From the Trenches to Tech: AJ Jain’s Mission to Revolutionize the Trades with AI

Broccoli AI Chases the Calls Contractors Lose at Night

Broccoli AI answers the phone for plumbing and HVAC contractors after hours, when answering services that handle calls for dozens of businesses at once cannot follow one contractor's script. Jain and his co-founder found that problem by knocking on doors and interviewing 140 contractors, after their first company selling energy management to electrical contractors stalled. The bet is that an agent wired into the dispatch board, at a price that only sticks once it proves revenue lift, becomes how small trades businesses stop losing leads at night.

Takeaways

• Answering services lose after-hours jobs. Broccoli began after Jain and co-founder Adi went door to door in the Bay Area and spoke with 140 contractors. Answering services cannot personalize for 50 clients at once, and one contractor paid $5,000 for a service that booked about 30% of leads.
• Customers report 30% better lead conversion. Jain says every Broccoli client has replaced its answering service, and customers see a 22% revenue increase and a 30% lift in lead conversion. Broccoli also places outbound calls and sends texts to chase Google and Yelp leads before they go cold.
• Pricing is tied to proven ROI. Broccoli costs about $1,000 a month and Jain puts ROI above 1,100%. He calls it a partner rather than a cheap replacement for staff, and says contractors who can afford to hire more people should. New modules are free until they prove ROI.
• ServiceTitan integration requires dispatch board access. Broccoli is an official ServiceTitan technology partner and works natively inside it, booking jobs on the dispatch board and attributing calls the way a human would. It also integrates with Housecall Pro, but Jain will not integrate with systems that do not expose the dispatch board.
• Broccoli will stay trades-only as AI spreads. Jain expects AI to become as common in business operations as in personal life, and Broccoli plans to automate more of a contractor's work. The company serves only the trades and will not move into insurance or financial services.
• Outsider status shapes what gets built. Jain says not coming from the trades is an advantage because he and Adi have no biases about what to build. They decide from field conversations rather than a San Francisco conference room, and they spend hours on the road with contractors.

Marcel's road from AI skeptic to reference customer

1. A year before the episode, Marcel swore he would never have AI in his company.
2. Two engineers with no product walked into his plumbing office, and together they built an after-hours answering service.