What customer expectation caused you the most problems?
One expectation I wish I had defined earlier was arrival times. When I first started, it was easy to tell a customer: “I’ll be there around 10.” Or: “We should be there between 12 and 1.” At the beginning, that felt like good customer service. The schedule was smaller. The routes were lighter. I had more control over the day. As the business grew, specific arrival times became harder to keep. All it took was: one chatty customer talking for 10 minutes a locked gate a dog outside extra waste in a yard traffic road construction an accident a customer note that needed attention Suddenly the whole route was pushed back. And once you miss the arrival time you gave the customer, even if the work itself is done well, you’ve created frustration because the expectation was set wrong from the beginning. That forced us to change how we communicate scheduling. Now we set the expectation that we scoop from sunrise to sunset. Customers know their service will happen on their scheduled day, and they’ll receive an “on the way” message 30–60 minutes before arrival. That one change reduced a lot of unnecessary pressure. It also made the route easier to manage because we weren’t trying to force the day into exact arrival windows that didn’t hold up once real life happened. I think a lot of service businesses run into this. You create an expectation early because it feels manageable, then growth exposes how hard it is to keep that promise consistently. For us, the lesson was pretty simple: If the business cannot deliver it consistently at scale, be careful promising it casually in the beginning. What expectation did you set early on that later became hard to manage as the business grew?
42% of home services companies we scanned have flagged caller ID numbers
We have been checking the phone lines of home services companies across 15 metros — Phoenix, Dallas, Houston, Tampa, Atlanta, Miami, Orlando, Charlotte, Nashville, Denver and others. The result surprised us: 42 percent run their main business line on non-fixed VoIP. That is the same number category robocallers use, and it is the category carrier spam filters downgrade most aggressively on caller ID. What that means in practice: when your CSR calls back a lead you paid $80-300 for, there is a real chance the homeowner's phone shows "Suspected Spam" or just an unknown number. They do not pick up. You assume the lead went cold. Most owners have never checked this because there is no dashboard for it. The carriers do not notify you. If you want to know what your own line is registered as, comment or DM me and I will run the lookup. Takes two minutes, free, no strings. I will just tell you what category your number is in and what that means.Are you using AI in your business yet or still “just curious”?
Where are you at with AI right now? A) Not using it at all B) Using it for basic stuff (e.g., emails, replies) C) Using it for ops (e.g., estimating, training, reporting) D) “We run everything through AI” level—share below how you’re using it! In this episode of Masters of Home Service, PhilRisher and ryaantuttle share real-world ways home service pros are using AI to: Speed up estimating and hiring processes Create ready-to-use marketing content Prep for the shift from traditional SEO to AEO and GEO Want to put these tips into action? Download our free AI starter toolkit (includes scripts and pro tips). Never miss an episode of Masters of Home Service. Subscribe on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.
Can I test a few visual/ad ideas for home service businesses?
I’m new here and trying to learn more about how home service businesses get customers outside of referrals. A lot of the work I do is around visual content and lead generation: better job photos, before/after posts, ad creatives, short videos, simple landing pages, and lead lists. I’m not here to hard pitch anyone. I’d honestly rather test a few ideas and get feedback from people who are actually running service businesses. If anyone has a business where the work is solid but the online presentation or lead flow could be better, I’d be open to taking a look and making a few sample ideas. Could be a before/after post, a Meta ad concept, a better way to show job photos, or a small lead-gen angle. No pressure. I’m mostly trying to learn what would actually be useful instead of guessing from the outside.How do you handle aggressive dogs on a property?
This is one of those policies I think every home service business should have clearly defined. In our business, if we arrive to service a yard and an aggressive dog is outside, we leave the yard immediately. We do not try to “see if the dog is friendly.” We do not try to finish quickly. We do not assume the customer knows the dog is out. The process is simple: Exit the yard Secure the gate if possible Knock or ring the doorbell Call and text the customer Wait for a response if the schedule allows Leave if there is no answer Some dogs are just excited or curious. That’s different. But if a dog is showing aggressive behavior, the job stops. For certain properties with a history of aggressive dogs, we also require written confirmation from the customer before entering the yard. That protects the technician, the customer, and the business. I know some customers may feel like we are being overly cautious, but a dog bite can turn into a serious issue very quickly. It can affect: Employee safety Workers’ comp Insurance Customer relationships Route timing Future service decisions I’d rather explain a skipped visit than have a technician get hurt trying to complete a job that was not safe. This also has to be communicated clearly during onboarding. Customers need to know that service depends on safe access to the property. If the dog is aggressive or cannot be safely secured, we cannot complete the job. What is your policy when there is an aggressive dog, unsafe access, or a customer-controlled issue that prevents service?
What is your favorite time-saving app?
Hands down, my favorite productivity tool for Windows is Beeftext (sorry, Mac users!). As an executive administrative assistant and customer service representative, this app saves me countless hours of typing every week. What is Beeftext? Beeftext is a free, open-source text substitution tool for Windows that transforms short keywords into longer text snippets. Whether you’re tired of retyping email signatures, markdown templates, or your favorite kaomojis, Beeftext lets you create “combos” that automatically expand your shortcuts in any app that supports copy and paste. It’s lightweight, respects your privacy, and is completely ad-free—ideal for anyone who types a lot and wants to work smarter, not harder. You can learn more and download it here: https://beeftext.org/ The developer confirms it’s 100% safe and clean: https://github.com/xmichelo/Beeftext/wiki/Beeftext-is-safe Getting started is simple: https://github.com/xmichelo/Beeftext/wiki/Getting-started Pro tip: I use the equals sign (=) as my trigger key since I rarely need it otherwise. For example, typing =hi automatically expands to: Hi, it’s Rob from Wright Restorations Canada. Thank you for reaching out. How can I assist you today? Beeftext is very user-friendly, works in most apps and only takes a few minutes to master. Highly recommended for anyone looking to save time and reduce repetitive typing!
Best way to handle inbound calls to company line?
Curious yalls thoughts. Looking to not just grow, looking to scale and improve / continue to implement systems. Currently have myself, 1 outside sales rep, and field labor crew (fence install company) current process: customer calls into company # (my cell phone). I try to answer as if it were an office line to answer asap. From that, I confirm I can Text them, I then send a request form via jobber that has basic info / few questions to answer. If / when they fill it out, I add to the schedule for a confirmed day / time to quote on site. etc…… I feel this part is a lot of back and forth, and until I have an in house admin office worker that can answer these calls the first ring - I won’t be able to truly grow / stay efficient. (If I’m tied up, I don’t like calling them back 2 hours later, etc) but also - I love having them fill out the form bc the way I have questions on it, it turns it from a warm lead, to a warmer lead. Any way to streamline this, get more efficient, improve this current process? ANY thoughts or advice - real thankful.
