Estimates booked while you are up in the attic
An electrician on a job cannot stop to talk a stranger through a panel upgrade. Reception answers with your greeting, says it is an automated assistant, reads the answers you wrote and books the estimate visit. A caller who says 'sparking' or 'burning smell' is rung through to you.
From $149 a month. One number, answered at any hour. Stop any month.
The calls you get
"Can you put in an EV charger?"
One written answer covers what you install and why it starts with a look at the panel. If the caller wants that visit, it offers three free times and books one.
"My breaker keeps tripping"
That can be a tired breaker or something worse, and you are the one who decides which. Put 'keeps tripping' on your urgent route and it rings you. Leave it off and the caller books a troubleshooting visit or leaves a message.
A burning smell from an outlet
Words like 'burning smell' and 'hot outlet' sit on a transfer route that rings your cell at any hour. The line itself gives no safety advice beyond the answer you wrote.
A general contractor with a remodel
Contractor words ring the owner's phone, so a bid request does not end up as a Tuesday slot. If the owner is on a ladder, the contractor leaves a message.
The inspector about tomorrow's permit
A permits route rings the office phone. Inspectors and the utility reach a person who has the job file, not a booking offer.
"Is the guy who came last week working today?"
It will not say who is working or where. It says it cannot tell them anything about who works here, and takes a message.
What you would write down
An example for a small residential and light commercial shop. A phrase only matches as a whole phrase, so 'hot outlet' will not fire on 'outlet' alone.
Routes: the words that reach a phone or an answer
| Route | When the caller says | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Danger |
| Rings your cell at any hour |
| Fire or shock |
| Reads your answer: get out and call 911 |
| Contractors |
| Rings the owner's phone |
| Permits |
| Rings the office phone |
Answers in your own words
- Do you install EV chargers?
- Yes. We install Level 2 chargers in garages and driveways. We check your panel first, so it starts with an estimate visit.
- Do you do panel upgrades?
- Yes. A panel upgrade starts with an estimate visit. We pull the permit and book the inspection.
- Do you install standby generators?
- Yes, home standby generators with a transfer switch. We size it on the estimate visit.
- Do you do commercial work?
- Small commercial, yes: offices, shops and restaurants. Larger jobs go to the owner directly.
Services it can book
- EV charger estimate45 min
- Panel upgrade estimate60 min
- Troubleshooting visit90 min
Nights and weekends
Most after-hours calls to an electrician are not emergencies: a light that quit, a dead outlet on one wall, a dimmer that buzzes. The line says the office is closed, then books a daytime visit or takes a message, and you read the summary before your first job.
The few that matter come with words you can predict. Put those words on a transfer route and that route rings at 3 am the same way it rings at noon.
What to book by phone, and what not
Estimates and troubleshooting book well over the phone, because you know how long each one takes. The slot length comes from the service, so a 90-minute troubleshooting visit is never squeezed into the last half hour before you close.
Do not let a burning smell turn into a booking for Thursday. If the caller's words are on your danger route, it is a transfer. If you skip that route and the caller asks for a visit, they get three times like anyone else.
Calls that should never wait
A sparking panel or a hot outlet is not a message for the morning. Write those words into a transfer route and the line rings your phone whether the office is open or closed. If you miss it, the line says 'I could not reach anyone there.' and takes a message, so put a number on that route that someone will answer.
The line is not a safety service, and it cannot tell anyone whether their house is safe. Give fire, smoke and shocks their own route that reads your answer: get out of the house and call 911.
Contractors and homeowners on one number
A GC wants a bid on a twelve-unit job, and a homeowner wants a ceiling fan hung. Both call the same line. The contractor route sends the first to you; the second books an estimate. The call summary says who it was and what they wanted, in up to four lines.
An example call
An example call on a weekday morning. Brightline Electric and the caller are made up.
- AssistantThank you for calling Brightline Electric. You are speaking with an automated assistant. How can I help you today?
- CallerHi, we just bought an electric car. Do you install EV chargers?
- AssistantYes. We install Level 2 chargers in garages and driveways. We check your panel first, so it starts with an estimate visit.
- CallerOkay. Can you come out and do the estimate?
- AssistantI can offer Wednesday at 8:00, Wednesday at 1:15 or Friday at 10:30. Which one suits you?
- CallerFriday works.
- AssistantSo that is Friday at 10:30. Is that right?
- CallerYes.
- AssistantBooked with Brightline Electric: Friday at 10:30. I will text you a confirmation.
Where it stops
- It cannot judge whether a fault is dangerous. It acts on the words you wrote, and an urgent call you did not plan for becomes a booking or a message.
- It is not an emergency service. Fire, smoke or someone shocked is a 911 call, and your written answer should say exactly that.
- It gives no price for a panel or a charger unless you wrote one down, and it takes no deposits.
- It will not tell a caller which electrician is on shift or where they are.
Questions owners ask
- Can an AI receptionist book electrical estimates?
- Yes. You list each estimate type with its length, and the line offers three free times from your hours, reads the chosen time back and texts a confirmation.
- What happens when a caller reports sparks or a burning smell?
- If those words are on a transfer route, it rings the phone you chose, at any hour. If nobody picks up, it takes a message.
- Can it tell a homeowner whether their wiring is safe?
- No. It gives no safety or technical advice. It reads only what you wrote, and for fire or smoke that answer should be to call 911.
- Does it say it is not a person?
- Yes. Every call starts with your greeting and then 'You are speaking with an automated assistant.' That sentence cannot be turned off.
- Is the call recorded?
- No audio is recorded. What was said is kept as text, with a short summary and any time or callback the line agreed to, quoted word for word.
Tonight's calls, answered.
From $149 a month.
Set up your line