Answer new leads while they are still choosing

Why the first reply matters

Someone who asks for a painting, flooring or cleaning quote wants to know three things: did a real person see my message, do you do this kind of job, and what happens next. A short reply that answers all three keeps the conversation going. A long silence leaves them to keep looking, and lead sites can send the same request to several businesses at once.

Speed also counts with Google if you run Local Services Ads. Google lists your responsiveness to customer inquiries as one of the things it looks at when it orders those ads, and says missed calls may count against it. See Google’s page on ad rankings. We cannot tell you how much a faster reply will change your results, and nobody honestly can. It is still one of the few parts of getting hired that depends only on you.

What to put in a first reply

Keep it to a greeting, two questions that help you price the job, and one next step. For a painter, that might be the number of rooms and whether ceilings are included. For flooring, the square footage and what is on the floor now. For a cleaner, the size of the home and how often they want service. The next step can be photos, a call time, or a visit window you really have open.

Leave out prices you have not confirmed and times you do not have. A reply that promises Thursday and then moves it costs more trust than one that says “I will check the schedule and text you by 5.” CrewBuddy writes in the voice and prices from your Business Brief, the short profile we fill in with you at setup. Under each draft it lists anything it had to assume, so you can fix it before you send.

How CrewBuddy fits into a work day

Forward the lead by text: a screenshot of your website form, a Thumbtack or Angi message, or a quick note like “missed call from Joe, wants his deck stained.” CrewBuddy reads it and sends back a reply you can copy into your phone, your email, or the lead site’s inbox. It does not send messages from your number or answer your calls, so the reply goes out from wherever the lead came in.

If your calendar is connected, CrewBuddy can suggest two open estimate windows from it, without saying a slot is held. If the person does not answer, ask CrewBuddy to remind you. It can set a reminder that texts only you at the time you pick, then write the follow-up when that time comes. The first reply recipe shows the exact steps, and the missed call guide covers calls you could not pick up.

Answering someone who just contacted you is different from adding them to a marketing list. The FCC’s TCPA rules cover automated calls and texts, and anyone can ask you to stop. If a person replies STOP or says not to contact them, write it down where your whole crew can see it, and stop.