Documentation

The web app is designed to streamline your estimates and field service operations. With the Echo Service platform, you can efficiently manage job requests, create estimates, generate invoices, handle purchase quotations, and much more — all from a single, easy-to-use interface. Say goodbye to juggling multiple tools.

1. 1

   Create your account

   Visit our website and sign up for an account. After subscribing, you will go through a quick setup process where you can configure your company settings, import customer data, and create accounts for your team members — all from the main dashboard.

2. 2

   Try it for free

   We offer a free trial that you can access anytime, anywhere. It is a great way to explore the features and get a feel for how everything works. Just click "Access Trial" in the navigation bar and log in. No payment or credit card required.

3. 3

   Set up your company

   Go to Settings → Companies to enter your company name, address, and logo. This information will appear on all estimates, invoices, and portal pages that your customers see.

4. 4

   Add your team

   Go to Settings → Users to create accounts for your staff. Assign each person the right access level so they only see the parts of the app relevant to their role.

5. 5

   Start your first job

   Once your setup is done, head to Job Requests and create your first job. From there, the platform will guide you through the full flow: estimate → field service → invoice → payment.

Once you have successfully registered and logged in, the very first thing to do is get familiar with the layout and set up a few essentials so your team can hit the ground running.

1. 1

   Navigate the app

   On the top-left of the screen, you will see a box icon (the apps grid). Click it to reveal all available navigation menus — this is how you switch between Job Requests, Estimates, Field Services, Inventory, Settings, and more.

2. 2

   Profile and logout

   On the top-right of the screen you will find your profile avatar and a logout button. Click your avatar to update your profile or change your password. Click Logout to securely sign out.

3. 3

   Open the chat (Discuss)

   The platform includes a real-time chat feature that lets everyone communicate directly or within channels. To open the full chat interface, go to Menu → Discuss. On the left panel, you can create channels and invite people to collaborate, or send direct messages to any team member. Conversations appear in the main panel on the right.

4. 4

   Quick-access chat

   For faster access, click the conversation bubble icon in the top-right corner of any screen. This opens a mini-chat panel so you can see your latest messages without leaving the page you are on.

5. 5

   Set up your Outgoing Mail server

   Outgoing Mail lets you send emails from the platform using your own email credentials — Gmail, Outlook, or a company address. From the dashboard, click "Set Email Server", or go to Settings → Company → Outgoing Mail Server. Create a new record and fill in the details for your email provider.

6. 6

   SMTP settings for postechpiles.com addresses

   If your email address uses the postechpiles.com domain, use the following settings when creating your mail server record:

   Name	Your email address (e.g. example@postechpiles.com)
   FROM Filtering	Your email address (e.g. example@postechpiles.com)
   Authenticate With	Username
   Connection Encryption	TLS (STARTTLS)
   SMTP Server	mail.smtp2go.com
   SMTP Port	587
   Username	Your email username
   Password	Your email password

7. 7

   Test the connection

   After filling in the SMTP details, click "Test Connection". If everything is correct, a success notification will appear in the top-right corner of the screen.

8. 8

   Assign the email to the right user

   Finally, link this email address to the correct user account. Go to Settings → Users, select the user, and add their email address in the Email field. This ensures outgoing messages are sent from the right person.

9. 9

   Create internal users

   Go to Settings → User & Companies → Users and click New. Type the new team member's full name and email address to create their account.

10. 10

    Set an initial password

    After creating a user, click the small cog icon next to their name to set an initial password for them. Share this password with the team member so they can log in for the first time. It is recommended that they change their password after that first login.

11. 11

    Assign roles and access levels

    From the user's profile, scroll down to see all available roles that can be assigned. Roles control which menus and features the user can see and use. The Administrator role has the highest level of access and allows the user to manage all records across the platform. Assign roles carefully — only give Administrator to people who truly need full control.

12. 12

    Set up a custom domain (optional)

    If you would like to use a custom domain based on your business name (for example, yourcompany.com), an additional yearly fee applies depending on the top-level domain you choose — such as .com, .net, or others. Contact support to get this configured.

13. 13

    Fallback email and SMS

    If you choose not to configure your own outgoing email server, the system will automatically use our email server to send emails to your customers. Emails will be sent from notifications@echoservicesolution.com. This covers invoices, estimates, and other system communications. In addition, the platform includes an SMS service — for example, when a field service visit is scheduled, the system can send an SMS reminder to the customer one day before the visit.

14. 14

    Import records from Excel or CSV

    To import records such as products or contacts in bulk, prepare an Excel (.xlsx) or CSV file with the correct column headers. For example, when importing products, include at least the product name column. Go to Inventory → Products → Products, click the gear icon, and select Import Records. Upload your file — the system will map the columns automatically. If a column is not detected, use the dropdown on that field to find the correct matching field name (for example, "name" instead of "Product Name"). Click Test to check for formatting errors before you commit. When the test passes, click Import to upload all records.

The Settings menu is where you manage who can access the platform and what they are allowed to do. Only administrators need to use this area — regular staff will not see it.

1. 1

   Open Settings

   Click Settings in the main navigation bar. You will see two submenus: Users and Companies.

2. 2

   Go to Users

   Click Users to see a list of everyone who has an account on your platform.

3. 3

   Create a new user

   Click New. Fill in the user's full name, their login email address, and their email for notifications.

4. 4

   Set their Postech privileges

   Under the Postech Privileges section, assign the correct access group. Each group controls which menus and actions that person can use — for example, a field technician would get the Field Service group, while an office admin might get Estimate and Invoice access.

5. 5

   Save and invite

   Click Save. The user will receive an email invitation to set their password and log in.

6. 6

   Update company details

   Go to Settings → Companies to update your company name, address, logo, and contact information. This information appears on estimates, invoices, and portal pages sent to your customers.

When you send estimates, invoices, post-job emails, scheduling SMS, or follow-ups, the body of each message comes from an editable template. Templates use {{ }} tags that get replaced with real values at send time, so the same template fits every job and every customer.

1. 1

   Where to edit templates

   Email templates live in Settings → Technical → Email Templates. SMS templates live under the SMS Templates menu. Open any template, change the Subject or Body, and save. The next time someone sends from that template, your new wording goes out.

2. 2

   How the tags work

   Anything wrapped in double braces (for example {{ object.name }}) is a placeholder. At send time, the platform replaces it with live data from the job, the sender, or the company. Keep the braces, keep the spelling exact — a missing dot or typo and the tag will appear literally in the sent message.

3. 3

   Job tags (pull from the job record)

   Use these inside estimate and invoice templates to personalise the message with details about the job that is being sent:

   {{ object.name }}	Job name / reference
   {{ object.customer.name }}	Customer's full name
   {{ object.customer.email }}	Customer's email address
   {{ object.partner_id.name }}	Same as customer.name (alias)
   {{ object.total_amount }}	Estimate total (including tax)
   {{ object.total_invoice }}	Invoice total
   {{ object.total_paid }}	Amount the customer has paid
   {{ object.balance_due }}	Remaining balance
   {{ object.invoice_reference }}	Invoice 1 reference number
   {{ object.estimate_public_url }}	Portal link to the estimate page
   {{ object.invoice_public_url }}	Portal link to the invoice page
   {{ object.request_date }}	Date the job request was created
   {{ object.state }}	Current job state (e.g. Estimate Sent, Invoice Paid)

4. 4

   Sender tags (pull from the user clicking Send)

   Use these to sign off the message with the person who actually sent it:

   {{ user.name }}	Sender's full name
   {{ user.email }}	Sender's email address
   {{ user.email_formatted }}	Email formatted as "Name <email@host>"
   {{ user.phone }}	Sender's phone number
   {{ user.signature }}	Sender's HTML signature from User Preferences

5. 5

   Company tags (pull from your company record)

   Use these for consistent branding across templates:

   {{ company.name }}	Company name
   {{ company.email }}	Company main email
   {{ company.email_formatted }}	Company email formatted with the company name
   {{ company.phone }}	Company phone
   {{ company.website }}	Company website URL

6. 6

   Scheduling SMS tags

   The Schedule Job wizard renders these inside the installer and customer SMS templates:

   {{ first_name }}	Recipient's first name (installer or customer)
   {{ object.name }}	Job name
   {{ object.client_info }}	Site address / client info
   {{ date_range }}	Formatted date and time window (e.g. "3 May 2026 at 8:00 AM")

The To-Do app is your internal task tracker. Use it to create reminders, assign work to team members, set deadlines, and link tasks directly to specific jobs, customers, or orders — so nothing falls through the cracks.

1. 1

   Open the To-Do app

   Click To-Do in the main navigation. You will see a Kanban board with columns for To-Do, In Progress, Done, and Cancelled.

2. 2

   Create a new task

   Click New (or drag a new card onto the board). Give the task a clear title — for example, "Follow up with John re: estimate" or "Order more screws before Friday".

3. 3

   Set the priority

   Choose a priority level: P1 is the most urgent, P4 is low priority. High-priority tasks are highlighted in red on the list view so they stand out.

4. 4

   Assign it to someone

   In the Assigned To field, pick the team member responsible for this task. They will see it appear in their own To-Do list.

5. 5

   Choose a category

   Pick the category that best fits the task: Field Service (on-site work), Follow Up (customer communication), Private (personal reminders), or Casual (general internal tasks).

6. 6

   Set a start date and end date

   Use the Start and End fields to define when the task should happen. Dated tasks will appear on the To-Do calendar view.

7. 7

   Link it to a record (optional but recommended)

   In the Linked Record section, you can attach this task to a specific job, customer, procurement order, or product. Type a few characters to search — for example, type the job name to link it. This lets you see all tasks related to a job directly from that job's record.

8. 8

   Add to a project

   If you group tasks into projects (for example, "Q2 Follow Ups" or "Site Prep"), select the project here. Projects help you filter and organise tasks across your team.

9. 9

   Move the task along

   As work progresses, drag the card to a new column on the Kanban board, or open the task and click Start → Mark Done. Completed tasks are shown with a strikethrough in the list view.

Materials are the physical items your crew uses on a job — things like screws, pipes, lumber, or any supply you carry in stock. Before you can add materials to an estimate or invoice, you need to set them up in the system.

1. 1

   Open the Materials menu

   In the left sidebar, go to Inventory → Products. This is where all your materials are listed.

2. 2

   Create a new material

   Click the New button at the top left. A blank form will open.

3. 3

   Fill in the product name

   Type the name of the material in the large field at the top — for example, "3/8 inch Screw" or "PVC Pipe 2ft".

4. 4

   Set the Unit of Measure

   Choose how this material is counted — for example, "pcs" for individual pieces, "m" for metres, or "kg" for kilograms. This will appear on estimates and invoices.

5. 5

   Enter the Cost

   This is how much it costs you to purchase this material. Enter the price you pay per unit.

6. 6

   Set the Markup Factor

   The markup factor controls how much you charge the customer above your cost. For example, a markup of 2.04 means you charge roughly double your cost. The Sale Price will automatically calculate when you set this.

7. 7

   Review the Sale Price

   This is the price your customer sees on the estimate and invoice. It is automatically calculated as Cost × Markup Factor. You can also type a price directly — the markup factor will update to match.

8. 8

   Save

   Click Save manually or simply navigate away — the system will save automatically.

Stock management lets you track how many units of each material you physically have on hand. You can add stock when items arrive, reduce it when items are used, or correct it if there is a discrepancy.

1. 1

   Open the product you want to adjust

   Go to Inventory → Products and click on the material you want to update.

2. 2

   Click "Adjust Inventory"

   You will see an "Adjust Inventory" button at the top of the product page. Click it to open the adjustment form.

3. 3

   Enter the quantity

   Type in the number of units to add (positive) or remove (negative). For example, enter 50 to add 50 units, or -10 to remove 10.

4. 4

   Choose the movement type

   Select whether this is stock coming IN (received from supplier), going OUT (used or dispatched), or an ADJUSTMENT (correcting a count error).

5. 5

   Add a reference note (optional)

   Type a short note to explain the adjustment — for example, "Received from supplier ABC" or "Used on Job #1052".

6. 6

   Confirm

   Click Confirm. The On Hand quantity updates immediately and a stock movement record is saved.

A Job Request is the very first step when a customer contacts you. It captures the basic details: who the customer is, what they need, and where the job is. Think of it as your intake form.

1. 1

   Create a new Job Request

   Go to Job Requests in the main menu and click New.

2. 2

   Select the customer

   In the Customer field, search for an existing contact or create a new one by typing their name.

3. 3

   Enter the job name and address

   Give the job a clear name (for example, "Fence Post Installation") and enter the site address where the work will happen.

4. 4

   Add materials if known

   In the Materials tab, you can already add the products you expect to use. This is optional at this stage — you can always add more when creating the estimate.

5. 5

   Save the record

   Click Save. The job request is now logged and will appear in your Job Requests list.

An Estimate is the quote you send to the customer. It lists all the materials, labor, equipment, and any other costs along with the total price. The customer can review and approve it online through a secure portal link.

1. 1

   Create an Estimate from the Job Request

   Open the Job Request and click "Create Estimate". This carries over all the details you already entered.

2. 2

   Add or adjust line items

   In the Materials tab, add the products needed. In the Labor tab, add services (crew hours). You can also add Equipment, Subcontractors, and Permits in their respective tabs.

3. 3

   Review the pricing

   When you select a product, the cost and sale price fill in automatically from the product record. You can adjust the markup or price directly on the line if needed for this specific job.

4. 4

   Preview before sending

   Use the Preview button to see exactly what the customer will see in the portal before you send it.

5. 5

   Send the Estimate

   Click Send, choose whether to send via email, SMS, or both, and the customer receives a link to review and approve online.

6. 6

   Wait for approval

   Once the customer approves the estimate through their portal link, the status updates automatically.

Field Service is where the actual work happens. Once an estimate is approved, you schedule a crew, they go to the site, and they log what was delivered. This is how the system knows what to invoice the customer for.

1. 1

   Approve the estimate

   In the estimate view, click Approve. You will be asked whether this is a regular job (goes through Field Service) or a Direct Sale (skips Field Service and goes straight to invoice — useful for counter sales or walk-in customers).

2. 2

   Schedule a Field Service visit

   Open the Field Services menu to see all scheduled jobs. Drag and drop the job onto the calendar, or assign a date and crew from the form.

3. 3

   Crew completes the work

   On site, the crew opens the Field Service on their device and fills in the Delivered quantities for each material and labor item — these represent what was actually used or installed.

4. 4

   Set as Complete

   Once the work is done, click "Set Complete". If any delivered quantity is zero, the system will warn you before proceeding.

5. 5

   Stock is deducted automatically

   When the job is marked complete, the delivered quantities are subtracted from your inventory automatically. Important: you cannot reduce a delivered quantity on field service jobs after it has been set — you can only increase it.

Once the field work is done, you create an invoice and send it to the customer for payment. You can create up to 3 invoices per job — useful for staged billing or additional work added after the original invoice.

1. 1

   Create the first invoice

   From a completed job, click "Create Invoice". This generates Invoice 1 based on the delivered quantities from the field service.

2. 2

   Review and adjust delivered quantities

   In the Materials tab of the invoice, you will see a "Delivered" column. You can increase this if more was delivered than originally logged, but you cannot decrease it for field service jobs.

3. 3

   Send the invoice

   Click Send and choose email, SMS, or both. The customer receives a portal link showing their invoice total and a Pay Now button.

4. 4

   Add more invoices if needed

   If there is additional work or a second billing milestone, click "Add Invoice" to create Invoice 2 or Invoice 3. Each invoice has its own line items, portal link, and payment status.

5. 5

   Customer pays online

   The customer opens their invoice portal link and pays via credit card through Stripe. The invoice status updates to Paid automatically.

6. 6

   Mark Post Job as Sent

   Once the invoice is fully paid, a "Post Job Sent" button appears. Click it to send the thank-you or post-job email and officially mark the job as completely done.