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Scheduling & Appointments

Get the job
on the calendar.

Scheduling messages are simple. They’re also constant, and every one of them means stopping what you’re doing.

Trade Reply reads the thread, works out whether they want to book, confirm or move a time, and drafts a clean reply you can send without putting the tools down for long.

Download Trade ReplySee examples ↓

Trade Reply drafts the reply. You read it, and you send it.

9:41
MMarcus T.

Hi, the outlet in our kitchen stopped working.

When could you come take a look?

Message
TRADE REPLYReady

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The same five questions

Scheduling isn’t difficult.
It’s repetitive.

All day, from people who all want an answer now.

  • Booking Thursday while finishing Tuesday’s job.
  • Confirming tomorrow from the van.
  • Moving Friday from the top of a ladder.
  • Answering “What time?” for the fifth time today.

None of it is hard. All of it takes you off the job.

Straight from the thread

These messages sound familiar.

  • HVAC

    Customer: When can you come out?

  • Cleaning

    Customer: Are we still on for tomorrow?

  • Painting

    Customer: Can we move this to Friday?

  • Plumbing

    Customer: What time are you coming?

  • Handyman

    Customer: Do you work weekends?

  • Landscaping

    Customer: Is 8am too early for you guys?

How it works

Customer sent this. Here’s what happens next.

Trade Reply reads the conversation, surfaces the actions that fit it and drafts the reply. You stay in control of what gets sent.

  1. The customer messages.

    By text, email or Facebook, whatever they picked. You’re in the middle of a job.

  2. Take a screenshot.

    Or import the latest one. The keyboard reads the whole thread from it.

  3. It reads the conversation.

    A plain-language read of what they’re asking, at the top of the keyboard.

  4. The right actions come up.

    Ranked for this conversation. Here, Book Estimate and Ask Address.

  5. It drafts the reply.

    In your tone, using the services, prices and details you’ve set up.

  6. You check it and send it.

    Insert puts it in your message box. Edit anything. Nothing goes until you press send.

9:41
MMarcus T.

Hi, the outlet in our kitchen stopped working.

When could you come take a look?

Message
TRADE REPLYReady

Wants someone to look at a kitchen outlet that stopped working.

Book EstimateAsk Address

I can come take a look. What’s the address? I’ll send you a couple of times.

Insert
Try againKeyboard

Before and after

Same answer. Better message.

Your customer says

Customer: When can you come look at it?

What you were going to type

can do thurs am

Book Estimate

What Trade Reply drafts

I can come out Thursday morning. Does that work for you?

Seconds instead of minutes.

Scenarios

Book it, confirm it, move it.

The messages that fill your day between the jobs themselves. Trade Reply can recognize situations like these and surface actions such as the ones below. Which actions appear depends on the conversation.

Booking an estimate

Remodeling & General Contracting

Customer: Could you come out and give us a quote on the deck?

Why it’s hard

Easy to answer, easy to put off, and the lead cools while you’re busy.

Trade Reply can surface

  • Book Estimate
  • Ask Address

The draftFriendly tone

Happy to. What’s the address, and are mornings or afternoons better for you? I’ll send over a couple of times.

Same reply, another tone

Straightforward

Sure. What’s the address, and do mornings or afternoons work better? I’ll send you a couple of options.

Scheduling the job

Painting

You: Quote’s attached: $4,800 for the full repaint.

Customer: Looks good, let’s do it. When can you start?

Why it’s hard

They said yes. The worst thing you can do now is take a day to answer.

Trade Reply can surface

  • Schedule Job
  • Request Deposit

The draftFriendly tone

Great, glad to hear it! Let me check the schedule and I’ll get back to you with a start date.

Same reply, another tone

Premium

Wonderful, thank you. I’ll review the schedule and come back to you shortly with a start date that suits you.

Confirming tomorrow

Cleaning

You: You’re booked for Thursday, 9 to 11.

Customer: Are we still on for tomorrow?

Why it’s hard

It’s a two-second answer. It’s also the fifth one today.

Trade Reply can surface

  • Confirm Appointment

The draftFriendly tone

Yes, you’re all set for tomorrow between 9 and 11. See you then!

Same reply, another tone

No-Nonsense

Yes. Tomorrow, 9 to 11.

Customer needs to move it

HVAC

Customer: Something came up. Any chance we can do Friday instead?

Why it’s hard

You want to be flexible without promising a slot you haven’t checked.

Trade Reply can surface

  • Reschedule

The draftFriendly tone

No problem at all. Let me check Friday and I’ll confirm a time with you shortly.

Same reply, another tone

Professional

Of course. I’ll check our availability for Friday and confirm a new time with you shortly.

You need to move it

Plumbing

Thursday’s job is booked, but the part you need won’t arrive in time.

You type, then tap More › Describe it yourself

part delayed need to move thurs. fri or mon?

Why it’s hard

It’s your change, so the message has to be apologetic and clear, and it has to offer a way forward.

Trade Reply can surface

  • Reschedule

The draftFriendly tone

Sorry to do this, but I need to move Thursday’s appointment. The part we’re waiting on is delayed. Would Friday or Monday work for you instead?

Written only from what you typed, so it adds no new times or reasons.

Same reply, another tone

Straightforward

I need to move Thursday. The part is delayed. Would Friday or Monday work instead?

“What time are you coming?”

Electrical

You: See you tomorrow! Arrival window is 8 to 10.

Customer: What time are you coming?

Why it’s hard

They’ve forgotten the window you gave them. You don’t want to sound like you’re pointing that out.

Trade Reply can surface

  • Confirm Appointment

The draftFriendly tone

We’ll be there between 8 and 10. See you soon!

The window comes from the thread. Trade Reply never makes up a time.

Same reply, another tone

No-Nonsense

Between 8 and 10.

Drafts written for this page. Trade Reply writes from the conversation in front of it and the services, prices and details you’ve set up, so yours will read like your business. Nothing is sent until you send it.

Your tone

Same situation. Your style.

Pick your business’s tone once, in setup, and every draft comes out that way. On any single reply you can still make it shorter, more formal or more casual.

Your customer says

Do you have anything open next week?

Nobody’s calendar is in a text thread, so every tone offers to check and confirm. None of them invents a slot.

Let me check next week’s schedule and I’ll send you a couple of options that work!

Warm and approachable. Contractions are fine. Never saccharine.

Why it matters

Why scheduling replies matter.

  • A quick yes books the job.

    The customer asking when you can come is ready to go. A fast, clear answer keeps them from asking the next contractor.

  • Confirmations prevent wasted trips.

    A clear reply to “Are we still on?”, with the day and the window, saves you a drive to an empty house.

  • Moving a job is part of the job.

    When you have to reschedule, an apology, the reason and two options keep the customer on your side.

FAQ

Scheduling questions, answered.

What should an appointment confirmation text say?

The day, the arrival window, and anything they need to do before you arrive — clear a space, keep pets in, leave the gate open. Keep it short enough to read at a glance.

How do I reschedule a customer without losing the job?

Apologize once, give the reason in a few words, and offer specific new options instead of asking them to suggest one. Trade Reply drafts that from the conversation, or from a quick note you type under Describe it yourself.

Does Trade Reply book appointments for me?

No. It drafts the message; you choose the time and send it. If you’ve added a booking link in setup, it can include that link in the reply.

Where the conversation goes next.

All scenarios

Keep the calendar moving from the job site.

Book, confirm and reschedule in the thread you’re already in. Trade Reply drafts it; you send it.

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All scenarios

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