A homeowner with a broken water heater isn't leaving a voicemail. They're calling the next plumber on Google until someone picks up. Same goes for HVAC, electrical, roofing, pest control, and every other home service.

The first business to answer wins. 78% of customers go with whoever responds first.

The Math

Scenario	Impact
Missed calls per week	30
Average job value	$400
Conversion rate if answered	30%
Monthly revenue recovered	$14,400

That's a technician's salary recovered just by answering the phone.

The Problem

Home service businesses run lean:

Technicians in the field: No one in the office to answer calls
Emergency timing: Calls come at 10pm when the basement is flooding
Seasonal surges: Summer AC rush and winter heating emergencies overwhelm capacity
Estimator bottleneck: Every lead needs a site visit to quote

You're losing jobs to competitors who pick up faster.

The Solution

An AI that answers like your best dispatcher:

24/7 availability: Midnight HVAC emergency? Answered.
Intelligent triage: True emergencies get immediate dispatch; routine requests get scheduled
On-the-spot booking: Calendar access means appointments booked during the call
Service area filtering: Politely declines jobs outside your territory
Lead qualification: Gets job details before a truck rolls

In Action

Emergency Call:

Caller: "Water is pouring through my ceiling right now!"
AI: "That's an emergency. Let me get a plumber to you as quickly
     as possible. What's your address?"
[Gets address, verifies service area]
AI: "We can have someone there within 2 hours. Is that okay?
     There's a $99 emergency dispatch fee. Can I confirm that?"
[Books emergency call, notifies on-call tech]

Estimate Request:

Caller: "I need a quote for replacing my furnace."
AI: "Happy to help. To give you an accurate estimate, one of our
     technicians will need to see the current setup. I have
     openings for a free estimate tomorrow afternoon or Friday
     morning. What works better?"

After-Hours Booking:

Caller: "My AC isn't cooling. It's not urgent but I want someone
        to look at it."
AI: "I can schedule a diagnostic visit. Our next available
     appointment is Thursday at 10am. The diagnostic is $89,
     which gets credited toward any repairs. Does that work?"

Service Area Check:

Caller: "Do you service the 90210 area?"
AI: "Let me check... Yes, Beverly Hills is in our service area.
     What can I help you with today?"

Field Service Integrations

Real-time scheduling with your dispatch system:

System	Capabilities
ServiceTitan	Live technician availability, job booking, customer lookup
Housecall Pro	Scheduling, estimates, customer communication
Jobber	Appointment booking, customer records, quotes
FieldEdge	Dispatch, service agreements, parts inventory
Service Fusion	Work orders, scheduling, customer portal

Don't use a field service platform? 24CallDesk works with Google Calendar and basic scheduling too.

Trade-Specific Configurations

HVAC

Seasonal capacity adjustment (more slots in summer/winter)
Maintenance agreement member identification
Emergency vs. routine triage
Filter change reminders

Plumbing

Emergency severity assessment
Water damage escalation protocols
Drain cleaning vs. repair routing
After-hours emergency pricing

Electrical

Safety-first triage (sparks, smoke = immediate escalation)
Panel upgrade consultation scheduling
Generator service reminders
New construction vs. service calls

Pest Control

Pest type identification for routing
One-time vs. ongoing service
Wildlife vs. insect protocols
Seasonal treatment reminders

Roofing

Storm damage prioritization
Inspection scheduling
Insurance claim support
Gutter cleaning reminders

Landscaping & Lawn Care

Recurring service scheduling
Seasonal service transitions
Project estimate appointments
Weather-based rescheduling

Outbound Workflows

Lead Follow-Up

When someone requests an estimate but doesn't book:

Day 1 (if no answer) →
SMS: "Thanks for calling ABC Plumbing! We missed you but I'm here to help.
      Reply with a good time to call back and I'll reach out."

Day 2 →
AI Call: "Hi, this is ABC Plumbing following up on your inquiry about
         a water heater replacement. Do you still need an estimate?"

Day 5 →
SMS: "Still thinking about that water heater? We have availability
      this week for a free estimate. Reply to schedule."

Service Reminders

Maintenance agreements that actually get scheduled:

90 days since last AC tune-up →
AI Call: "Hi, this is Comfort Air calling about your spring AC tune-up.
         It's been about three months since your last service, and
         it's a good time to get your system ready for summer.
         Can I schedule that for you?"

Seasonal Campaigns

Fall heating season →
SMS: "Winter's coming. Schedule your furnace tune-up before the rush.
      $89 inspection special through November. Reply YES to book."

Win-Back

6 months since last service →
AI Call: "Hi, this is ABC Plumbing. We haven't seen you in a while
         and wanted to check in. Everything working okay? We've
         got some availability this week if you need anything."

Emergency Protocols

Configure exactly how emergencies are handled:

Situation	Response
Water leak, flooding	Immediate dispatch, after-hours pricing disclosed
No heat in winter	Priority scheduling, same-day attempt
No cooling in extreme heat	Priority scheduling with health check
Gas smell	Transfer to 911, then follow up
Electrical sparks/fire	Transfer to 911, then follow up

You define what counts as an emergency and how it's handled.

Implementation

Connect Your Systems

Field service management platform
Technician calendars
After-hours on-call rotation

Configure Service Information

Service types and pricing
Service area boundaries
Emergency dispatch fees
Appointment durations by type

Set Up Triage Rules

Emergency vs. routine classification
After-hours handling
Technician skill-based routing

Go Live

Start with after-hours and overflow
Monitor call quality
Expand to full coverage

Why Home Service Companies Choose 24CallDesk

Never miss an emergency: 24/7 means true 24/7
Win more jobs: First to answer usually wins
Qualify before dispatch: Get job details before rolling a truck
Scale without overhead: Handle volume spikes without hiring

"We were paying an answering service $1,200/month and they couldn't book appointments. Now every call gets answered and 30% convert to booked jobs on the first call."

— Owner, 4-truck HVAC company

Contact support@24calldesk.com for home service-specific pricing and integrations.