A lead comes in. Your sales guy waits 4 hours to see it, then logs into EagleView, manually orders a report, and waits again. By then, the homeowner has hired someone else. You are losing the speed war.
The “Speed to Estimate” Summary
The Bottleneck
During a hail event, lead volume spikes. The administrative burden of manually logging into EagleView or Hover to order measurement reports creates a 4-24 hour lag time. This delay allows faster competitors to sign the contingency.
The Fix
We bypass the manual portal entirely. Using API Automation, we trigger the measurement order the millisecond the lead hits your CRM. The report data is then delivered via SMS directly to the Sales Rep before they even dial the lead.
Speed Kills (The Competition)
In high-volume roofing, specifically storm restoration, speed is the only differentiator. Everyone has the same shingles. Everyone has the same insurance script. The winner is the first one on the roof with a contract.
Here is the “Manual” workflow that is killing your close rate:
The Manual Grind
- Lead arrives from FB Ads.
- Admin sees email 2 hours later.
- Admin logs into EagleView. Types address.
- Admin orders “Standard Report.”
- Wait 4-24 Hours.
- Admin downloads PDF. Emails to Rep.
- Rep calls homeowner. (Too late).
The Autopilot Protocol
- Lead arrives from FB Ads.
- API instantly orders EagleView.
- Lead is assigned to Rep via Round Robin.
- Rep receives SMS: “New Lead: John Doe. EV Ordered.”
- Report completes. PDF text to Rep.
- Rep calls homeowner armed with data.
This eliminates “Admin Lag” completely. Your team moves at the speed of software, not the speed of data entry.
The “Roofing Autopilot” Architecture
To achieve this, we use n8n as the “General Contractor” of your data. It connects your CRM (GoHighLevel) to your Measurement Provider (EagleView or Hover) and your Communication Layer (Twilio).
| Component | Tools | Role in the Stack |
|---|---|---|
| The Trigger | CRM Webhook (GHL) | Fires instantly when a lead form is submitted or a status changes to “Inspection Scheduled.” |
| The Validator | Google Maps API | Verifies the address exists and formats it correctly before sending to EagleView to prevent errors. |
| The Surveyor | EagleView / Hover API | Receives the order programmatically. No login required. No credit card entry (uses account on file). |
| The Delivery | Twilio / MMS | Sends the PDF Report (or Square Footage Summary) directly to the Sales Rep’s cell phone. |
The Field Workflow
This is about empowering the guys in the trucks. Here is how the automation plays out in real life.
The lead comes in via a Facebook Ad for “Free Roof Inspection.”
Normally, this data sits in GHL. With our setup, n8n immediately grabs the address: 123 Stormy Lane. It runs a quick check against Google Maps Geocoding API to ensure it’s a valid residential structure (not a vacant lot).
Status: Validated in 0.4 seconds.
n8n sends a POST request to the EagleView API endpoint. It passes your Product ID (e.g., “Premium Report”) and the Delivery Speed (e.g., “Expedited”).
It also captures the Report_ID and saves it back to the CRM contact record. This creates a digital paper trail without a human lifting a finger.
This is the game changer. When the report is ready, n8n detects the status change.
It parses the JSON to extract: Total SqFt, Pitch, and Predominant Waste Factor.
It texts your rep: “Report Ready for 123 Stormy Lane. Size: 32 Squares. Pitch: 7/12. PDF Link: [Click Here].”
Your rep walks up the driveway knowing exactly what the job is worth before they knock on the door.
The ROI of Autopilot
When a storm hits, volume is your enemy if you aren’t prepared.
If you generate 100 leads in a week:
- Manual Ordering: 100 leads x 15 mins/order = 25 Hours of Admin Time. (That’s 3 full workdays wasted).
- Autopilot Ordering: 100 leads x 0 mins = 0 Hours.
You save 25 hours of payroll, but more importantly, you gain 25 hours of sales time. This is crucial for managing high ad spend effectively during peak season.
Strategic Insight: Combine this with CRM and Ads Integration. Once the EagleView returns “30 Squares,” push that value back to Facebook to optimize for larger homes.
Dominate The Storm
Your competitors are still logging in and typing addresses. I build the systems that let you scale without the admin chaos. Speed wins.
Need a funnel that handles storm volume? Check out my Funnel Guide for High Volume.