Taking the time to assist homeowners and answer their questions can turn a volunteer term on the HOA board into a part-time job fast. To save you and your homeowners time, we’re going to share the types of online support that JellyBird has found the most useful in providing expert support to homeowners when they need it, without the need to contact the board.
What Is Online Support?
Online support consists of resources homeowners can access online to answer questions, submit forms, and complete requests. It allows homeowners to complete necessary interactions with the HOA without actually calling or emailing someone. A common type of online support is an HOA’s website, where homeowners can go to find important updates for the community and the dates of upcoming events.
But, online support can do much more than simply provide updates and notices. Popular types of online support used by businesses include knowledge bases, online submission forms, and recurring online payments. Your HOA can take advantage of these tools, too.
The Knowledge Base
Probably one of the handiest online support tools you can offer to homeowners is a knowledge base. It’s a searchable database of popular questions and their answers. So, if a homeowner needs to know something, they simply need to type their question into the knowledge base’s search bar to get the answer instantly. By monitoring what questions are frequently typed into the search bar, the HOA can also make sure that any popular questions that aren’t currently included in the knowledge base are promptly added.
While it takes some time to put a knowledge base together and to update it as needed, in the long run, board members will save time because they will only need to answer each question once, instead of explaining it anew each time they get a homeowner phone call or email.
And, since the knowledge base is housed online, a homeowner can access it whenever they need to; they won’t have to wait for return phone calls or replies to emails.
Submission Forms
The HOA can also create online submission forms that homeowners can use to request pool or park access, submit home improvement requests, or sign up to join a committee.
There are many programs that can be used to set up online forms that allow homeowners to quickly and easily send their request to the board. And, since these forms can be designed to include fields for all necessary information and not accept submissions until all essential fields are filled, it is less likely that the board will receive incomplete requests. This means fewer back-and-forth emails for the board.
Recurring Online Payments
If your HOA’s only assessment payment options are mailed and hand-delivered checks, creating a platform where homeowners can submit payments online can really help the HOA keep track of payments and make it more convenient for homeowners to pay. If your platform also allows recurring payments, homeowners can set up this feature, and their assessments will be paid automatically when due.
If any of these options would make your lives easier, feel free to contact us to learn more! If you don’t have the time or resources to set up online support features yourself, JellyBird may be the HOA management partner you’ve been looking for.
