The problem
Inquiries arrive by phone, Facebook and email, and each needs the same questions before you know whether it's a puppy class or a biting problem. If a trainer gets 30 inquiries a month and spends 12 minutes going back and forth on each, that's 6 hours a month, while urgent behavior cases wait in the pile.
What the AI does
Tally is a form builder whose free plan includes unlimited forms and submissions, conditional logic and the Zapier integration. Build one inquiry form: if the owner picks puppy or basic manners, it asks the puppy's age and points them to your course dates; if they pick a behavior problem, it asks what happens, how long it's been going on, any bites, and whether the dog has seen a vet recently. A two-step Zapier automation adds each submission to a Google Sheet, so you read behavior cases first and reply personally. On Tally's free plan, notification emails go only to you.
A worked example
A trainer in Lincoln runs puppy classes and behavior work, with about 30 inquiries a month across phone, Facebook and email.
Before
30 inquiries x 12 minutes of back and forth: 360 minutes, 6 hours a month
After
Form link sent to every inquiry; about 4 minutes to read and reply to each: 120 minutes, 2 hours a month
What it's worth
About $160£120€143A$230C$226 a month saved, at an assumed $40£30€36A$58C$56 an hour for 4 hours (360 minus 120 minutes). Tally's free plan and Zapier's free plan (two-step Zaps, 100 tasks a month) cover 30 inquiries a month, assuming a free Google account for the sheet.
How to set it up
- In Tally, build an inquiry form whose first question is puppy class, basic manners or a behavior problem.
- Use conditional logic to show different questions for each, including bite history and recent vet visits for behavior cases.
- Connect Tally to Zapier and make a two-step Zap that adds each submission as a row in a Google Sheet.
- Put the form link on your website, your Facebook page and your voicemail message.
- Check the sheet each morning and phone behavior inquiries that mention bites first.
What goes wrong
- A form can't judge risk. Any mention of bites, especially to children, needs a personal call and often a vet check first.
- Zapier's free plan allows two-step Zaps and 100 tasks a month; adding an automatic reply step needs a paid plan.
- Ask only for what you need, and say on the form how the answers are used, under UK GDPR.
- Zapier can fail silently; check now and then that the sheet matches Tally's own list of submissions.