The 9pm Test: What Happens When a Customer Contacts You After Hours?
The 9pm Test is a 20-minute self-check: on a weekday evening, contact your own business the way a customer would, by phone, website form, WhatsApp, email and Facebook or Instagram message, and record what happens. A good result is a clear reply on every route saying the message arrived, when you will respond, and what to do if it is urgent.
Why test your business at 9pm?
Evenings are when many customers finally sit down to sort out the leaking tap, book the boiler service or ask about a valuation. If your business goes silent after 6pm, those enquiries either wait until morning or go to whoever replied first. Most owners have never seen what a customer experiences at that hour, because they are never on the other side of it.
The test shows you the gap between the enquiries you get and the ones you actually answer. It costs nothing, and the fixes are usually free settings you have never switched on.
How do you run the 9pm Test?
Use a phone and email address that are not linked to your business, so you see exactly what a stranger sees. Then, on a weekday between 8:30pm and 9:30pm:
- Ring your main number (the one on your website and Google profile). Note whether it rings out, goes to voicemail, or diverts. Listen to the whole greeting.
- Fill in your website contact form on your phone. Note the confirmation message and whether you get an email copy.
- Send a WhatsApp to your business number, if you list one or customers use it.
- Send an email to the address on your website.
- Send a Facebook Page message and an Instagram DM.
- Check your Google Business Profile for any messaging link and test it if you have one.
- Write down, for each route: did anything come back, how fast, what it said, and whether it told you what happens next.
- Check the next morning: who replied, when, and did any enquiry slip through completely?
A note on Google: the old Business Profile chat feature was switched off on 31 July 2024, according to Google's help page. Google now lets verified businesses add a WhatsApp or text messaging option to their contact details in select regions, so if you have added one, test it in step 6.
What does a good result look like?
A good result is not someone answering at 9pm. It is every route giving the customer certainty. Score yourself against this table.
| Route | Poor | Good |
|---|---|---|
| Phone | Rings out, full mailbox, or a generic network greeting | Your own greeting with your business name, when you call back, and an emergency option if you offer one |
| Website form | Blank page or "Thank you" with nothing else | Confirmation that says when you reply, plus a copy emailed to the customer |
| Delivered, no reply | An away message with your reply time and what details to send | |
| Nothing until you reply in person | An out-of-hours auto-reply with reply time and urgent route | |
| Facebook and Instagram | Unread until someone opens the app | An away message or instant reply set up in Meta Business Suite |
| Next morning | Some enquiries answered in the afternoon, one missed entirely | Every enquiry answered by mid-morning, in the order they arrived |
How do you fix what the 9pm Test finds?
Most fixes are settings you already have access to:
- Phone: record a greeting that names your business and says when you ring back. For emergencies, either divert evening calls to an on-call phone or an answering service, or say clearly that you do not offer out-of-hours call-outs. Our guide to missed calls helps you decide whether a paid answering service is worth it.
- Website form: change the confirmation message and turn on a customer copy. The contact form guide covers delivery problems.
- Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp: Meta Business Suite has Inbox automations that work across Messenger, Instagram and WhatsApp, including an instant reply for first messages and an away message for when you are unavailable. Note Meta's own warning that turning on its Business Agent pauses existing away messages and instant replies, so check which you are using.
- WhatsApp Business app: if you use the app on its own, its business tools let you greet people and respond to messages when you are away. Set the away message to send outside your hours.
- Email: set a scheduled automatic reply for evenings and weekends in your email program.
- Google: make sure your profile hours are accurate, and only add a messaging link if someone will actually check it.
What should your after-hours messages say?
Every automatic reply should do four things: confirm receipt, set a time, ask for what you need, and give an urgent route. Keep it factual and leave out offers. Here is a template for a fictional electrician in Lewisham:
"Thanks for your message, it's come through to [business]. We're closed for the evening and will reply by 9am tomorrow. To help us quote, please send your postcode, a short description and a photo if you can. If you have no power or a burning smell, call [emergency number]."
And a voicemail version:
"You've reached [business]. We're closed for the evening. Leave your name, postcode and what you need, and we'll call you back before 9am. For emergencies, call [number]."
If you do not offer emergencies, say so plainly and suggest where to turn, such as the gas emergency line for a gas smell. That honesty builds more trust than a vague "we'll be in touch".
How does the 9pm Test fit into your marketing?
It should come before any spend on ads or SEO. More traffic to a business that goes quiet at night just means more enquiries lost at night. Once every route replies properly, more enquiries actually turn into booked work, and your Google profile, website and ads have something solid to send people to. Our Google Business Profile checklist is a good next step.
The 9pm Test is something Oski Marketing runs for every new client before we touch their ads, and we hand over the results in plain English with a fix list.
What to do this week
- Pick one weekday evening and run all eight steps above, taking screenshots as you go.
- Fill in the table and mark each route poor or good.
- Record a new voicemail greeting using the template.
- Switch on the away message in Meta Business Suite and in WhatsApp Business.
- Set a scheduled email auto-reply for evenings and weekends, then rerun the test next week.
Frequently asked questions
Can customers still message my business through Google?
The old Google Business Profile chat feature ended on 31 July 2024. Google now lets businesses with a verified profile add a WhatsApp or text messaging link to their contact details in select regions. If you add one, include it in your 9pm Test.
Do I need to answer enquiries at 9pm?
No. You need the customer to know their message arrived and when you will reply, and to have a route for genuine emergencies if you offer them. An honest automatic reply and a prompt morning response win more work than silence.
What should an out-of-hours auto-reply say?
Thank the person, say when you will reply, ask for the details you need to quote, and give an emergency option if you have one. Keep it factual and leave out promotions.
How often should I run the 9pm Test?
Once a month, and again after any change to your phone, website, email or social accounts. Things break quietly, such as a form plugin update or a new phone that lost its voicemail greeting.