Categories / Lead Follow-up & Sales
Podium Veterans Air & Electric: saves 5–10 leads/week; Google reviews +24%
A family-owned HVAC and electrical company saves 5–10 leads every week by texting missed callers instantly, and Google reviews rose 24%.
- Task
- stop missed calls from falling through cracks and recover leads with immediate follow-up
- Result
- saves 5–10 customers/leads every week; Google reviews +24%; more reliable capture and follow-up after switching to Podium Phones
- Tools
- Podium Phones (missed-call capture + follow-up)
- Setup
- switch business line to Podium Phones → capture missed calls → instant response/follow-up workflow → pair with review asks so trust and ratings rise with capture rate
Step-by-step setup guide + copy-paste prompt
Honest note: the missed-call text is a rule-based auto-reply, not generative AI. It works because the reply is instant. Add Podium's AI Employee later if you want AI to carry on the conversation.
Prerequisites
- Podium Phones on your business number, and admin access to Podium Settings.
- Your Google review link, copied from your Google Business Profile.
Step-by-step setup
Step 1. Turn on the missed-call text. In Podium go to More (left sidebar) → Settings → Phones → Call Experience → click your Podium number → scroll to Voicemail Options → click the Edit (pencil) icon.
Step 2. Pick the option. Choose Voicemail + Text Prompt (Podium recommends it): callers can leave a voicemail and get an automatic text once they hang up. Text Prompt Only sends the text without a voicemail.
Step 3. Write the text prompt. Enter the message (see the prompt below) and click Save.
Step 4. Set after-hours behaviour. In the same phone settings, turn on After Hours Routing. Choose where after-hours calls go: call group, phone menu, specific phones, a number or voicemail. Then set a separate After Hours Text Prompt Message such as "We're closed. Text us what you need and we'll book you first thing."
Step 5. Work replies from one inbox. Replies, calls, voicemails and recordings land in the Podium inbox on the customer's conversation, so anyone in the office can pick it up and see what was already said.
Step 6. Ask for the review once the job is done. After a saved lead becomes a finished job, send the customer your Google review link from the same conversation. Reply to every new review on Google: Read reviews → Reply.
Copy-paste prompt
Write 3 versions (friendly, brief, urgent-service) of an automatic text sent to someone whose call to {{company}}, a {{trade}} company, was just missed.
Under 160 characters each. Ask what they need and their address or ZIP code. Mention that we can usually book the next day. No emojis, no links.Sources
- Podium: Veterans Air & Electric saves 5–10 leads weekly. Credit: Veterans Air & Electric's office manager and dispatcher.
- Podium Help: Configuring Your Voicemail
- Podium Help: Configuring Phone Settings (after-hours routing)
- Google: Manage reviews on your Business Profile
Industries: AI automation for Home Services & Contractors
Results as reported by the source; not independently verified. Community-sourced from public sites and attributed to the source platform. Original author? Ask us to correct or remove it. Read the disclaimer.