Hey Telo

What do they actually do

Hey Telo provides an AI phone service for German home‑service trades. Customers forward their business line to Hey Telo when they can’t pick up; the AI answers, holds a natural conversation, collects the caller’s details and issue, schedules appointments, and writes structured data into the company’s trade/dispatch software (“Handwerkersoftware”) Hey Telo site YC.

The system can triage emergencies to an on‑call person, log non‑urgent calls for next‑day dispatch, and block surveys/spam. It also makes some outbound calls for scheduling and confirmations Hey Telo site YC.

Onboarding is positioned as same‑day via a short demo and configuration, and pricing is listed in monthly tiers (e.g., €99 for solo, €199 for teams, €499 for larger teams) with minute bundles for overage Hey Telo site.

Who are their target customer(s)

• Solo tradesperson (Einzelkämpfer): Misses calls while on job sites or after hours, leading to lost leads and bookings. Needs an easy way to capture details and appointments without extra admin work.
• Small family or two‑person firm: Phones spike at peak times or during holidays, causing missed calls and unhappy customers. Wants reliable coverage that captures structured info to avoid re‑typing later.
• Mid‑sized contractor with dispatch software: Calls come in freeform and must be re‑entered into trade software, creating errors and wasted time. Needs intake that creates clean, actionable job records.
• On‑call / emergency service teams: After‑hours triage is inconsistent; true emergencies are sometimes missed, while non‑urgent calls interrupt staff. Needs consistent escalation and correct incident logging.
• Office manager / dispatcher responsible for scheduling: Time is lost confirming appointments, chasing customers for slots, and filtering spam. Needs automated scheduling/outbound calls and spam blocking to focus on routing work.

How would they acquire their first 10, 50, and 100 customers

• First 10: Founders do targeted outreach to local plumbers/electricians, run a 15‑minute demo, and set up call forwarding same day with a short discounted pilot to reduce friction Hey Telo YC.
• First 50: Run recurring webinars and convert attendees with a standard pilot plus referral incentive; publish two quick case studies from the first cohort and start partner outreach with small Handwerk software vendors and suppliers Hey Telo.
• First 100: Formalize integrations/reseller deals with major trade‑software vendors and wholesalers, hire a small outbound sales/implementation role for mid‑sized contractors, and publish case studies and integration docs to support self‑serve signups Hey Telo YC.

What is the rough total addressable market

Top-down context:

Germany’s crafts sector includes roughly 568,000 enterprises and 5.4 million workers, per the Federal Statistical Office; the finishing trades (Ausbaugewerbe) alone count about 218,000 firms and include installers/heating and electricians Destatis.

Bottom-up calculation:

Focus on two core target groups: SHK (sanitary/heating/AC) with about 48,050 firms and electrical trades with about 48,178 firms, totaling ~96,000 businesses ZVSHK ZVEH. At an average €199/month plan, annual TAM ≈ 96,000 × €199 × 12 ≈ €229M Hey Telo pricing.

Assumptions:

• Initial TAM limited to SHK and electrical firms (excludes painters, roofers, etc.).
• Average subscription value approximated at €199/month; excludes per‑minute overages.
• Assumes all such firms are potential buyers within Germany.

Who are some of their notable competitors

• Calldesk: European provider of AI voice agents and IVR replacements focused on contact‑center/enterprise integrations and multilingual capabilities rather than a narrow trades focus.
• Retellai: Platform to build AI phone agents for use cases like home services, appointment setting and dispatch; competes on automated intake and lead qualification.
• Callin: AI phone‑answering and after‑hours assistants marketed as industry‑specific AI receptionists across many SMB verticals, including local services.
• Zeeg: German scheduling platform with GDPR focus; offers AI answering/scheduling features but is oriented to compliant booking rather than deep trade‑software integrations.
• Insighto.ai: No‑code AI call‑agent builder for SMBs that automates inbound calls, sets up numbers, and handles scheduling/FAQ flows for quick deployment.