Compare six things: what triggers the text, whether the AI books or only takes details, whether you keep your number, how a person takes over, what happens on emergency words such as "burst pipe", and the monthly cost at your call volume. In the example below, Jobber, Quo and Smith.ai each cost under $110 a month; Podium lists $399.
"Phone marketing" bundles three different jobs: replying to calls you missed, following up leads and quotes, and asking for reviews. A firm with a full diary may need only the first. Buy for the job that is leaking money today and treat the rest as extras, because a bundle prices all three together whether you use them or not. The generic review lists that rank for this search mostly cover call-centre and telemarketing tools, which is a different problem from a van crew who cannot reach the phone.
Rules versus AI: what you are really paying for
A missed-call text-back is a rule. The phone system sees an unanswered call and sends a fixed message. That should cost almost nothing, and in some products it comes with the phone plan. AI appears when the software holds a conversation, books a visit, summarises a call or drafts a reply to a review. Those features use computing per call, so vendors usually meter them by the call or conversation, and that is where bills drift.
The distinction tells you what to question. If a vendor charges a premium tier for "AI text-back" and the feature is a template, you are overpaying. If a vendor offers an AI that answers calls for $29 a month, the question is how many conversations that includes and what happens above it. The vendor facts in the tables below come from the vendors' own pages in late October 2026, with "not stated" wherever the page said nothing; the cost sums are mine.
What each product does when a call goes unanswered
| Product | On a missed call | AI parts | Price shown (USD) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jobber Receptionist | Answers calls and texts; texts back callers who hang up; books visits through your online booking settings; keywords such as "burst pipe" or "no heat" send the call to you or trigger a text alert | Answers and books; summary, transcript and recording of each conversation; you can watch texts live and take over | $29 a month with 30 conversations, then $0.79 each; unlimited on Plus (help article) |
| Quo (business phone) | Auto-reply texts for missed calls with or without voicemail, and for incoming texts; separate in-hours and after-hours messages | Sona answers calls (tiers from $0 for 10 calls to $199 for 600); AI call summaries from Business, AI call tags on Scale | Starter $15 per user a month billed annually, $19 monthly; Business $23 or $33; Scale $35 or $47 |
| Podium | Missed Call Automation sits under Podium Phones | AI Employee add-on to any plan; Pro lists an AI Concierge and AI phone call summaries | Core $399, Pro $599, Signature custom; HVAC firms told to contact sales; phone seats $30 each for 1 to 4 users |
| Housecall Pro | CSR AI answers calls and books jobs; its chat is included on every plan and texts are marked "coming soon" | CSR AI's 24/7 call answering is the paid part; the other AI team members are included | CSR AI price not published; plans $59 to $329 a month depending on tier and billing |
| Workiz | Genius Answering, sold separately, answers calls, emails and texts; phone and two-way texting sit under Genius Phone, also marked "sold separately", although the FAQ says the phone system comes with every plan | Genius Answering, Genius Marketing | Every plan shows "Request pricing" |
| Smith.ai AI Receptionist | Answers, qualifies and routes calls; recording, transcription and summaries on every plan | Answers and schedules; texting appears only as custom SMS branding on Pro and Enterprise | Free for 25 calls then $3 each; Pro $150 for 75 calls, extra calls $2.50 |
Two more products matter because they do the other jobs. NiceJob is not a phone tool: it sends review requests and, on Pro, handles referral and repeat-customer messages and AI replies to reviews, with Starter at $75 a month and Pro at $125 on its pricing page. CallRail does call tracking, not text-back: its Lead Tracking plan is $50 a month and AI call summaries start on Lead Conversion at $150.
Podium: listed prices, with HVAC firms sent to sales
Podium's pricing page leads with "talk to our sales team for details", then lists Core at $399 a month, Pro at $599 and Signature on custom pricing, with the line "HVAC businesses should contact sales for applicable pricing" on both Core and Pro. It adds that pricing may vary by industry, partnerships, integrations, volume and carrier fees. So a plumbing firm has a listed starting point before phone seats and fees, and an HVAC firm has a quote to request. The Pro plan lists an AI Concierge, an AI Reputation Specialist and AI phone call summaries; AI Employee, the assistant that "sells, schedules, and communicates with customers day and night", is described as an add-on to any plan, with no price shown. Podium alternatives for a plumbing or HVAC firm compares the lower-cost routes in detail.
What it costs at 180 calls a month
Take a four-van heating and plumbing firm. It gets 180 calls a month and misses 45, a quarter: 20 during the working day when every van is busy, and 25 after hours. The average job brings in $350 and leaves $140 of gross profit (40%). All figures are placeholders. Only the 45 missed calls go to the AI or auto-reply, so the table prices that volume.
| Set-up | How the cost is built | Monthly cost | Extra jobs needed to break even |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jobber Receptionist | $29 plus 15 conversations over the allowance at $0.79 (assuming each missed call is one conversation) | $41 | 0.3 |
| Quo, four users, auto-reply only | 4 x $19 monthly billing ($60 billed annually at $15) | $76 | 0.5 |
| Quo plus Sona AI answering | $76 plus $25 tier (40 calls) plus 5 calls at $0.75 | $105 | 0.7 |
| Smith.ai AI Receptionist, free plan | 25 free calls, then 20 at $3 | $60 | 0.4 |
| Smith.ai Pro | Flat for up to 75 calls | $150 | 1.1 |
| NiceJob Starter plus Quo auto-reply | $75 plus $76: texts back and asks for reviews | $151 | 1.1 |
| Podium Core plus phones | $399 plus 4 phone seats at $30; AI Employee extra, unpriced | $519 | 3.7 |
Now the value side, with assumptions you should replace. Without a text, you still win about 2 of the 45 missed callers because some ring back. With a text inside a minute, say 40% reply and a quarter of those book: 4.5 jobs. The gain is 2.5 jobs, or $350 of gross profit a month. That covers every row except Podium Core, unless the platform replaces other tools or wins more than the missed-call jobs. If a firm uses its inbox, web chat and payments, the sum looks different. If it wants missed-call text-back alone, it does not. Jobber Receptionist pricing for a one-van plumber runs the smallest case.
Which set-up fits a one-van, four-van or ten-van firm
The same tools suit different firms for different reasons, so match the set-up to how many calls reach voicemail and who is free to answer them.
- One van, about 20 missed calls a month. You are the technician and the office. The aim is a text within a minute and a voicemail that explains when you will ring back. Smith.ai's free plan covers 25 calls, so the AI answering costs nothing at this volume, and Quo's Starter plan for one user is $15 to $19 a month. Skip a review platform: send the Google review link by text yourself after each job, or use the review feature already in your job software.
- Four vans, 45 missed calls. The worked example above. A low-cost AI receptionist or Quo with Sona handles the working-day overflow and after hours, and the review requests come from the job software. Budget $100 to $200 a month for everything phone-related, and add call tracking only when you pay for more than two lead sources.
- Ten vans and an office. The office answers most calls in hours, so the leak is overflow, lunch breaks and nights. The AI covers those windows only. Here an all-in-one platform can pay, because several people share the inbox and reviews matter across many technicians, but only if you will use the inbox, the web chat and the reporting. Ask for a written quote and compare it with a stack built from a phone plan, a review tool and call tracking.
Across all three, begin with the missed-call text and a short test period, then add reviews, then quote follow-up. That order follows the money: an unanswered call is a lost job today, while a missing review costs you slowly.
Fees that sit outside the headline price
- Carrier registration. Quo's help centre says a number cannot text customers until its carrier registration is approved; it says most approvals take 24 to 48 hours, while its FAQ gives 5 to 7 business days and sometimes more than 30. Quo charges $19.50 once and $1.50 a month for most businesses. Podium's price page lists a base registration fee of $5 a month, $15 a month for high-volume carrier-verified messaging on Core (included on Pro), and a $500 network optimisation fee per location on its phone plan. Start the paperwork before the winter rush; setting up Quo's Sona AI receptionist for missed calls shows the order of the steps.
- Conversation overage. Jobber charges $0.79 past 30 conversations on the add-on. Smith.ai charges $3 a call past 25 free calls. Sona's overage falls from $1.00 to $0.45 a call as the tier rises, and Quo does not count calls under 15 seconds. Ask how a conversation is counted: one text exchange, one day, or one customer.
- Seats. Quo charges per user, so a firm with ten technicians sharing one number pays differently from one with two.
- Text segments. Providers that bill per text segment split long messages, and one emoji or curly apostrophe can cut a segment from 160 characters to 70 (Twilio's glossary explains why). A friendly 200-character text may bill as three.
- Conflicting pages. Jobber's current Receptionist help article gives 30 conversations for the $29, while an older add-ons article still says 100. Plan on 30 and check the first invoice.
Eight test calls a trades firm should run in the trial
Run these in the trial, from a spare mobile, with the vendor's help if needed. Each tests something a demo will not.
| Test | What you do | A pass looks like |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Hang up early | Ring and end the call after 5 seconds | Text arrives within a minute and does not claim you spoke |
| 2. Voicemail | Let it ring out and leave a message | One text only, not one for the missed call and another for the voicemail |
| 3. After hours | Call outside opening hours | A different message that says when someone will respond |
| 4. Emergency words | Say "burst pipe" or "no heating" to the AI | Your phone rings or alerts, and the AI gives the safety line first |
| 5. Reply STOP | Text STOP after the first message | No further texts, and the contact is flagged |
| 6. Ask for a price | Ask what a boiler service costs | It gives your published figure or says a person will confirm; it never invents one |
| 7. Take over | Reply from the app mid-conversation | The AI stops replying the moment you do |
| 8. Known customer | Call from a number already in your records | The reply uses the customer's name or skips the enquiry questions |
Most failures show up in tests 2, 4 and 7. Double messages after a voicemail annoy people; an AI that cannot be interrupted talks over your technician; and an emergency keyword list that nobody set up means a flood call waits until morning. Quo's help centre, for one, says several missed calls from the same person within three hours trigger only one auto-reply, which is the behaviour test 2 should confirm. Choosing between all calls, after hours or overflow for a plumbing receptionist helps with the coverage choice behind tests 3 and 4.
Write the missed-call text so it earns a reply
A good first text has four parts: who you are, an honest reason you missed the call, one question that is easy to answer, and a way to opt out. Setting up missed-call text-back for a service business covers the generic version; here are three trade versions (illustrative, with [first name] and [business] filled in per customer):
In hours, heating and plumbing:
Hi [first name], it's [business]. Sorry we missed you, the engineers are on jobs. Is it urgent (leak, no heating or hot water)? Reply 1 for yes, 2 for a quote or booking. Reply STOP to opt out.
After hours:
Hi [first name], this is [business]. We're closed until 8 am. For a gas smell, leave the building and call the emergency number for your gas supplier. For anything else, reply with what's happening and we'll respond first thing.
Quote enquiry (not urgent):
Hi [first name], thanks for calling [business]. What work do you need doing, and roughly where in the property? A photo helps. We'll send a price once we've seen the details.Never promise a time the office cannot keep. "We'll respond first thing" is safer than "within 15 minutes" unless someone is paid to watch the inbox. Have the safety line checked against your insurer's guidance and the rules your own trade works under; the firm decides the wording, not the vendor's template.
Now an AI answering conversation for a leak (illustrative) with a problem marked:
Customer, 7:10 pm: Water coming through the kitchen ceiling.
AI: Sorry to hear that. If you can do it safely, turn off the water at the stopcock. Is the ceiling near any light fittings or sockets? Reply YES or NO.
Customer: No, just the corner.
AI: Thanks. We'll have an engineer with you within two hours. Can you confirm the address?What to fix: "within two hours" is an invented promise. Replace it with "we're passing this to the on-call engineer now and they will ring you", and make sure the AI's instructions say it never states an arrival time. Also check that the water-and-electrics question is yours, written down in advance, and that a YES sends the customer to the emergency services line before any booking talk.
Review requests and AI replies: timing, wording, Google's limits
Send the request when the job is marked complete, while the customer is still pleased with a dry kitchen. Most field-service apps can trigger it from that status. Jobber's Marketing Suite, a $99-a-month add-on included on the Plus plan, sends review requests automatically after every job and drafts replies with AI for you to approve. Housecall Pro lists review management on every plan. NiceJob sends requests and, on Pro, drafts replies. Podium's Core card lists review management with AI responses, although its comparison table marks automated AI review responses as a Core add-on. How to get more Google reviews with automated requests covers the set-up.
Google's review policy limits what these tools may do. Merchants may not offer incentives such as discounts or free services for reviews, may not selectively solicit positive reviews, and may not discourage negative ones. A flow that asks "how was your visit?" and sends only happy customers on to Google is selective soliciting, however the vendor describes it. Use one message for everyone. A reasonable request reads:
Hi [first name], thanks for choosing [business] today. If you have a minute, a Google review helps other people find a plumber they can trust: [link]. Reply STOP to opt out.On the reply side, treat the AI draft like a junior's first attempt. Take a one-star review: "Engineer was late and left a mess." A typical draft (illustrative) apologises, offers a refund and promises the engineer will be "spoken to". What to fix: remove the refund offer unless you have decided one, delete the staff discipline line, add one specific fact about the booking, and offer an offline route to resolve it. For the first 20 replies, read every draft before it is published, whatever the product's default setting.
Quote follow-up texts: three, then stop
Follow-up on unaccepted quotes is the second-best use of a phone tool. Jobber's quoting features, from its Connect plan upwards, include automatic follow-ups by email or text for clients who have not responded. Whatever you use, the sequence should be short:
- Day 2: "Hi [first name], did you get the quote for the radiator replacement? Happy to answer any questions."
- Day 6: "Just checking the quote is still what you need. We have slots next week if you'd like to go ahead."
- Day 14: "Last message from us on this one. The quote stays valid for another seven days. Reply STOP if you'd rather not hear from us."
Stop the sequence the moment the customer replies, accepts or books. Test that the tool does this rather than assuming it, because an automation that runs on its own timer will nudge the customer who accepted yesterday. Keep every message informational and include a way to opt out.
Recordings, transcripts and who can hear them
AI answering tools record and transcribe by design: Jobber says each conversation has a summary, transcript and recording, and Smith.ai lists recording, transcription and summaries on every plan. That is useful for checking what the AI told a customer, and it is also personal data about your customers. Before you switch a tool on, settle four things in writing.
- How long recordings and transcripts are kept, and how you delete one if a customer asks.
- Whether your content is used to train the vendor's models, and where that setting lives.
- Who on your team can open the call log, because it may include addresses and when people are away from home.
- What callers are told at the start. Rules on recording differ between places and some require a notice, so ask your own adviser instead of assuming the vendor's default is enough.
A practical safeguard is to review five recordings a week for the first month. You will hear where the AI misunderstands a trade term, where callers hang up, and whether the transfer to a person works as designed. Keep a short log of what you changed after each review, because that log becomes the instruction sheet you hand to whoever runs the system later.
A weighted scorecard, filled in for two options
When you reach the shortlist, score each option 0 to 5 on ten criteria, multiply by the weight, and add up. This example compares two generic options: A is an add-on inside a field-service app, B is a stand-alone reputation and messaging platform. The scores are invented to show the arithmetic.
| Criterion | Weight | A score | A total | B score | B total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Texts back within a minute | 3 | 5 | 15 | 4 | 12 |
| Keeps my existing number | 3 | 5 | 15 | 3 | 9 |
| A person can take over mid-conversation | 3 | 4 | 12 | 4 | 12 |
| Emergency words reach a person | 3 | 5 | 15 | 2 | 6 |
| Writes enquiries into my job software | 2 | 5 | 10 | 2 | 4 |
| Review request fires on job complete | 2 | 3 | 6 | 5 | 10 |
| Cost at my volume | 3 | 4 | 12 | 2 | 6 |
| All fees disclosed in writing | 2 | 3 | 6 | 3 | 6 |
| Opt-out and quiet hours handled | 2 | 4 | 8 | 4 | 8 |
| Easy exit: export, short notice | 2 | 3 | 6 | 2 | 4 |
| Total, out of 125 | 25 | 105 | 77 |
A wins on the criteria a van-based firm cares about and loses on reviews, which is the one thing B does best. The scorecard does not say B is bad; it says that if reviews are not your main leak, you are paying for them anyway. Weight the criteria for your own firm before you score, not after.
Phone marketing software for trades: questions to settle first
Is missed-call text-back AI or just a template?
Usually a template fired by an event: a call goes unanswered, so a fixed text goes out. AI enters when the system holds a conversation, books a visit, summarises the call or drafts a review reply. Rule-based features should be cheap; AI conversations are usually metered per call or per conversation, so ask which one you are buying.
Can I keep my existing business number?
Often yes, by forwarding calls to the tool, which Jobber's Receptionist page describes. Porting the number into the vendor's system is different, and you should ask what happens to the number and the message history if you cancel. Write the answer into your notes before signing, not after.
Do I need a platform like Podium for a small trades firm?
Only if you want its inbox, web chat, payments and reviews in one place and will use them. For missed calls alone, cheaper options exist. Podium's pricing page lists Core at $399 a month before phone seats and tells HVAC firms to contact sales, so get a written quote.
How many follow-up texts are too many?
Three on a quote, then stop, and stop sooner if the customer replies, books or says no. Anything that reads like a drip campaign to someone who asked for a price once will cost you goodwill and, with some providers, text-sending privileges. Keep every text informational and include a way to opt out.
Further reads
- Housecall Pro CSR AI vs Jobber's AI Receptionist: Which Suits a Plumber? — Two field-service AI receptionists head to head.
- How Much Do Missed Calls Cost a Heating and Cooling Business? — Put a dollar figure on unanswered calls.
- Virtual Receptionist for a Barbershop: Human, AI or Cloud Phone? — Three ways a two-chair barbershop can stop missing calls, priced per month, with a sum you can redo using your own call log.
- Workiz Genius AI: Which Add-Ons Are Worth It for HVAC or Plumbing — Break-even sums, test calls and rep questions for each Workiz Genius add-on, written for HVAC and plumbing firms deciding what to pay for.
- AI Tools and AI Development: The Complete 2026 Guide — the AI hub, including every tutorial in the AI-for-business series.
Sources: Jobber pricing, Receptionist, Marketing Suite and AI pages and help centre; Quo pricing page and help centre (auto-replies, carrier registration, Sona pricing); Podium pricing page; Housecall Pro pricing and AI Team pages; Workiz pricing; Smith.ai AI Receptionist pricing; NiceJob pricing page; CallRail pricing; Google review policy; Twilio character-encoding glossary. Checked October 2026.