Choose the missed-call path
that fits how you work.
Vendor prices and features change. Start with the operating model: who answers first, what happens on a miss, and what reaches the owner.
Compare the call path, not the slogan
Verify any vendor's current pricing, allowances, integrations, and call routing directly before buying.
Voicemail
The owner misses the call and listens later. It is simple and inexpensive, but the caller receives no live intake and the owner gets no structured handoff.
Text-back tool
A caller SMS opens after the miss. It can be useful as a fallback, but the result depends on the caller replying with enough detail.
AI-first answering
AI answers before the owner. This can fit teams that want every call handled by automation, but it changes the normal personal-pickup path.
Human answering service
A remote person answers under an agreed script. Evaluate coverage hours, intake depth, transfers, overflow, and cost at your actual call volume.
Ring the owner first. Use AI only on a miss.
Every plan uses a dedicated published JobLock number. The owner's phone rings first. If the owner misses, AI collects the caller's name, callback number, and service need, then sends those essentials to the owner by SMS.
Owner keeps first pickup
An answered call stays a normal owner-to-caller conversation.
Owner-Complete handoff
A Catch succeeds when the required lead details reach the owner by SMS. The owner decides the callback, quote, and booking.
Fallback is labeled honestly
If AI cannot run, JobLock can send a short caller text and alert the owner. That safety net is not counted as a completed Catch.
Automations stay gated
Review, reminder, and follow-up workflows remain off before Official Launch and require the applicable separate customer consent.
Use the same checklist for every option
Who answers first?
Owner, AI, remote receptionist, or voicemail—and can you prove the exact routing with a test call?
What counts as success?
A message, a caller reply, a structured owner alert, a transfer, or a booked appointment are different outcomes.
What happens when capacity or a provider fails?
Ask about minute caps, overage approval, fallback behavior, and whether a live caller can be dropped.
Which outbound texts are active?
Separate owner alerts from customer messaging, and require explicit consent and activation evidence for scheduled outreach.