How to answer calls on the job as a heat pump or solar installer
Let an AI receptionist pick up when you can’t. Zatio answers your calls, WhatsApp and website chat while you are on a roof or in a plant room, asks the questions you choose (property, current system, postcode) and books the survey into your diary. You keep your number.
Watch Sofia handle a call from start to finish
What you’ll see in the video
- Up on a roof? The phone rings
Sofia, Zatio’s AI assistant, introduces herself and the three channels she answers: phone, WhatsApp and your website chat.
- Answered. Qualified
A homeowner asks for a heat pump quote. Sofia says she is an AI assistant, then asks for the postcode and how soon they want it fitted.
- Photos on WhatsApp
Photos of the boiler, the fuse board or the roof arrive. Sofia replies straight away, asks for what is missing and checks the job is in your area.
- Survey booked
She offers times from your diary, books the survey and answers a Boiler Upgrade Scheme question with the information you gave her.
- Keep your number
Calls still come in on your usual number, and you can try it with your own website.
Why the phone always rings when you are on a job
Every installer knows the moment. You are on a roof fitting panels, in a plant room commissioning a heat pump or driving between surveys, and the phone keeps going. By the time you ring back, the homeowner has often spoken to another firm or stopped picking up.
A heat pump or solar enquiry nearly always needs the same start: a few basic details, an answer to a question and a survey in the diary. An AI receptionist can do that while you finish the job in front of you.
Calls while you are working
Zatio answers every call on your existing number, day and night. During working hours calls can ring your team first; Zatio answers when nobody picks up and out of hours.
Quote requests on WhatsApp
Photos of the boiler, the fuse board or the roof arrive while you are busy. Zatio replies straight away, asks for what is missing and hands you the whole conversation.
Boiler Upgrade Scheme questions
Many customers ask about the grant first. Zatio answers with the information you give it, never with figures it has not been given, and passes the case to you when it needs a person.
What a good first conversation sounds like
In the video, Sofia opens by saying she is an AI assistant, then asks one question at a time. That is what works on the phone: a homeowner will happily give a postcode and a rough timescale, but not fill in a twelve-field form.
You decide which details to collect for each type of job. For a heat pump that might be property type, current heating and postcode. For solar, the roof and the fuse board. You see them before you call back, so your first conversation is about the installation.
If a postcode is outside the area you cover, Zatio says so politely before booking anything. Your diary fills only with surveys you want to do.
How to set it up, step by step
Give it your website
Zatio reads your site and drafts your assistant: services, area and common questions. You review everything before it goes live. It takes about 10 minutes.
Tell it how you work
Your area, your hours, who handles what and the details to collect for heat pumps, solar or EV chargers. Add, in your own words, what you want it to say about the Boiler Upgrade Scheme and your certification.
Connect your diary
Zatio offers times from Google Calendar, Outlook, Calendly, Cal.com or Microsoft Bookings and books the survey with the customer’s details attached.
Forward your calls
Keep your number: forward all calls, out-of-hours calls or only the ones you miss. During your hours your phone rings first, for 10 to 40 seconds, and Zatio answers if nobody does.
Add WhatsApp and your website chat
The same assistant answers both. A WhatsApp Business number takes around 5 business days, and the Zatio team does the paperwork with you.
Checklist before you switch it on
- The postcodes or towns you cover, and the ones you don’t
- The details you need per job: property type, current heating, roof, fuse board
- What to say about the Boiler Upgrade Scheme, in your own words
- Whether it gives price ranges or always offers a survey
- Who gets what: new quotes, existing customers, servicing and aftercare
- The survey slots in the diary Zatio books into
- When it answers: only when you can’t pick up, out of hours or always
Keep reading
AI receptionist for installers
Everything Zatio does for heat pump, solar and EV charger installers, with a demo that rings you.
Plans and prices
From £69 a month excluding VAT, with 400 voice minutes plus WhatsApp and website chat included.
Builders: how to get photos and details on WhatsApp before you quote
How to collect photos and job details on WhatsApp before you quote.
Questions
Does it cover heat pumps, solar and EV chargers together?
Yes. It answers from your website and the answers you add, so it covers what you actually install. You can collect different details for each of the 3 types of job.
Will it give prices over the phone?
Only what you tell it to. You can give it price ranges or ask it to always offer a survey instead. It never makes up a figure: if it doesn’t know, it says so and passes the case to you.
Do I have to change my number?
No. You forward calls to your Zatio line: all of them, out of hours, or only when you don’t pick up. During your hours your phone rings first, for 10 to 40 seconds, and Zatio answers if nobody does.
Will customers know it’s an AI?
Yes. Sofia introduces herself as an AI assistant at the start of every conversation. Calls are transcribed, not recorded, and data is stored in the EU.
How much does it cost?
Zatio is £69, £129 or £259 a month excluding VAT, with 400, 1,000 or 2,000 voice minutes plus WhatsApp and website chat included. Month to month, with no minimum term.
Can I try it first?
Yes. Free 14-day trial with no card, including 30 voice minutes and 100 chat conversations. Your phone number and WhatsApp go live when you add your card.
Answer the next enquiry without coming off the roof
- Keep your number
- No annual commitment
- 60-day guarantee
Rather talk to a person? Book a 20-minute demo.