Operations guide
Plan an advisor follow-up day from the timeline
A repeatable process for reading scheduled follow-ups, triaging the unscheduled tray, placing work on open time, and recording the next action.
- Written by
- VehicleDesk Product
- Content updated
- September 17, 2026
Read the timeline first
Start with the follow-ups already placed on the day. Open future hours and the current-time marker show remaining capacity before more work goes on.
Triage the unscheduled tray
Search or sort the tray by priority, value, or customer name. Read the customer, vehicle, work reason, appointment or repair context, reminder timing, and contact readiness on the card.
Place work on open time
Drag an item to an open hour or use the time control. When the day is full, plan the next follow-up so the work keeps an owner and a date.
Keep the plan current
Reschedule, return work to the tray, clear completed items, or create the next follow-up so the whole team sees what is planned and what still needs attention. Appointment requests and repair work stay their own records.
Worked example: opening the day
The advisor opens the timeline and reads the follow-ups already placed, including the current-time marker and the open future hours.
The unscheduled tray is sorted by value. Each card shows the customer, vehicle, work reason, and contact readiness before anything is placed on the day.
Work is dragged to open hours. Anything that cannot fit is given a date and an owner so it does not quietly disappear from the plan.
Checklist: before the first call of the day
A five-minute pass keeps the day from drifting.
- The timeline shows placed follow-ups and the capacity that remains
- The tray is sorted the way you intend to work it
- Every card's contact point is eligible for the channel you will use
- Anything not scheduled today has a next date and an owner
Common questions
Does placing work on the timeline book the customer?
No. The timeline plans the team's follow-up. The customer's appointment remains its own record, and the two stay linked so context moves with the work.
What happens to work left in the tray at the end of the day?
It stays visible in the tray. The team gives it a next date and an owner, or clears it with a recorded reason so nothing is silently dropped.
More guides
Other operations guides
- Check CRM data quality before you trust a report: A practical checklist for import freshness, customer contactability, vehicle completeness, record linkage, errors, and decision confidence.
- Turn appointment requests into confirmed bookings: A practical guide to appointment requests, scheduling, customer and vehicle matching, capacity context, reminders, and handoffs.
- Keep parts and vendor costs accountable: Enter every vendor invoice, link parts to the repair order, and keep returns, cores, credits, and aged open costs visible until they close.
- Resolve data-quality findings that change the day: Work from import confidence and provenance into contact, duplicate, linkage, and merge findings, and apply the inspected correction.