The first phone call is where you win or lose most jobs. It's also where you decide if the job is worth the drive. A good call takes five minutes and saves you hours of driving to jobs you don't want.
Answer, or call back fast
People calling about siding repair usually call two or three guys. The first one who calls back usually gets the job. If you can't answer, call back within the hour. A voicemail that says when you'll call back helps.
If you can't keep up with calls, an AI phone answering tool can take messages and answer basic questions. See AI phone help for a one-man shop for options.
The questions I ask
- What happened? Wind, grill, impact, storm, or "it just looks bad."
- Where is it? Which side of the house, how high, first story or second.
- How big? One panel, a few, a whole wall.
- What kind of siding? Most people don't know, but they'll know if it's vinyl, wood or something else.
- How old is the house? Tells you whether the siding might be discontinued.
- Do you have any leftover siding? Sometimes they do.
- Is this an insurance claim? Changes the paperwork and the timeline.
- Where's the house? So you know if it's in your area.
- When do you need it done? Urgent or whenever.
Ask for photos
Ask them to text you photos: a close-up of the damage, a wide shot of that side of the house, and if they can, a close-up of a good panel. With photos you can often:
- Tell them roughly what it'll cost.
- Know what to load on the truck.
- Spot a job that's out of your lane before you drive there.
Inside Siding Pro Academy, we share the exact text message members send to get the photos they need.
Talking about price on the first call
People want to know what it costs. Give them a range if you can:
- "Most repairs like this land somewhere between my minimum and a few hundred dollars, depending on what I find."
- Tell them your minimum: "Every repair starts at my minimum, which covers the trip and setup."
That way they're not surprised when you show up, and you weed out people who were hoping for a $50 fix. My average ticket is around $350, so I know what most jobs land at.
Red flags on the phone
- They want a price for a full re-side over the phone and don't want you to come look.
- They're mostly interested in how cheap you are.
- They want you to "write it up for insurance" a certain way.
- The job is out of your scope (stucco, fiber cement, roofing).
You can still be polite and refer them. See siding repairs to walk away from.
Book it
If it's a good job:
- Give a time window you can actually hit.
- Confirm the address and any gate codes or dogs.
- Text a confirmation the day before.
After the call
Keep a simple log: name, number, address, what it is, photos, and what you told them. It helps you follow up and it's your record if there's a dispute.
The phone call is your first impression. Be quick, be clear, and be honest about price. That's how a one-man shop beats bigger companies that take a week to call back.
Photo: from a real Siding Pro Academy repair job.
