Still answering website enquiries at 9pm?

If you run a small business, you probably know the routine. The day is full of customers, jobs and phone calls, and the website enquiries wait until the evening. By 9pm you are at the kitchen table, tired, typing out the same kind of reply you wrote yesterday.

There is a simpler way to handle it, and it keeps you in charge. It is called Ellipse Reply, and this post explains what it does in plain words, who it suits, and who it does not.

What Ellipse Reply actually does

Ellipse Reply writes a suggested response to a customer enquiry and puts it in your email. That is all. You decide what happens next.

Here is how it works. A customer asks a question in one of two ways:

• They use your own Reply page. This is a link or a QR code that you can put on your counter, your website, your Google listing or your email signature.

• They email you, and your enquiries address forwards a copy to Ellipse Reply.

Either way, a minute or two later a suggested reply lands in your email. You read it. If it is right, you send it. If something needs changing, you change it first. Then you send it from your own email address, in your own name.

You stay in control

This part matters, so it is worth being clear. Ellipse Reply has no way to send anything to your customers itself. It cannot reply on your behalf, and nothing goes out unless you press send.

It also does not read your inbox. It only sees the enquiries that come through your Reply page, or the copies that your enquiries address forwards to it. Your personal emails stay yours.

The suggested reply is a draft, and drafts can be wrong. It might get a detail wrong about your hours, your prices or what you offer. That is why you read every one before it goes out. Think of it as a helpful first draft from someone who has done the typing for you, and you are the one who signs it off.

What it looks like on a normal day

Picture a plumber in regional Victoria who has been on the tools since 6am. A customer fills in the Reply page asking if he can look at a leaking tap next week. By the time he is back at the ute, a suggested reply is sitting in his email. He reads it on his phone, changes the day to Thursday, and sends it.

Or think of a café owner who has a QR code on the counter. A customer scans it to ask about catering for a birthday. The owner opens the draft during a quiet moment, adds a personal note, and sends it before the afternoon rush.

In both cases the reply still sounds like them, because they have read it and adjusted it. The difference is that they are not starting from a blank page at 9pm.

Who it suits, and who it does not

Ellipse Reply is built for owners who get a steady stream of enquiries and find the replying a drag on their evenings.

If you get fewer than about three enquiries a week, it is not worth it. At that level, writing the replies yourself takes very little time, and the cost would not make sense. We would rather tell you that now than have you pay for something you do not need.

If you are getting more than that, and the late-night typing is wearing you down, it is worth a look.

What it costs

The pricing is simple, and there are no surprises.

• Free for 30 days, with no card needed.

• After that, it is a $500 setup and $99 a month. The first invoice, on day 31, is $599.

• There is no lock-in contract. You can stop when you want.

If you also have a new Ellipse website built with us, the price is lower: $250 setup and $79 a month.

The free 30 days is there so you can see how it fits your business before you spend anything. If the drafts save you time, you carry on. If they do not, you walk away.

Getting set up

Setup means getting your Reply page ready, deciding where to put the link or QR code, and setting up your enquiries address to forward a copy of incoming emails. From there, the suggested replies start arriving in your inbox.

If you are thinking about a new website as well, you can see what we do on our services page. A good website and a quick, friendly reply to enquiries tend to work well together, because the first gets people asking and the second keeps them interested.

Your next step

If this sounds like your evenings, have a look at Ellipse Reply and start the free 30 days. No card, no lock-in, and you can see for yourself whether it gives you your nights back.