Why tradies are using AI receptionists
The phone rings while you’re on the tools. It always has. What’s changed is that answering it no longer needs a person on wages. Here’s what the numbers say, and when it isn’t worth it.
The short answer
Tradies miss calls because their hands are full. Most of those callers are new customers, and many won’t wait.
An AI receptionist picks up every call, books the routine work and passes you the urgent ones, for less a month than two days of a receptionist on the award minimum.
What the numbers say
| The figure | Where it’s from | |
|---|---|---|
| Calls that went unanswered | 9.2% on average across nine industries. 17.6% in roofing and 17.9% in flooring | AIIMS Group, more than 207,000 calls to 858 client businesses |
| Callers who were new customers | 69.3% across all nine industries. 82.2% for locksmiths | AIIMS Group, the same calls |
| Calls missed by Australian tradies | An estimated 270,000 a day | Chime Labs’ estimate: 300,000 businesses, 5 calls a day, 18% missed |
AIIMS Group figures from Dynamic Business, 28 August 2026. AIIMS is a marketing agency and these are its own clients’ calls, not a survey of every business. Chime Labs figures from Forbes Australia, 7 April 2026, and they’re an estimate, not a measurement. Both sell phone answering, and so do we.
What tradies tried first
Voicemail is free, but it only works if they leave a message, and plenty of new customers don’t.
Ringing back at smoko works until smoko is three hours late. A partner or family member answering works until they’ve got their own job to do.
With a human answering service, a person writes down a message for about A$25 a month plus A$2.50 to A$3.90 a call (OfficeHQ and Dream Admin, before GST, checked October 2026). You still ring every caller back.
What changed
AI receptionists now answer in an Australian voice, ask the questions you’d ask, and book into job software like ServiceM8. ServiceM8 sells its own, and so do plenty of Australian companies.
The price came down too. Self-serve apps we checked ran from free to about A$250 a month on their entry plans. Services that set it up for you ran from about A$149 to A$1,299 a month.
When it isn’t worth it
If your phone barely rings, or every caller is a regular who’s happy to wait, voicemail is fine.
If you’ve already got someone answering all day and they’ve got time for it, keep them. An assistant can still cover nights and weekends.
Do the sums with your own numbers before you buy anything, ours included.
AI receptionist questions
Will my customers hate talking to a robot?
Some do. Pick one that says it’s an assistant, so nobody feels tricked, and that hands anything urgent to you.
Will it replace my receptionist?
It doesn’t have to. Plenty of businesses use one for nights, weekends and overflow, and keep a person for the office.
How do I know if it’s worth it for me?
Count a month of missed calls from numbers you don’t know, and put them in the missed-call calculator.
This phone is answered.
Ring us on the number below, or email. Either way, a human gets back to you.
0468 075 000Or email hello@offsitemate.com.au