Every tradie knows the feeling. You're elbows-deep in a pipe repair, phone buzzing in your pocket. You can't answer, so you let it go to voicemail. By the time you call back, they've already booked someone else.
That's exactly what was happening to Mark, a sole trader plumber in Adelaide's northern suburbs. He was good at his job—maybe even great—but his phone was costing him thousands every month.
The $1,500-a-Week Problem
Mark was losing an estimated $1,500 every week in lost revenue. Not because he was expensive or unreliable, but simply because he couldn't answer the phone while serving customers.
Here's the math: he was missing about 15-20 calls per week. Even if only a third of those became jobs at an average of $150 per callout, that's roughly $750-900 in lost revenue weekly. Then add the follow-up failures—customers who wanted quotes but never heard back—and the number climbed past $1,500.
"I was working 60-hour weeks and still losing money," Mark told us. "I'd finish a job, listen to voicemails from hours ago, and half the customers had already moved on."
The Three-Tool Fix
We set Mark up with three simple automation tools that took total setup time of about 90 minutes. No new staff, no complicated software, no monthly fees worth mentioning.
1. Missed Call SMS
When someone calls and Mark can't answer, they immediately get an SMS saying: "Hi, thanks for calling. I'm with a customer right now. Click here to book a time that suits you: [online booking link]. Or reply with your issue and I'll call you back ASAP."
This alone captured about 40% of missed calls that would have otherwise vanished into voicemail.
2. Online Booking System
Instead of the back-and-forth of phone tag, customers could book directly online. They saw available time slots, chose what suited them, and the appointment automatically synced to Mark's calendar.
The key was making it dead simple. No account creation, no app download. Just a few taps and the job was booked.
3. Quote Follow-Up Automation
For jobs that needed quotes, we set up a simple sequence: if Mark sent a quote but didn't hear back within 48 hours, an automated follow-up would ping the customer. If no response after another 48 hours, another follow-up. After that, the system flagged it for Mark to follow up personally—but by then, most customers had already replied.
The Results After 6 Weeks
Six weeks later, the numbers told a clear story:
- 30% increase in booked jobs—that's roughly 12-15 extra jobs per month
- Zero missed call conversions—every missed call now gets immediate follow-up
- Quote acceptance up 45%—the automated follow-ups caught customers who would have gone elsewhere
- Mark's evenings back—no more spending hours returning calls from that morning
The extra revenue? Roughly $2,000 per week more than before. That's $8,000 a month in additional income, for an investment of about $50 per month in tools and 90 minutes of setup time.
What This Means for Your Plumbing Business
Mark's story isn't special because he's a plumber. It's special because he's a tradie who finally stopped letting his phone cost him money.
The tools are cheap, the setup is fast, and the ROI is immediate. If you're a plumber (or any tradie) in Adelaide who's tired of losing jobs to voicemail, there's never been an easier fix.
You don't need to hire someone to answer the phone. You just need a system that works while you do.