Why Every Missed Message Is Money Down the Drain
If you’re running a business in Brisbane—whether you’re a plumber in Coorparoo or a lawyer in the CBD—you know that the phone doesn’t always ring at 10:00 AM on a Tuesday. Customers are searching for you at 9:00 PM on a Sunday while they’re sitting on the couch. They’re looking for you at 6:00 AM before they head to work.
If they land on your website and have a quick question, but there’s nobody there to answer it, what do they do? They leave. They go back to Google and click on your competitor’s site instead.
I’ve seen this happen to dozens of local businesses. You spend money on ads or work hard to get your name out there, but you lose the customer at the final hurdle because you weren't "open" when they were ready to buy. Most of what you read about chatbots makes them sound like fancy robots from a sci-fi movie. They aren’t.
In plain English: a chatbot is a digital receptionist that never sleeps, never takes a lunch break, and never forgets to ask for a customer’s phone number. It’s about making sure you stop losing leads by giving people an instant way to talk to you.
The Real Cost of "I'll Get Back to You"
We live in an era of instant gratification. If a homeowner has a leaking tap, they aren't going to wait 24 hours for you to check your email. They want to know now if you can help and how much it might cost.
Data from hundreds of small business accounts we’ve managed shows a clear trend: the first business to respond usually wins the job. If you wait more than five minutes to reply to an enquiry, your chances of winning that customer drop by about 80%.
Most small business owners I know are flat out. You’re on a job site, you’re in a meeting, or you’re finally trying to have dinner with your family. You can’t be on your phone 24/7. This is where the strategy of a chatbot comes in. It’s not just a "cool feature"; it’s a tool to protect your time while ensuring you don’t lose money to the guy down the road who answers faster.
Three Ways a Chatbot Actually Makes You Money
I’m not interested in "engagement" or "brand awareness." I care about your bank account. Here is how this technology actually translates into dollars:
1. Capturing Leads While You Sleep
About 40% of website enquiries happen outside of standard 9-to-5 business hours. If your website only has a "Contact Us" page, you’re asking the customer to do all the work. A chatbot pops up and starts the conversation for them. It grabs their name, their suburb, and their problem. By the time you wake up and check your phone, the lead is already qualified and waiting for a callback.2. Filtering Out the Tyre Kickers
Not every person who visits your site is a good customer. Some people are just looking for the cheapest price possible, or they’re outside your service area. A well-set-up bot can ask, "What suburb are you in?" or "What service do you need?" If they are in a suburb you don't service, the bot can politely tell them. This saves you from wasting 15 minutes on a phone call that was never going to result in a sale.3. Answering the Boring Questions
"Do you have parking?" "What are your opening hours?" "Do you take Credit Cards?" If you or your staff spend an hour a day answering these same three questions over the phone, that’s five hours a week of wasted wages. A chatbot handles these instantly, freeing you up to do the work that actually pays the bills.Don't Fall for the "AI" Hype
You’ve probably seen ads for "AI websites" that promise to run your whole business for you. Look, I’ll be blunt: most of that is rubbish. While you can use AI tools to help build parts of a site, you don't need a super-intelligent robot to help a customer book a quote.
In fact, over-complicating your chatbot is a great way to annoy your customers. People in Brisbane appreciate directness. They don't want to feel like they're being tricked by a fake human. They want their question answered. A simple, rules-based bot that says, "Hi, I'm an automated assistant. How can I help?" is often much more effective than a fancy AI that tries (and fails) to act like a real person.
What Kind of Chatbot Do You Actually Need?
There are generally two types of setups that work for small businesses. Don't get bogged down in the technical names; just look at how they function.
The "Live Chat" Hybrid
This is where the bot starts the conversation, but the message goes straight to your phone (like a text message). If you’re free, you can jump in and chat with the customer live. If you’re busy, the bot takes a message. This is great for professional services like accountants or real estate agents where the personal touch matters.The "Lead Bot"
This is purely for data collection. It’s a series of questions: 1. What do you need help with? 2. What’s your postcode? 3. What’s the best mobile number to reach you on?This is perfect for tradies. It turns a vague "visitor" into a concrete lead with a phone number attached. This is just as important as making sure it's easy for customers to call you; it's about providing an alternative for people who prefer typing over talking.
The Cost: What Should You Expect to Pay?
Let’s talk numbers, because that’s what matters. You can find "free" chatbots, but they usually look cheap and put their own branding all over your site. For a professional Brisbane business, you should look at two costs:
1. The Software: Usually between $20 and $100 per month. 2. The Setup: If you hire an agency like Local Marketing Group to set it up properly, you might pay a one-off fee to have the logic built, the branding matched to your site, and the notifications synced to your phone.
If a chatbot brings in just one extra customer a month, it has usually paid for itself five times over. If you’re a builder or a high-end service provider, one lead could pay for the bot for the next ten years.
Common Mistakes (And How to Avoid Them)
I’ve seen plenty of local businesses get this wrong. Here’s what to avoid if you don't want to flush money down the toilet:
The "Annoying Pop-up": Don't make the bot cover the whole screen the second someone lands on the page. Give them 5-10 seconds to look around first. Too Many Questions: If your bot asks 15 questions before letting the customer speak, they will leave. Keep it to 3 or 4 max. Name, Need, Number. Done. Ignoring the Messages: There is no point in having a bot collect leads if you don't call them back until three days later. The bot buys you time, but it doesn't close the sale for you. Making it Too Hard to Close: Just like a bad website footer can confuse a customer, a chatbot that doesn't have a clear "Submit" or "Talk to a Human" button will just frustrate people.
How Long Until You See Results?
This isn't like SEO where you have to wait six months to see a change. Once a chatbot is live on your site, it starts working the second the next visitor arrives.
I worked with a pest control business in Morningside that was getting decent traffic but very few phone calls. We added a simple lead-capture bot that asked three questions. Within the first week, they captured five leads on a Sunday night alone—leads they previously would have missed entirely. That’s five jobs they didn't have to fight for, simply because they were the only ones "answering" the door at 8:00 PM.
What Should You Do First?
If you're ready to stop losing customers to the competition, here is your game plan:
1. Check your current stats: How many people are visiting your site versus how many are actually calling you? If the gap is big, you need a bot. 2. Pick your goal: Do you want to book appointments, answer FAQs, or just get phone numbers? Don't try to do all three at once. 3. Keep it local: Make sure your bot uses language your customers understand. If you're a Brisbane business, don't use a bot that sounds like it's from a call centre in another country. 4. Test it on your phone: Most people will interact with your bot while on their mobile. If it’s hard to use with a thumb, it’s useless.
Summary: Is It Worth It?
In my opinion, if you are spending even a cent on advertising—whether that's Google Ads, Facebook, or even local flyers—not having a chatbot is a waste of money. You are paying to bring people to your "shopfront," but you're leaving the door locked and the lights off half the time.
A chatbot ensures that every time someone shows interest in your business, they are greeted, helped, and their details are recorded. It’s a strategic move that connects your marketing efforts directly to your sales goals.
Stop letting potential customers slip through the cracks. If you want to turn more of your website visitors into paying customers, it's time to look at a smarter way of handling your enquiries.
Want to see how a chatbot could work for your Brisbane business? Contact Local Marketing Group today and let’s talk about a setup that actually gets you more phone calls and bookings.