnSite provides an opportunity for some of our technicians to continue to serve customers,” Wollemann says.
Though OnSite was originally intended for industry professionals, JELD-WEN found it also benefited consumers, particularly during the Covid-19 pandemic. To avoid having technicians enter their homes, JELD-WEN homeowners have been using the OnSite app to help resolve their issues, such as getting a window to open more easily or putting in a screen for a patio door.
For both builders and homeowners, OnSite’s value is clear: “With OnSite, JELD-WEN is right there with you,” Temple says.
