Missed calls: what a heating contractor can do about them.
When you're on a job, the phone still rings. Here is what happens to the call you don't take, how an automatic text in your company's name keeps the customer in touch until you call back, and what the free audit looks at in your business.
The call comes in when your hands are full
You're in a basement in Laval replacing a furnace, or outside in Longueuil hooking up the outdoor unit of a heat pump. Your phone buzzes in your pocket. You can't answer, and the person who takes your calls, if you have one, is already on the phone with someone else.
The calls come with the cold: breakdowns, maintenance, heat pump quotes. That's also when your days are fullest. The customer needs an answer now, not when you get out of the basement.
What happens to a missed call
Someone with no heat doesn't wait for your callback at the end of the day. They reach voicemail, may hang up without leaving a message, and dial the next number in their Google search.
In the evening, you see an unknown number in your missed calls. You call back: "It's fine, thanks, someone already came." You'll never know if it was a breakdown, a maintenance visit or a full install.
It's not a service problem. It's a timing problem: between the call and your callback, nobody answered the customer.
How the automatic text works
When a call isn't answered, the caller gets an automatic text in your company's name. They know they reached the right company and that someone will get back to them.
- 01A call isn't answered: you're on a job, the line is busy, or it's after hours.
- 02The caller gets a text in your company's name, in French, and in English when your customer writes in English.
- 03If they reply, an automated assistant carries on the conversation: basic questions, qualifying the job, offering a time.
- 04The appointment goes on your calendar, or the customer gets a booking link.
- 05You get a text alert for every missed call, booking and handoff. You call the customer back with the context in hand.
Hi, this is Example Heating. Sorry we missed your call, we're on a job. Is it for a breakdown, maintenance or a quote? Reply to this text and we'll get back to you.
It doesn't replace anyone. If someone usually answers your phone, at home, at the front desk or you yourself, the text only catches the call they can't take: the second line, their break, after they leave. The automated assistant doesn't replace your judgment as a technician: you're the one who calls the customer back.
Want to see the text yourself? Call 438-807-4546 and let it ring: you get the text your customers would get.
What's included in the Contractor Plan
The automatic text is part of the Contractor Plan (found, reached, booked):
- A simple, mobile-first bilingual website, with your contact form connected to the automatic reply
- An automatic text to every missed caller, in your business's name
- An assistant that replies to the caller: answers basic questions, qualifies the job, offers a time
- An automatic reply to new requests from your website form
- Booking on your calendar, or a booking link
- A text alert to you for every missed call, booking and handoff
- Every Monday, a text with the count of your missed calls, texts and bookings from the week before
- A one-time check of your Google Business Profile at launch
- Your own CRM: every request, every conversation and where it stands, in an app on your phone
The text is live within 1 to 3 days of your first payment, and we show it to you working on your own number. The website follows within 7 days of getting your logo, photos and list of services. $497 a month, no setup fee, month to month with 30 days' notice. If the demo doesn't convince you, full refund (ask within 14 days of paying).
Not included: advertising. Review requests, past-customer reactivation and an AI voice that answers live aren't offered yet.
What the free audit looks at in your business
Before suggesting anything, we look at how calls and requests reach you today. 15 minutes on the phone, then a one-page plan with the fix that fits and its price, or that you need nothing, by email within 2 business days.
- Your missed calls: when they happen, and what happens next
- How fast new requests get an answer: phone, form, messages
- Your website: can a customer on their phone find your number and send a request?
- Your Google reviews
- Your past customers and estimates nobody followed up
- The calls that need a live answer
You see what the main gap costs you, with your own numbers. If the automatic text isn't the right fix for you, the plan says so. If you don't need anything, it says that too. The audit is free, nothing to sign.
Montreal, Laval, Longueuil, South Shore, North Shore
HoraZora is in Montreal. Setup is done remotely. If your business is in Montreal, Laval, Longueuil, on the South Shore or the North Shore, we can also meet if you like.
Everything is French first: the text, the website, the audit, with English for your English-speaking customers. You deal with Jeffrey directly, from the audit to the setup.
Frequently asked questions
What is an automatic text after a missed call?
It's a text sent automatically, in your company's name, to the person whose call you didn't take. It confirms they reached the right company and invites them to reply by text. An automated assistant carries on the conversation, and you get an alert to call the customer back.
Is it better than voicemail?
They work together. Voicemail waits for the customer to leave a message; the text goes to them, even if they hang up without leaving one. You keep your voicemail.
What if a customer calls in the evening with no heat?
They get the same text in your company's name, and you get the alert. The text doesn't replace your emergency service: it keeps in touch until you or whoever is on call calls back. A voice that answers live, including after hours, isn't offered yet.
Do I keep my current number?
Yes, you keep your number. Depending on your provider, we set up call forwarding from your number to your HoraZora line, once, together, after the demo. Your cell rings first; if nobody answers, the text goes out.
How long does setup take?
The text is live within 1 to 3 days of your first payment, and we show it to you working on your own number. The website follows within 7 days of getting your logo, photos and list of services.
How much does it cost? Is there a contract?
The Contractor Plan is $497 a month with no setup fee. It's month to month with 30 days' notice. Full refund if the demo doesn't convince you, if you ask within 14 days of paying. The audit itself is free.
Do I need to be good with technology?
No. Jeffrey does the setup and shows you the system working. On your side, you get text alerts and you call your customers back, like today.
How many calls slip away this winter?
The free audit tells you, with your own numbers: 15 minutes, then a one-page plan, with the price. If nothing needs fixing, the plan says so.
Jeffrey Cmelo, founder, Montreal. You deal with him directly, from the audit to the build.
