The phone rings at 8:45 p.m. You're on the couch. Do you pick up?
There's no single right answer, but there is a wrong one: no plan at all, so it depends on your mood and the customer never knows what to expect.
Three kinds of after-hours calls
- Real emergencies. Water pouring in, no heat in January, a door that won't lock, a tree on the roof. These customers will pay for a fast response, and they'll remember who showed up.
- Problems that can wait until morning. A drip, a draft, a rattle. They're calling at night because that's when they're home.
- Shoppers. Comparing prices on a Sunday night. They want a quote, not a visit.
Only the first kind needs you tonight.
Set it up so the phone sorts them for you
- After hours, every call gets a text right away. "Thanks for calling. We're closed for the night. Text back what's going on and your address, and we'll call first thing in the morning. If it's an emergency, reply EMERGENCY." See the missed-call text that never gives a price.
- Only emergencies reach you. That reply, or a call from a customer you know, rings your cell. Everything else waits. See when the bot should ring your cell.
- Morning, first thing. Call back every after-hours message before you start your first job. That's the promise you made.
Should you charge more?
If you go out after hours, charge for it, and say so before you go. "After hours, our service call is $X." Customers with a real emergency rarely argue. Customers who argue usually didn't have an emergency.
Where AI fits
An AI helper can answer after-hours calls, ask what's wrong, and decide from your rules whether to wake you up. It should be strict. You write the list of what counts as an emergency, not the bot. And it never gives a price.
Protect your evenings
Plenty of guys burn out because the phone never stops. Being reachable is good for business. Being reachable for everything, all the time, is not. A clear after-hours plan lets you rest and still catch the jobs that matter.
