For plumbers, sparkies, builders and every trade
An AI receptionist for tradies that answers while you're on the tools
Hello is an AI receptionist and answering service for tradies. It answers your phone, website chat and email while you're under a house, up a roof or driving between jobs. It sorts urgent jobs from quotes, books site visits into your calendar and texts you before it puts an urgent call through. Every call ends with a summary in your inbox.
35,199
licensed electrical workers in New Zealand at 30 June 2025
Source: Electrical Workers Registration Board, Annual Report 2025
30,496
Licensed Building Practitioner licences held at 30 June 2025
24,612
house construction businesses in New Zealand, February 2025
41,268
new homes consented in the year to August 2026, up 21%
Facts checked 29 October 2026.
The calls every trade gets, and how Hello handles them
Plumbers: leaks, blocked drains and no hot water
Hello asks where the water is coming from and whether it can be turned off. For a burst pipe or a flood, it gives your steps, like turning off the water at the toby, then texts you and puts the call through. A dripping tap gets booked in.
Electricians: faults and call-outs
Hello asks if anything is hot, sparking or smelling of burning. If it is, it reads your safety steps first and alerts you. Quotes for new power points, lighting or a switchboard upgrade go in the calendar.
Builders: new work and renovations
Hello takes the address, what the client wants built, their budget and timeframe. It books a site visit or a call, so the enquiry is waiting in writing when you get off the scaffold.
Roofers: leaks and storm damage
After heavy rain, every roofer's phone rings at once. Hello answers several calls together, asks where the water is coming in and builds you a list of jobs in order of urgency.
HVAC and heat pumps: installs and servicing
Hello books heat pump quotes and annual services, asks for the make and model if the caller knows it, and explains how you price installs in the words you approve.
Landscapers: quotes and site visits
Hello takes the address, the size of the job and what the client has in mind, such as a new deck, retaining or planting. It books a time for you to look and emails you the notes.
What Hello does for tradies
- Answers every call, chat and email, including after hours, and says it's an AI assistant
- Sorts urgent jobs from quotes and bookings, using the questions you set
- Gives your approved safety steps first on anything that sounds dangerous
- Books quotes and site visits into your Google or Outlook calendar
- Texts you the caller's name, number and job before putting an urgent call through
- Answers several calls at once, so a storm doesn't mean an engaged tone
- Emails you a summary of every call, ready to copy into your job system
What Hello won't do
- Diagnose a fault or tell a customer something is safe
- Give DIY advice you haven't approved
- Promise a price for a job you haven't seen
- Tell a caller whether they need a consent
An answering service for tradies, after hours too
Plenty of trade calls come in after 5pm, when the customer gets home and sees the leak or the tripped switch. Hello answers at any hour. It books routine work for the next day and puts real emergencies through to whoever is on call, after a text with the address.
Pages for your trade
Electricians and builders have their own pages with the calls, rules and examples that fit the work.
How it plays out
Example: a plumber under a house
You're under a floor in Mt Albert with no signal. Hello books two hot water cylinder quotes, takes a message from a property manager and puts a burst pipe through to your apprentice after texting him the address. When you climb out, the summaries are in your inbox.
Example: a roofer after a storm
The morning after a southerly, twelve people ring before 9am. Hello answers every call, asks where the water is coming in, and books the worst ones first. You get one list, not twelve voicemails.
Example: a landscaper on a Saturday
A homeowner rings about a retaining wall while you're on a job. Hello takes the address, the length and height of the wall and photos by email, then books a site visit for Tuesday morning.
Safety and building rules Hello keeps in mind
Electrical emergencies come first
WorkSafe's advice for an electric shock is not to touch the person while they're in contact with the source, switch off at the mains if possible and call 111. Hello gives this advice first, in your words, and then alerts you.
Restricted building work needs an LBP
Work on a home's structure or weathertightness that needs a consent is restricted building work, and must be done or supervised by a Licensed Building Practitioner. Hello can give callers your licence details when they ask.
Quotes and estimates mean different things
Consumer Protection says a quote is a set price, while an estimate is a best guess. Hello uses the word you use and never commits you to a price.
Bigger residential jobs need a written contract
Residential building work worth $30,000 or more needs a written contract. Hello takes the enquiry and books the conversation. The paperwork stays with you.
What one missed job is worth
Any residential job that needs a written contract is worth at least $30,000. That's the Building Act threshold. One job like that pays for years of Hello Solo at NZ$149 + GST a month.
Source: MBIE, Before building work starts
| Calls a day | Plan | Price | About per day |
|---|---|---|---|
| Up to about 5 | Hello Solo | NZ$149 + GST a month | NZ$4.90 |
| 5 to 30 | Hello Team | NZ$299 + GST a month | NZ$9.83 |
| 30+ | Hello Scale | Quoted | n/a |
Want Hello to make calls for you too? See Hello Outbound for follow-ups, reminders and recalls.
Getting set up
- 01List the work you do and don't do, and your service area, so Hello can turn away jobs that aren't a fit politely.
- 02Write down what counts as urgent for your trade, like a burst pipe or a burning smell. Hello puts those through.
- 03Add your safety steps in your own words. Hello reads them first on any dangerous call.
- 04Add your apprentice or on-call person to the phone tree for after-hours jobs.
Questions from tradies
What is an AI receptionist for tradies?
It's an assistant that answers your business phone, chat and email for you. Hello takes the job details, books quotes into your calendar and puts urgent calls through, so you can keep working.
Can I keep my mobile number on the van?
Yes. Forward your missed calls to Hello and keep your number. Mobiles can't be moved to Hello, so forwarding is the way to go.
How does Hello know a job is urgent?
You tell it. Add the words and situations that matter for your trade, like flooding, sparks or no power. Hello asks about them and puts those calls through after a text.
Will it give prices?
Only the ones you approve, such as your call-out fee. Otherwise it explains that you quote after seeing the job.
Does Hello work with Fergus, Tradify or Simpro?
Each enquiry is emailed to you with the address and job details, ready to copy into your job system. Bookings go into your Google or Outlook calendar. Linking Hello to your software directly is a Scale plan build.
Will customers know it's AI?
Yes. Hello introduces itself as an AI assistant. Most callers with a leak or a fault care that someone picked up and a tradie is on the way.
Can it answer in other languages?
Yes, on Hello Team. Homeowners whose first language isn't English can describe the job in their own language. Hello can answer in up to eight languages, and you still get the summary in English.
Written by Phil Dossett, co-founder of Leadica, the Auckland company that makes Hello. Facts checked 29 October 2026.
Sources
- Electrical Workers Registration Board, Annual Report 2025
- Building Practitioners Board, Annual Report 2024/25
- Stats NZ business demography 2025, via Figure.NZ
- Stats NZ, Building consents issued: August 2026
- WorkSafe, What to do in an electrical emergency
- MBIE, Restricted building work
- Consumer Protection, Quotes and estimates
- MBIE, Before building work starts
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