7-minute read · by Philippe, who runs a home-service business in Québec
You cannot answer the phone with your hands in a valve. That is part of the trade, not bad organization. So the question is not how to answer everything, but how to keep a missed call from becoming a lost job.
What does not work
Ordinary voicemail
“Leave a message and we will call you back.” Someone with a flooded basement does not leave a message: they hang up and dial the next number. Voicemail only keeps people who were not in a hurry, who would have called back anyway.
A receptionist who does not know the trade
They take a name and number. That is exactly what a text does, for a fraction of the cost, with no vacations or turnover. The cost comparison rarely favours hiring for that task.
What works
An automatic text within a minute
The only thing that beats the reflex to call the next company. The message goes out on its own when the call is missed, and does three things: names your business, gives a precise callback time and asks about the problem. The question is what matters: “What kind of problem is it?” turns a missed call into a written conversation you read between jobs.
The deciding factor is not the wording, it is the delay. Under a minute, most people have not dialled the next number yet. At ten minutes, many are gone.
A greeting that gives a time
Free, and worth changing today. “I am on a job until 4, I call everyone back between 4 and 6” keeps far more callers than a generic message: they know what to expect, so they wait.
What it costs, and what it brings
An automatic callback system usually runs $500 to $1,500 a month depending on volume and qualification. To know if it is worth it for you, compare it with what missed calls cost you: the calculator does it with your numbers. For most emergency trades with six or more employees, the math is not close. For a business that already answers nearly everything, it is not worth it, and I will say so.