Charleston AI Playbook

Directory / Prompts / Home services & trades

After-hours call triage

Updated

Problem it solves

After hours, someone still has to know which calls are emergencies. A script makes that rule visible.

Best tool

  • ChatGPT (free chat)
  • Claude (free chat)
  • Gemini (free chat)
  • Copilot (free chat)

The free chat is enough for one draft. ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, and the free Microsoft Copilot chat can each do this. A paid plan only helps if you hit a usage limit. Copilot inside Word, Excel, or Outlook is a separate paid Microsoft 365 feature. You do not need it to try this once.

Copy-paste prompt

Write an after-hours call triage script: which calls are emergencies to route on-call, and which to log for the morning, for my [business type].

Replace every [bracket]. If you cannot fill one, delete that line.

Template

Business type: [business type]
On-call phone: [number or "a person, not this script"]
Route now:
- [emergency]
Log for morning:
- [non-emergency]
Say this before you hang up: [one sentence]
Never diagnose, quote a price, or promise an arrival time unless that sentence is written here.

Download saves a .txt file. after-hours-triage.txt

Example output

A usable draft is two lists for your [business type]: what to route now, and what to log for morning. It should not promise a response time you did not write.

Tips

  • Name real emergencies for your trade. A leak and a billing question are not the same list.
  • Read the script to the person who is actually on call before you rely on it.

Time saved

Estimate: the draft is quick if you already know the emergencies. Agreeing the list with the on-call person is the longer part.

How to use it

  1. Copy the prompt. Copy the prompt on this page into a free chat.
  2. Fill every bracket. Replace each [bracket] with a fact from your own notes. If you cannot fill one, delete that line instead of guessing.
  3. Edit before you use it. Read the draft against your notes. Delete any price, date, name, or promise you did not supply. You decide what gets sent.

Where this came from