After a storm, an arborist's enquiries arrive in every register at once. A hedge that needs tidying. A large limb hanging over a children's trampoline. A whole tree across a driveway. And one that says, almost casually, that a tree is leaning on the electricity cable to the house.
The first job is not quoting. It is sorting danger from inconvenience.
Step 1: route danger immediately
Anything involving power lines, a tree on a building, a blocked road, a tree resting on another under tension, or anyone injured needs emergency services and the network operator first. No website should collect quote details from someone standing under a hanging limb.
Step 2: establish what it is resting on
A fallen tree lying flat on a lawn is straightforward. A tree suspended in another tree, or held under tension against a fence or roof, is dangerous work needing specific equipment and experience. Asking what it is touching changes everything about the job.
Step 3: capture location and access
Front or back garden, whether a vehicle can reach it, whether there is space for a chipper, whether the tree is on a boundary and whether neighbours are affected. Access decides the cost as much as the size does.
Step 4: get photos from a safe distance
A photo showing the whole tree and its surroundings tells an arborist more than any description, and it prevents the caller from approaching something unstable to take a measurement.
Step 5: be honest about sequencing
Everyone wants same-day attention. Explaining that genuine emergencies come first, and giving an honest window for everything else, keeps people informed rather than repeatedly chasing.
Step 6: capture it in conversation
SpideyChat for landscapers and grounds businesses captures location, photos and access overnight while the team is working, following the approach in storm damage enquiries that pour in overnight.
Customer: A tree has come down in my garden. Assistant: If it is touching power lines, a building or blocking a road, please contact emergency services and the network operator first. Otherwise, could you send a photo from a safe distance showing the whole tree, tell me what it is resting on, and say whether a vehicle and chipper can reach the garden?
Insurance work
Many storm jobs are insured. Explaining what documentation you provide, such as photographs and a written report, helps customers claim and makes you the easy choice.
Waste and clean-up
Customers want to know whether logs and brash are taken away or left. Storm work generates enormous volumes, and being clear about disposal prevents disputes when the job is done.
The week after the storm
Demand tails off into follow-up work: crown reductions on trees that moved, deadwooding and inspections from nervous homeowners. Capturing those enquiries turns a week of emergencies into months of planned work, in the same way roofers do, as described in how roofers capture storm damage leads with a chatbot.
Planned work continues
Normal quoting and design enquiries carry on alongside, as covered in tree surgery quotes and what arborists need to see and garden design enquiries that need a proper brief.
Getting started
Publish your emergency guidance, what you need to see and how you sequence work, then capture details at any hour. Try SpideyChat on your own site, or read about capture on the features page.