Most trade software calls the calendar a booking system. It isn't, quite. The calendar is where a job ends up. The booking system is everything that happens before that — the message at 7am, the three questions you have to ask before you can price it, the photo you needed and did not get, the callback you meant to make. That gap is where jobs quietly go to a competitor, and it is not fixed by a nicer calendar.
Booking and scheduling are not the same thing
Worth separating, because the software for each is different:
- Booking — the customer starts it. They describe what they need, you work out whether you want it and what it costs, and it becomes a job. The hard part is capture and turnaround.
- Scheduling — you start it. The job already exists and you are deciding which day it lands on. The hard part is not double-booking yourself.
Yamate does both, and this page is about the first one. If what you actually want is the calendar side — recurring maintenance clients, blocking out full days, seeing the week — that lives on job scheduling software.
Your booking link does the asking
Send your request link to anyone who calls, texts or messages. They describe the job in their own words, and Yamate asks them the follow-up questions that actually matter for that job and your trade — including asking for the photos that make a quote possible instead of a guess.
What comes back is not a raw enquiry you still have to decode. The request arrives with the quote already drafted from what they told you, ready for you to check, change and send. That is the part that turns a 7am message into a priced quote before smoko, rather than after dinner.
From request to booked, in one tap
The customer accepts online — or texts back YES — and the quote becomes a booked job with one tap. Nothing gets re-typed, which is the step where addresses get mangled and the wrong price carries through.
If you need eyes on it before you can price it, book a quick look instead and the app texts them the time. Customers can see what you have free, so you are not playing phone tag over a Tuesday.
Deposits, before the job not after
If the job needs materials up front, ask for a deposit on the quote and request it before you order anything. Yamate records it against the job, so the final invoice shows the balance after the deposit rather than the full amount — which is the version customers query least.
The bookings you nearly missed
A missed call is a booking that went to whoever answered next. Yamate can divert missed calls so the person who rang gets a text back with your booking link, instead of nothing. Straight about how it works: the divert is set up on your own phone and costs nothing; a dedicated number is a paid extra. Yamate does not answer the phone and never speaks to the caller — it sends the text so the enquiry lands somewhere you will see it.
Try Yamate free — take bookings today →FAQ
What is a job booking system?
Software that takes a customer's request, turns it into a priced quote, and puts the accepted job in your diary without anything being re-typed along the way. For a one-van business the useful version also chases the quote and the invoice afterwards.
Can customers book me directly?
They send a request through your booking link and can see what you have free. You confirm it — the job is booked when you say it is, not automatically. That is deliberate: nobody wants a stranger dropping a job into Thursday without a look at it first.
Does it work for recurring or maintenance customers?
Yes — regulars can repeat weekly, fortnightly or monthly, and maintenance jobs come back onto your Today screen when they fall due. The calendar side is covered on job scheduling software.
Do quotes send themselves once a request comes in?
No. The quote is drafted for you, and you check it and send it. Quotes and invoices always go through preview-then-approve. Reminders and follow-ups can be automatic if you switch them on — those are a different thing to sending a price.
What does it cost?
$19/mo (founder price, until 30 Sept), including up to 3 people on the Founder plan. Larger crews are on the Company plan — 10 people included, then $15/month each after that, everyone with their own login.
What it is not
This is not a marketplace and it does not send you leads — the booking link is yours, for the customers who already found you. It is not a public appointment page where anyone can lock in your Tuesday unseen, and it does not answer your phone. If you want a lead-generation platform, that is a different purchase and we would rather say so now.
Free tools
General information only. Yamate never sends a quote or an invoice without you approving it first. Missed-call diverts are set up on your own phone; a dedicated number is a paid extra.