# Five jobs to hand an agent first

Uncommon Creative, by David Hoos. Canonical: https://uncommoncreative.com/guides/five-jobs-to-hand-off-first

> Missed calls, quote follow-up, review requests, scheduling, and a Monday numbers note. Why these five, what the agent does for each, and what stays with you.

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The best first job for an agent has three things going for it. It happens every week. The rules fit on an index card. And if the agent gets it wrong, you can catch it before it costs you anything.

These five jobs pass that test in almost every service business.

## 1. Missed calls

**What happens today:** Someone calls while you're busy. Most people won't leave a voicemail. They call the next name on the list.

**What the agent does:** Texts them back within a minute, asks what they need, and offers open times from your calendar.

**What stays with you:** Confirming the booking, at least for the first few weeks.

This one comes first because it's the job that loses you new customers, not just time. In CallRail's 2025 survey, 82% of consumers said they'd call a competitor if a business didn't answer. More numbers like that, each traced to its source, are in our [lead response time and missed call statistics](/statistics/lead-response-time-statistics).

## 2. Quote follow-up

**What happens today:** You send the estimate. You mean to check in. Then the week happens.

**What the agent does:** Sends a short, friendly check-in a few days later and again a week after that. It stops the moment the customer replies, and it flags any reply with a question in it.

**What stays with you:** Answering the questions and adjusting the price.

## 3. Review requests

**What happens today:** Happy customers pay and leave. You meant to ask for a review.

**What the agent does:** Sends the ask the day the job closes, with a link that goes straight to your review page.

**What stays with you:** Replying to reviews, and anything about an unhappy customer. An agent can draft that reply. A person sends it.

## 4. Reminders and reschedules

**What happens today:** No-shows, or four texts back and forth to move one appointment.

**What the agent does:** Sends a reminder the day before. If someone needs to move, it offers times that fit your rules (no Saturdays, two hours between jobs, whatever yours are).

**What stays with you:** Writing the rules once, and handling anything outside them.

## 5. The Monday numbers note

**What happens today:** You find out it was a slow month when the bank balance tells you.

**What the agent does:** Sends you one short note every Monday. Jobs booked last week, quotes still open, money still owed, and anything that looks off.

**What stays with you:** Deciding what to do about it.

## Pick one

Don't set up all five at once. Pick the one that bugged you most last week. Run it for two weeks, check its work, and fix the rules. Then add the next one.

The guide after this one shows how to tell when a job is ready to hand off, and when it isn't.