For painting contractors
Wet roller, ringing phone, one of them loses.
You can’t set a loaded brush down mid-cut, and Opulentus isn’t a live answering service. The caller gets a text from your business in seconds, says interior or exterior and how much there is, and you have a real estimate lead at cleanup.
The calls a painter misses.
Mid-cut
A cut line doesn’t wait.
Stop halfway along a ceiling edge and the lap mark shows. The caller gets your questions while you finish the wall.
Spraying
Mask on, sprayer running.
Between the respirator and the gun you don’t hear the ring, and you certainly don’t answer it.
Off the floor
On stilts or a plank.
Getting down to a phone is a project on its own. The text goes out without you moving an inch.
What a painting caller sees.
This example uses your own first message, the ZIP code question, and the third question reworded as interior or exterior.
Example text. Example Painting Co. is a made-up business.
The questions you’d ask on the phone.
There are six, in a fixed order. Three are on when you start and three are off. You write the wording for all of them.
On to start
- Service. Which rooms or which surfaces, and how many of them.
- ZIP code. Whether the estimate is worth the drive across town.
- Urgency. Reword it as interior or exterior. In autumn that one answer decides the whole schedule.
Off until you want them
- Description. How many stories, whether the space will be occupied, and the date they want it finished by.
- Photos. The current finish and its condition, which is what actually sets your prep hours.
- Callback. Best number and time, for whole-house estimates.
Your rules for every missed call.
When it texts
- Missed during hours. Covers the working day, which for a painter is most of the daylight.
- Busy or declined. You were on with a supplier, or you sent the call away to finish the cut.
- After hours. Earns its keep in late summer and autumn, when homeowners are chasing exterior work before the weather closes. More on after hours.
What it skips
- Hidden numbers. Blocked, withheld, and anonymous caller IDs don’t get a text.
- Repeat callers. A cooldown, 4 hours by default, stops text after text.
- Opt-outs. The first text says “Reply STOP to opt out.” Anyone who replies STOP stops getting texts.
How it works.
Step one
Set it up yourself.
Start your free trial, pick Painting, and write your message and your questions. Your words, your hours, your rules.
Step two
Forward your missed calls.
Keep the number on your van. On a cell phone, dial your carrier’s codes. On a VoIP line, your phone provider turns forwarding on. Then tap Verify. See the forwarding codes.
Step three
Finish the wall.
Missed callers get a text in seconds. Their answers land in your inbox, and you get a text alert when a lead comes in.
2 weeks free on every plan
Two weeks free. Then the plan that fits.
Your card isn’t charged for the first 14 days, and you can cancel during the trial. Billing starts after, on the plan you choose. The 12-month plans are yearly agreements: no cancelling mid-term and no refunds.
Monthly
$169USD/mo after your free trial
Month-to-month. No long-term commitment.
Card required. Cancel during the 14-day trial and you won’t be charged. Billing starts on day 15 at $169/mo.
12-month, billed monthly
$139USD/mo after your free trial
12-month agreement, billed monthly.
Card required. Cancel during the 14-day trial and you won’t be charged. Billing starts on day 15 at $139/mo.
12-month, billed annually
$129USD/mo after your free trial
12-month agreement, billed annually at $1,548.
Card required. Cancel during the 14-day trial and you won’t be charged. Billing starts on day 15 at $1,548/yr.
Questions painters ask.
Is this an answering service for painters?
No. Nobody picks up your phone. Callers you miss get a text from your business, answer the questions you set, and land in your inbox as a lead.
Can it tell interior jobs from exterior ones?
Yes. Reword the third question as a numbered choice, 1 for interior and 2 for exterior, and you know whether the job fits the season and the crew you have free.
Can it collect the room count for an estimate?
It collects whatever you ask for: rooms, surfaces, stories, timeline. You still walk the job and price it yourself.
Can a customer send photos of the walls?
Yes, if you turn the photo question on. It's off to start. For a repaint, a photo of the current finish is worth more than a paragraph.
I work with a small crew and no office. Does that work?
Yes. There's no office phone system to buy. You forward the missed calls from the line customers already call.
Do I have to change my number?
No. The number on your van and your estimates stays the same. Each business gets its own dedicated texting number, and the text goes out in your business's name.
What does it cost?
After a 14-day free trial: $169/mo month-to-month, $139/mo on a 12-month plan billed monthly, or $1,548 a year on a 12-month plan billed annually. A card is required to start the trial, with no charge if you cancel during the 14 days.
Can I change my message when I switch to interior work for the winter?
Yes. You write the message and choose which questions to ask, and you can edit them in setup whenever your work changes.