PinPoint help

Ask a customer to confirm exactly where the work is required, then navigate to the right place.

PinPoint opens from a ServiceM8 job on the desktop Online Dashboard or the mobile app. The customer uses a web page and does not need to install an app. This guide describes the current test version; payment screens use Stripe test mode and do not take real money.

Connect and get started

Open the PinPoint add-on listing or the private installation link supplied for testing. Choose the option to connect or enable it.
Sign in to the ServiceM8 business you want to connect and authorise PinPoint's requested permissions. You do not create a separate PinPoint password.
Return to ServiceM8. Open a saved job that has a client or site attached and at least one contact with a mobile number or email address.
On desktop, choose More → PinPoint on the job. On mobile, choose the square PinPoint icon in the job actions; its position can depend on your ServiceM8 layout.

PinPoint uses account, job, client/site, contact and staff details to show the correct job and recipient. Messaging permissions let it send through ServiceM8. Notes and attachments permissions let it save the request and reply in the diary and display the photo. Read-only staff time-event access lets it check for clock-off before sending a personal reply alert; PinPoint does not edit timesheets.

If you already have an installation and see Reconnect ServiceM8, reconnect the same business and review the permissions. Reconnecting does not restart the free allowance.

Request a location

Open PinPoint from the relevant job and check the job and site details.
Select Request PinPoint.
Choose a listed contact and their mobile number or email address.
Select Send request. Your saved company template is used automatically.

You return to the main PinPoint screen, which shows the waiting status. It checks for a reply about every three seconds while open and visible. If an earlier confirmed location exists, you can still see it while waiting for the new one.

SMS and email are sent through your ServiceM8 account. Normal SMS charges and regional sending limits apply; long messages can use multiple SMS credits. These charges are separate from PinPoint usage charges. International numbers should include + and the country code. Local numbers use the business region supplied by ServiceM8.

The request is recorded against the site diary, or the client diary when no site is used, with the requesting staff member, recipient, method and time. A message being accepted by ServiceM8 does not guarantee delivery to the recipient's phone or inbox.

Copy a customer link

On desktop, select Copy customer link beside Request PinPoint. The button changes to Copied and the message says “Link copied. Paste it into your message.” Paste the link into your own SMS or email. If the browser blocks clipboard access, select and copy the link displayed on the page.

Creating or copying a link does not send a message, use a free completion credit, incur a PinPoint charge, or record a message as sent. A later successful customer submission counts as a completed PinPoint under your plan. Only share the link with the intended contact; anyone holding it can submit a location until it expires or is used.

Customer instructions

Open the link while you are where the work is required.
Allow the browser to use your location, then check the pin. If you are elsewhere, the location is inaccurate or access is unavailable, choose Choose on map, zoom in and tap the correct point.
Add an optional note or photo if it will help the engineer find you. A phone may offer its camera or photo library; the available choices and permissions depend on the device.
If the entrance is separate from the work location and the entrance option is available, select + Add, tap the entrance on the map, then select Use this entrance immediately beneath the map. Changing the work pin clears the previous entrance, so add it again if necessary.
Select Send location. Wait for Location sent.

A note, photo and entrance are optional. A location is required to submit. Photos can be JPEG, PNG or WebP; use a smaller image if the upload is rejected. Avoid including people, documents or other private information that is not needed to find the work.

Manual pins work wherever the map is available. Automatic entrance suggestions currently use a limited southwest England road-data pilot. They are suggestions, not proof that a road is public or suitable for a vehicle. Where entrance checking is enabled, the selected point is sent to PinPoint to check nearby roads before you submit; it becomes a saved customer confirmation only when you send.

Customer links expire after seven days and accept one submission. A newer request can supersede an older link. If you sent the wrong location, contact the requesting business for a fresh link.

View the reply and navigate

Open PinPoint from the job. The latest confirmed location appears with its confirmation time, customer note and photo. Locations are associated with the site or client so they can be used on later jobs for the same record.

On mobile, choose Google Maps, Apple Maps or Waze the first time and select Remember choice. This choice is saved for your ServiceM8 login. Select Navigate beneath the map to open it. Use Change beside the map-app name to choose a different app. PinPoint uses this saved choice rather than detecting the phone's default map app.

Navigation targets the entrance if the customer provided one; otherwise it targets the work pin. Read the customer's note before travelling. Desktop PinPoint shows the map and supporting information without the mobile navigation controls.

The map link and note are saved to the site diary, or the client diary when there is no site. They are not duplicated into the job diary. Photos are uploaded to the same diary; PinPoint removes its temporary image copy only after verifying the ServiceM8 attachment. If that attachment is later deleted or unavailable, PinPoint may no longer show the photo. The location remains available.

Personal SMS alerts

A request made through the ServiceM8 mobile PinPoint action can send an SMS to the requesting staff member only when the customer responds. It uses that person's ServiceM8 staff mobile number, not everyone in the business. The SMS includes a navigation link and a link to the ServiceM8 job. Normal SMS charges apply.

The request arms the alert even if you are already clocked off. Your next clock-off recorded in ServiceM8, or two hours after the request, cancels it. Clocking back on does not restart an old alert. If the required clock-off check cannot be completed, or your staff mobile is missing, invalid or changed, the alert may be suppressed. Check the status shown in PinPoint.

Desktop requests and copied links do not create this mobile alert. A missing or cancelled alert does not prevent the customer's location being saved. ServiceM8 app-notification settings are separate from SMS; your phone's messaging and Focus settings still apply.

Company settings

On the ServiceM8 desktop Online Dashboard, open Account → Add-ons → PinPoint.

SMS and email templates

Edit the SMS message, email subject and email body, then select Save templates. All active staff who can open this page can edit the shared templates. Changes apply to future requests across the company, not messages already sent.

Keep {link} in both message bodies. {site} inserts the site name and {contact} inserts the contact name. Use See a sample message to check example wording; this sends nothing. The SMS template limit is 1,000 characters, email subject 200, and email body 10,000. Expanded messages must also fit the sending limits.

Entrances and access points

If your business is included in the automatic road-suggestion pilot, this section lets you change the shared distance threshold from 50 to 2,000 metres, or reset it to 200 metres. Save the change before leaving. It affects new requests only. Manual entrance selection does not depend on pilot coverage.

Usage and billing

Open Usage and billing preview in company settings, choose a month and view completions, remaining free credits and the usage estimate. Download daily usage exports a CSV. Months use UK calendar time.

The test plan gives each business five free completed PinPoints once, then 50p per completion up to £10 per month across all staff. Unused free credits carry forward. Completion means the customer submits after an accepted request or through a manually shared customer link. Creating a request or copying a link is not itself a completion. Unanswered requests do not use a completion credit. No billable completions means no PinPoint usage charge; reaching the cap does not prevent further use.

Under Billing → Open billing, payment management opens in a separate tab. If it does not open automatically, use the visible continuation link. The person who activates billing manages payments. Other active staff can still view the usage summary in company settings.

Read and accept the displayed billing agreement before activating test billing. Stripe collects the test payment details outside ServiceM8. On returning, PinPoint checks the status: payment details saved is different from payment received. Use Return to settings to return to ServiceM8; if the original tab is unavailable, follow the instructions shown.

When billing is active, monthly usage is invoiced in arrears and collection is attempted automatically. These are test invoices only; no real payments are taken and tax remains provisional. If a test payment fails, the billing manager receives an email and a reminder is scheduled 24 hours before the seven-day grace period ends. After that deadline, new requests are blocked until payment is resolved; previously received locations remain accessible.

The billing manager can stop test billing from the billing page. Already authorised usage may still be invoiced. Stopping billing is not the same as closing the PinPoint account, deleting its data or removing ServiceM8 diary entries.

Troubleshooting

PinPoint is missing from the job: Check that it is enabled for the business you are signed into. Close and reopen the job and refresh the app. Contact support if the action still does not appear.
No site or contact is listed: Save the client/site on the job in ServiceM8 and add the intended contact's mobile or email to that record. Reopen PinPoint to load the changes.
“Check this phone number in ServiceM8”: Check the selected number on the contact record. Include + and its country code when the business region is unavailable, or for an international contact. Reopen the job after saving.
SMS or email did not arrive: Check the selected recipient and any error shown. Check your ServiceM8 messaging status/credits and the recipient's spam folder or blocked messages. If the result is uncertain, check ServiceM8 before sending again; PinPoint does not automatically resend a message that might already have been accepted.
The page says to reopen or reconnect: Close PinPoint and reopen it from the job or company settings to renew the session. Use Reconnect ServiceM8 if prompted for permissions. A ServiceM8 login timeout may require signing back into ServiceM8 first.
The map or device location is unavailable: Check internet access. Allow location permission or use Choose on map. Do not submit an inaccurate pin just to continue. If the map cannot load, contact the business directly.
The customer link has expired or was already used: Ask the business for a fresh request or link. Refreshing an old link does not make it valid again.
A diary entry or photo is still pending: Allow time for the ServiceM8 upload and reopen PinPoint. Location confirmation is saved before the diary update. Contact support if the pending state persists; do not repeatedly resubmit the customer form.
A saved template cannot be updated: Check that both bodies contain {link}. If another staff member saved changes, reopen settings to load their version before editing.
New requests are unavailable because of billing: Ask the person who activated billing to review the payment status in company settings. Previously confirmed locations remain available.

Account and data requests

A £0 month does not mean the account is inactive. After 12 months without meaningful use, PinPoint sends a notice and allows at least 30 days to resume use. A reminder is due seven days before the end of that period. Opening PinPoint or receiving a customer submission cancels the inactivity process. Any closure is reviewed by support; there is no automatic deletion. Read the PinPoint privacy notice for details.

For help, account closure, a copy of your data or a deletion request, email support@simpli-fi.cloud. Include your business name, the affected job reference if relevant, the approximate time and the error wording. Do not send passwords, card details or a customer's private location link.

We verify the requester's authority before disclosing or deleting business data. A customer should contact the business that requested their location first; that business controls its ServiceM8 records. Removing the add-on or stopping billing does not itself delete the data already stored in PinPoint or the ServiceM8 diary. In Account → Add-ons → PinPoint, open Account and data and choose Request a data copy, Request account closure or Request data deletion. Confirm the company-wide request. The screen shows a reference and support-review status; submitting it does not itself close, export or delete anything. Support verifies the owner independently before acting.

PinPoint currently uses an English interface. Messaging availability, map coverage and device capabilities depend on the services involved. PPM integration is planned and is not included in this version.