Visit reminders, access notes and running-late messages

A reminder does one job: it gets the right person to the right door at the right time. Missed access wastes a visit for you and the customer. A short message the day before can help.

What a good reminder holds

Keep it to a few lines. Include:

• The date and the arrival window
• The crew or cleaner's first name
• How you'll get in: someone home, a key, a lockbox, or a code the customer already has
• One thing you need from them, such as moving pets or clearing the benches
• How to reach you if plans change

Leave out anything the customer already knows. A reminder isn't a second quote.

Let the tool draft the template

Write the facts, then ask for a short, friendly text. Example prompt: "Write a short text reminder. Use only these facts. Keep it under forty words. Don't add promises."

Ask for two or three versions. Pick the one that sounds like you. Save it as a template, with spaces where the date and time go.

Now each reminder takes seconds. You only fill in the blanks.

Access notes: keep the secret parts out

Access notes tell your cleaner how to get in. They might hold a door code, an alarm code, or where a key is kept. These are not for a public chatbot.

The OAIC advises organizations to keep personal information out of public AI chatbots.¹ Names and addresses are the obvious ones. Door and alarm codes deserve the same care, because they open the home.

A safer habit: ask the tool for the layout of the note only. "Write a template for an access note with headings for entry, alarm, pets and parking." Then fill the real details into your own system.

Running-late messages

When a cleaner is late, the customer wants three things: how late, why in a word or two, and what happens next. That's all.

A good running-late text says sorry once, gives a new arrival time, and offers a choice if the delay is long. The cleaner or office gives the new time. The tool must not guess it.

Draft a few versions ahead of time, such as "ten minutes", "thirty minutes" and "need to reschedule". Then pick one and fill in the real time. Don't have the tool invent a reason. If the true reason is traffic, say traffic. If you don't want to say, leave it out.

Messages to your own staff

If you text cleaners about changes, think about when you send them. In Australia, employees can refuse contact from an employer outside working hours in some circumstances.² The details depend on the employee and the situation. Read the Fair Work page for your situation, or check your own country's rules.

Reminders aren't marketing

A plain reminder about a booked visit is different from a message selling something. Once you add a special offer, you're in marketing territory. In Australia, the ACMA says you need consent from the person before you send marketing messages.³ Check the ACMA page, or your country's regulator, before adding offers to any reminder.

Check before sending

Look at the date, the day of the week and the time. The tool can mix these up. Check the name, the address if it's there, and the access instructions. A wrong day is worse than no reminder.

Your enquiry replies can use the same fact-first habit. See replying to cleaning enquiries.