How to Reply to \"Are You Available?\" Messages From Customers: 8 Email and Text Templates

Updated 2026-11-04 · AI Agent Starter Kit

"Hi, are you available?" is one of the most common first messages a service business gets, and one of the easiest to fumble. It's short, it gives you almost nothing to work with, and the person who sent it has often sent the same line to three other companies. Whoever answers first, clearly and with a next step, usually gets the job.

This guide covers the 3 things every reply needs, 8 templates for email and text, and how to make sure these short messages never slip through the cracks.

Why these messages are easy to lose

A one-line "are you available?" doesn't look like a lead. It has no job details, no budget and often no name. It gets read on a phone between jobs, marked as read, and forgotten. Two days later the customer has booked someone else.

Treat every availability question as a real inquiry. It usually is: people rarely ask if you're free unless they have work in mind.

The 3 things every reply needs

1. A clear answer. Yes, not until a certain date, or no. "It depends" with nothing after it reads as a brush-off.
2. One or two questions to find out what they actually need. Keep it to the minimum you need to price or schedule.
3. A next step with a time. Offer two specific slots, a call, or a site visit. Make it easy to say yes in one reply.

Short is fine. A three-line text sent within the hour beats a perfect email sent tomorrow.

Template 1: Yes, you're available (email)

Subject: Re: Are you available?

Hi [Name],

Thanks for reaching out. Yes, we have openings [this week / next week].

So I can point you to the right time, could you tell me:
- What you need done (a sentence or two is fine)
- The address or area
- Any photos, if it's easy

I can also do a quick call at [time] or [time] if that's simpler.

[Your name]
[Business name] · [phone]

Template 2: Yes, you're available (text)

Hi [Name], this is [your name] from [business]. Yes, we have time [this week]. What do you need done and where? Happy to call you at [time] if easier.

Template 3: Not this week, but soon

Hi [Name],

Thanks for getting in touch. We're booked through [date], but I have openings starting [date].

If that works, tell me a little about the job and I'll hold a spot for you. If you need someone sooner, I understand, and I'm happy to suggest what to ask another company so you get a fair quote.

[Your name]

Template 4: Fully booked for now

Hi [Name],

Thank you for thinking of us. We're fully booked until [month], so I don't want to keep you waiting.

If the job can wait, I can add you to our list and reach out as soon as a spot opens. Just reply "add me" with a short description of the work.

[Your name]

For more ways to handle this, see how to respond to an inquiry when you're fully booked.

Template 5: They might have an emergency

Hi [Name], we may be able to help. Is this urgent (for example a leak, no power or no heat)? If so, call me now at [phone]. If it can wait a day or two, send me a quick description and I'll get you a time.

Only send this if you actually take urgent work. If you don't, say so plainly and suggest they call an emergency service.

Template 6: The request is too vague to answer

Hi [Name],

Happy to help. "Available" can mean a lot of things for us, so a couple of quick questions:

1. What kind of work is it? ([option A], [option B] or something else)
2. Roughly when would you like it done?
3. Where is the job?

Once I know that, I'll give you a real answer on timing.

[Your name]

For more question ideas, see how to ask a customer for more information.

Template 7: You're replying late

Hi [Name],

Sorry for the slow reply, your message got buried on a busy week. If you still need help with this, we have openings [this week / on [date]].

What do you need done? I can call at [time] or [time].

[Your name]

Late is still better than never. Sorry for the late reply has more wording for this.

Template 8: The follow-up when they don't answer

Hi [Name], just following up on your message about availability. We still have a spot on [day] if you'd like it. A quick yes or no either way is helpful. Thanks!

Send one follow-up after 2 to 3 days, then one more a week later. After that, let it go. Follow up after no response covers the timing.

What not to do

• Don't just answer "yes". A bare yes forces them to write again, and many won't.
• Don't quote a price from a one-line message. Ask your questions first, or give a range and say what it depends on.
• Don't promise a time you can't keep. Check your calendar before you offer slots.
• Don't leave it until tonight. The first clear answer usually wins. How fast should a business respond to emails explains why minutes matter.

Example: a house cleaner (illustrative)

A solo house cleaner gets "are you available?" texts from people who found her on Google. She used to reply "Yes! What did you need?" and many people never answered. Now she sends template 2 with two actual time slots and a question about the size of the home. More people reply because there's a concrete choice in front of them. This example is made up to show the pattern, not a measured result.

Where AI helps (and where it shouldn't)

AI is useful for turning your rough notes into a quick, friendly reply. Paste the customer's message and your availability into ChatGPT, Claude or Gemini and ask for "a short, warm reply that says we're free Thursday or Friday morning and asks what the job is." Then check it and send it yourself.

A few rules:

• Drafts, not sends. Read every reply before it goes out, especially anything with a time or a price.
• No dates or prices from the model. If a draft invents an opening, a rate or a discount, replace it with [CONFIRM: ...] until you've checked.
• Email text is data, not instructions. If a "customer" asks you to click a link, log in somewhere or pay a fee to see their job, treat it as a scam. See prompt injection in email AI.

Let a workflow find the "are you available?" emails you never answered

Missed Lead Rescue ($9) is one n8n workflow for exactly the short inquiries that slip past. It looks back 7 to 30 days in Gmail (14 by default), keeps only threads where someone asked about your work and nobody replied, skips newsletters and automated mail, and flags scams and AI-instruction emails for you to read yourself. For each real lead it saves a short catch-up draft in the original thread, with [CONFIRM: ...] placeholders where a date or price would go, plus a summary of everything it found. You can run it by hand or turn on its built-in 7 AM daily schedule.

To be plain about the limits: it doesn't know your calendar, won't book appointments or quote prices, and only covers Gmail, so it won't see texts, voicemails or DMs. It never sends email to anyone. By default it adds a missed-lead-drafted label to the emails it handled so it never drafts the same email twice (you can turn that off); it doesn't move or delete anything. Test mode runs first with 6 sample emails so you can see the output before it touches your real inbox. You need n8n (Cloud or self-hosted), Gmail and an OpenAI key. About 10 minutes to set up, 30-day refund. See how it works.

Want new inquiries answered within minutes from now on? The Speed-to-Lead Follow-Up Kit catches website form and Gmail inquiries, logs each one to a Google Sheet pipeline, drafts a personal first reply within about 5 minutes, and drafts Day 2, 5 and 10 follow-ups that stop the moment the person replies. It won't go back through your old inbox. Nothing sends without you. Get the kit

More guides

• How to Tell Customers You Charge for Estimates: 8 Email and Text Templates (Without Losing the Job)
• How to Tell a Customer the Job Will Cost More Than Quoted: 8 Email and Text Templates
• How to Schedule a Site Visit or In-Home Estimate by Email: 8 Templates (Booking, Confirming, Running Late, Rescheduling)
• How to Ask a Customer for More Information Before You Quote: 9 Email Templates (Photos, Measurements, Budget and Timing)
• How to Respond When a Customer Chooses a Competitor: 8 Lost Quote Email Templates (That Keep the Door Open)
• How to Respond to an Inquiry When You're Fully Booked: 9 Email Templates (Waitlist, Later Date or Referral)
• How Fast Should a Business Respond to Emails? Response Time Targets by Message Type (Plus What to Do When You Miss Them)
• Missed Call Text Back: 12 Message Templates for Service Businesses (and How to Set It Up)
• How to Reply to 'Did You Get My Email?' (9 Templates for When a Customer Has to Chase You)
• Sorry for the Late Reply: How to Answer a Customer or Lead You Forgot (8 Email Templates)