AI Receptionist for Builders
A new client enquiry sounds exactly like a supplier call until you answer it. Johnni answers everything, sorts one from the other, and only puts through the calls that actually need you on the phone.
Plans start at $44/mo No contract.
Why builders lose good jobs to bad timing
Most calls to a builder are not new work. Suppliers, subbies and existing clients crowd out the one enquiry that is worth the year.
The valuable call sounds like every other call
A new client enquiry rings the same phone as the timber yard and the plumber.
Johnni answers everything and sorts new work from everyone else, so only the calls that need you reach you.
Unqualified enquiries eat site visits
Driving to a site to find there is no budget or no plans costs you half a day.
It asks about scope, budget, plans and timing before anything is booked, so your site visits are worth the drive.
You are on site all day
Calls come in while you are on the tools, on a roof or meeting a client.
It takes full details and books the next step while you keep building.
Homeowners enquire after hours
Renovations get researched at night and on weekends.
It answers 24/7 and books the consultation while the homeowner is still keen.
Ten calls before lunch. Two of them mattered.
The eight that did not
- Supplier confirming a delivery window
- Subbie asking which unit to start on
- Two cold calls about SEO
- A wrong number
- An old client chasing an invoice copy
- Somebody selling insurance
The two that did
- A renovation enquiry with plans already drawn
- An owner ready to start in eight weeks
The enquiry that is worth a quarter of a million dollars rings at ten to five, while you are packing up on a noisy site.
An AI receptionist that protects your time on site
Johnni screens every call the way you would, then books the ones worth your time.
- Answers every call 24/7 in your business name
- Separates new projects from suppliers, subbies and existing clients
- Qualifies scope, budget, plans and timing before booking
- Books site visits and consultations into your calendar
- Takes clear messages for everyone else and sends them to the right person
- Rings back new enquiries and follows up quotes on the Starter plan
It asks what tells you whether a job is real.
Builders lose more unpaid time to unqualified quotes than to anything else. The questions get asked before you commit to the drive.
What and where
New build, extension, renovation or a small job. The suburb, and whether they own the land or the house already.
Approvals and timing
Whether plans are drawn, whether council approval is in place, whether an architect or draftsperson is involved, and when they want to start. That one answer separates a project from a daydream.
Budget range
Asked the way a good receptionist asks it, as a range rather than an interrogation. You find out before the site visit, not two hours into it.
An enquiry that was worth the drive.
Hi, I am after a quote on extending the back of our house.
Happy to help. Whereabouts is the property?
Wavell Heights.
Good, that is well inside the area we build in. Do you have plans drawn up yet, or are you at the idea stage?
We have drawings from a draftsman and we lodged for approval last month.
That is a real head start. Do you have a rough budget range in mind so we bring the right person out?
We were thinking somewhere between three and four hundred thousand.
Understood. Dave does the first site meeting for that size of job. He has Tuesday at 9 or Wednesday at 2.
Tuesday, thanks.
The calls that should never interrupt you.
| The caller | What Johnni does | What you get |
|---|---|---|
| Subcontractor on site | Takes the question and the job it relates to | A message you read between tasks |
| Supplier or delivery | Confirms or reschedules against your notes | No interruption at all |
| Client enquiry | Qualifies it and books the site visit | A booked quote with the detail attached |
| Cold call | Ends it politely | Nothing reaches your phone |
| Urgent site issue | Escalates immediately on your rules | A real call, straight through |
Works with the software builders already run
Google Calendar is included on every plan. Simpro, ServiceM8, Tradify and CRMs like HubSpot and Pipedrive connect as a custom integration scoped to how you work.
If your software has an API, Johnni can usually work with it. Ask us about yours.
Two service lines. 179 jobs booked.
There is no builder case study on the site yet. The closest is a two-trade business that qualifies every call before it books. A New Zealand business runs plumbing and electrical as two separate receptionists, each with its own script and pricing. After hours, the call-out fee is quoted before the caller is put through.
Simple plans. No lock-in contract.
Start with phone answering, then add your website and follow-up calls when you need them.
Phone
24/7 answering, Google Calendar bookings, warm transfers and your full call history.
60 minutes included, then 50c a minute
Phone and website
Everything in Pay As You Go, plus a website assistant your visitors can type or talk to.
200 minutes included, then 45c a minute
Phone, website and follow-ups
Adds outbound calls: new lead callbacks, quote follow-ups and reminders.
600 minutes included, then 40c a minute
Every plan has a 7 day free trial and no lock-in contract. Pay annually and plans start at $44 a month. Growth ($899) covers bigger call volumes. Outbound calling is included from Starter, or add it to Pay As You Go or Solo for a one-off $750. SMS confirmations are a $50 a month add-on, and job software connections are quoted to your setup. See full pricing
Frequently asked questions
Can it tell a real client from a tyre kicker?
It asks the qualifying questions you would: what the project is, whether plans exist, whether council approval is in place, when they want to start and what range they have in mind. You get those answers before you commit to a site visit.
Will it stop my subbies getting through?
Only if you want it to. You set who is escalated and who is taken as a message. Most builders route urgent site issues straight through and let everything else land in writing.
Does it work when I am on a noisy site?
That is the point. Johnni takes the call so you do not have to shout over a drop saw, and you get the detail in writing with a recording and a transcript in the portal.
Can it book site visits around my run?
Yes. It reads your calendar before offering times, and the booking lands with the address, the project type and the qualifying answers on it.
What about calls after hours?
They get answered. Clients ring builders in the evening because that is when they are home looking at the kitchen they want changed. Those calls currently go to voicemail and to the next builder on the list.
How much does it cost?
Plans start at $49 a month plus GST, or $44 a month paid annually, up to $899 for the highest call volumes. Every plan includes a set number of calls and minutes, then a per minute rate, with a 7 day free trial and no lock-in contract.
Stop taking calls from the top of a ladder.
Seven days free. Let it screen a week of calls and see how few actually needed you.
Plans from $49 a month plus GST, or $44 paid annually. No lock-in contract.