A Repeat-Customer Details Card for Sole Traders Who Work for Landlords and Agents

A homeowner is one address and one phone number. A landlord or letting agent is usually a handful of properties, several tenants, and a different person to chase depending on the job. If you work alone, you can't keep all of that in your head, and asking the same questions every time makes a good client's life harder.

The answer is a standing card for each repeat client, built once and updated as you go. It sits alongside the per-call questions you ask when a new fault comes in. If you want a method for that side, there's a useful piece on capturing the details when landlords ring about several properties. The card below covers what stays the same between calls.

What goes on the client card

Keep it to one page, paper or digital, whichever you will actually open when the phone rings.

The client

• Name of the agency or landlord, and the main contact who sends you work.
• A second contact for when the first is away or between viewings.
• Preferred way to be reached: call, text or email.

Who approves and who pays

• Whether you can go ahead on small jobs or must send a quote first.
• Who signs off a quote, and who receives the invoice.
• The format of their job or property reference, so your invoice matches their records.

The properties Give each property its own short block:

• Full address and postcode.
• What it is: flat, terraced house, shared house, and which floor if relevant.
• Where the key is: tenant, key-holder, lockbox or agent's office.
• Tenant name and number, if the client has agreed you can contact them directly.

Access and site notes

• Parking, entry buzzers, awkward stairs, loft access.
• Where the stopcock, consumer unit or boiler is, once you've found it.
• Anything the tenant has asked for, such as no mornings or a call before arrival.

Job history

• A line per visit: what you did, what you found, and anything left to follow up.

Keep the card short enough to use

A card that takes five minutes to read won't get read. Use plain lines, not paragraphs. If a note isn't going to change how you turn up, price or invoice, leave it off.

Mark anything uncertain with a question mark rather than guessing. A wrong key location or a wrong tenant number wastes more time than a blank.

Use it on the call

When a known client rings, find their card before you ask anything. Then you can say, "Is this the flat on the high street, the one with the lockbox?" instead of starting from nothing. The caller hears that you know their business, and the call gets shorter.

Ask only for what is new: which property, what the fault is, how urgent it is, and whether access has changed. Where there are several properties, take them one at a time and note each against its own block, so details don't leak between addresses.

Update it after every visit

The card only stays useful if you refresh it straight after the job, before you drive off or while the details are fresh. Add the new key arrangement, the tenant's change of number, or the fact that the agent now wants quotes for anything beyond a small repair. A minute of tidying at the end of a job saves a repeated question next time.

Keep tenant details sensible

Tenants' names and numbers are personal information. Keep only what you need to arrange access, store the cards somewhere private, such as a password-protected file or a folder you keep out of sight in the van, and don't share them around. If you're unsure what rules apply to how you hold this information, check the official guidance for your trade or ask a suitable adviser.

Start with your best client

You don't need a card for everyone. Pick the one landlord or agent who sends you the most work, write their card from memory and your old messages, and fill the gaps on your next visit. Once it has saved you a couple of repeated questions, you'll want one for the next client on your list.