Trades agent system

Chase the unsold estimate on day 0, 2, 7, and 14

When Housecall Pro marks an estimate sent, a four-touch sequence starts. It stops itself when the estimate is approved or declined, and every reply is classified back into the customer record.

Difficulty: Difficulty 3 of 5 in the research brief.
Setup time: Estimate, not from the brief: a weekend after Housecall Pro MAX webhooks are turned on.

The pain

Shops write the estimate and then do not follow up. Owners say there is no time to chase a maybe. The firms that do follow up attribute a real slice of revenue to it.

In a ServiceTitan survey of more than 1,000 contractors, 39% of thriving firms gain an extra 1–15% of revenue from estimate follow-up.
ACHR News, ServiceTitan survey
Source type · Industry survey, published with a software vendor
47% of firms doing $10 million or more say follow-up drives 11–15% of income.
Contracting Business, same ServiceTitan survey
Source type · Industry survey, published with a software vendor
A shop owner: "i do one follow-up… then i mentally file it under 'not happening'… zero time to chase maybes."
Reddit, r/smallbusinessowner
Source type · Forum post, anecdotal
A commenter in that thread, citing Level Index, said quotes that get a decision convert at 73.9%, versus 38.1% across all quotes issued. That is not a primary source.
Reddit commenter citing Level Index
Source type · Secondhand forum citation

Workflow

Housecall Pro estimate.sent
Day 0: recap from the tech notes, with good / better / best
Day 2: SMS asking if they have questions about the options
Day 7: financing if the ticket is over your threshold, otherwise a review or proof
Day 14: hold the slot, or close the file
If they reply
- Price objection
  Alert the comfort advisor with a suggested response. Do not discount on your own.
- Went with someone else
  Mark the estimate lost and store the reason.
- No response
  Move them to a 90-day nurture list.
Every reply is classified and written to Housecall Pro notes

Trigger

Housecall Pro webhook estimate.sent. The sequence stops when estimate.option.approval_status_changed is approved or declined.

Data sources

The Housecall Pro estimate, options, and prices
The tech's notes on the options
Your threshold for offering financing
A review or other proof you are allowed to attach on day 7

Build it

1
Subscribe to the two Housecall Pro webhooks
estimate.sent starts the sequence. estimate.option.approval_status_changed set to approved or declined cancels every remaining touch. Webhooks are on the MAX plan.
2
Write the day-0 recap from the tech's notes
The model compares the options that were actually presented. Good / better / best only if those options are on the estimate. Do not invent a third price.
3
Send the later touches on a clock, not when someone remembers
Day 2 is a short SMS asking if they have questions about the options. Day 7 offers financing only if the total is over the number you set; otherwise it attaches a review or other proof. Day 14 asks whether to hold the slot or close the file.
Branch. A price objection alerts the comfort advisor and includes a suggested reply. "Went with someone else" marks the estimate lost and stores the reason. Silence after day 14 goes to a 90-day nurture list, not another weekly ping.
4
Log every reply on the customer
The model classifies the reply and writes the class plus a one-line summary into Housecall Pro notes so the next person does not start from zero.

Tools and rough monthly cost

The new spend is the orchestrator, the texts, and the model. The plan requirement that actually gates this build is Housecall Pro MAX.

Tool	Job	Rough monthly
Housecall Pro MAX	estimate.sent and approval webhooks, plus notes	Your Housecall Pro plan. Webhooks require MAX, per Housecall Pro's help center.
n8n	The day 0 / 2 / 7 / 14 clock and the cancel	Cloud starters are often in the low tens of dollars. Unverified public list-price estimate, October 2026. Not a figure from the research brief. Check the vendor.Unverified
Twilio	The SMS touches	Per-message usage on top of the number. Unverified public list-price estimate, October 2026. Not a figure from the research brief. Check the vendor.Unverified
LLM API	The recap and the reply classification	Usually a few dollars a month. Unverified public list-price estimate, October 2026. Not a figure from the research brief. Check the vendor.Unverified

Expected ROI

The brief does not promise a percent. It points at the ServiceTitan survey: thriving firms and larger firms attribute roughly 1–15% of revenue to estimate follow-up. Put your own open-estimate total next to that range. Do not treat 1–15% as your forecast.

Caveats

Housecall Pro webhooks require the MAX plan. customer, estimate, job, lead, and invoice events are documented in their help center: help.housecallpro.com/en/articles/5452973.
The 73.9% versus 38.1% quote-conversion pair is a Reddit commenter citing Level Index. Do not put it on a sales page as your close rate.
Owners in the same threads complain that chasing tire-kickers wastes time. The day-14 close-the-file branch is there so the sequence ends.

Example prompt

Change the names, fees, and slots before you run it. It does not add facts that were not in the brief.

You follow up on a Housecall Pro estimate that was sent and is not yet approved or declined.

Day 0: write a recap from the tech notes. Name only the options on the estimate. If there are three, label them good, better, and best using the prices you were given.
Day 2: one SMS asking if they have questions about the options. Under 220 characters.
Day 7: if the total is over the financing threshold you were given, mention financing. Otherwise attach the proof you were given. Do not invent a review.
Day 14: ask whether to hold the install slot or close the file.

If they object to price, do not discount. Write a note for the comfort advisor.
If they say they hired someone else, mark it lost and quote their reason.
Do not send a touch if the estimate is already approved or declined.