Best Practices for Route Management

One Admin at a Time
To prevent data conflicts, only one admin should make route changes at a time. This keeps updates consistent and accurate for the whole team.
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One User, One Mobile Device
If a user logs into Skimmer on two devices and both are marked as “Primary,” route duplication may occur. To avoid this:

Use the Route Dashboard
Make all route changes—including optimizations and adjustments—through the Route Dashboard (or the Schedule feature if you’re on our Scaling Up tier). Unlike the Route Builder or Route Assignment screens, the Dashboard preserves your custom route order.
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Adjust Privileges
By default, techs can move their own routes. To restrict this, head to Settings > Users and update permissions as needed.
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Take It Slow
Route changes go live instantly. Make changes carefully and only when you’re sure, rather than using the dashboard like a test mode. This minimizes syncing issues.
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Adding Extra Visits
Need to add a one-time visit? Create a Route Assignment for that specific day (e.g., set both start and end dates to November 1st). This avoids altering permanent route assignments.
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Inactive Technicians
Even if you make a tech inactive, their assignments remain visible so you can reassign routes easily. To reset route order, reassign from the Route Assignment screen and optimize later. To keep the existing order, use the permanent move option in the Route Dashboard.

Manual Syncing
The app works offline and auto-syncs frequently, but techs should manually sync after route changes—especially before starting the first stop of the day and after completing the last stop of the day. This prevents conflicts if the app lags behind recent updates.
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One Person per Route Stop
Each route stop should be handled by only one person at a time. If multiple users edit the same stop before syncing, conflicts can occur.
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Avoid “Butt Moves”
Holding down a tech’s name in the Route Dashboard lets you move an entire route. It’s useful, but if you pocket your phone while Skimmer is open, you could accidentally shift routes. Be mindful!

Sync with Good Signal
Techs should have a strong signal when syncing routes at the start of the day.

Keep Everything Updated
Regularly update both the device’s operating system and the Skimmer app to access the latest features, improvements, and fixes.

Reboot Regularly
Restart phones every few days to keep them running smoothly and ensure syncing works properly.

Check Storage
Make sure devices have enough storage available. Low storage can block syncing—especially for photos and larger files. Closing background apps also helps performance.