What it does
A lead that waits four hours is a lead that called someone else. For a business without a front desk, the intake problem is not politeness, it is physics: you cannot answer the phone from under a sink.
The Intake Agent answers on every channel you point at it. Web form, missed call, SMS, email. It introduces itself as your assistant, never as you. It asks the questions you would ask, in the order you would ask them, and it knows the answers that mean "not our kind of job." When the lead qualifies, it offers times from your calendar rules and books the visit. Then it writes a summary you can read in thirty seconds.
When it does not know, it says so and gets you the message. It never invents a price and never promises a date you did not approve.
A real sample of its output
NEW LEAD — qualified — booked
Received: Tue 6:42 PM via missed call → SMS follow-up
Name: Priya Raman Phone: (631) ***-**14
Address: Port Jefferson Station (within service area)
WHAT THEY NEED
Water damage in a finished basement after Sunday's storm. Carpet wet, drywall
soft on one wall (~8 ft). No standing water now. Homeowner, not a rental.
Insurance: yes, claim not yet filed. Asked if we work with adjusters — told
her yes, and that you'd explain the process on site.
YOUR SIX QUESTIONS
1. Standing water? No, dried Monday
2. Source stopped? Yes, window well; she cleared it
3. Square footage? ~600 sq ft basement, damage on one side
4. Finished or unfinished? Finished (carpet, drywall, drop ceiling)
5. Insurance? Yes, not filed yet
6. Timeline? "As soon as possible" — smells musty
BOOKED
Thu Sep 10, 8:30 AM — 45 min assessment (your Thursday AM slot)
Confirmation sent by SMS. She'll leave the side door open.
FLAGS
• Mentioned a "friend who does this" gave a verbal quote of $1,200. Expect a price
conversation.
• Photos attached (3). Discoloration line visible ~14 in. up the wall.
What it will not do
It will not quote a price. It will not book outside the rules you give it. It will not pretend to be you. And if a caller is in an emergency, it gives them your emergency line and stops.
What it needs from you
Your six questions, your calendar rules, and a place to put the summary. Most owners already have the questions in their head; the Map session is where we write them down.