Use case · Admin
AI Receptionist & Call Handling
An AI receptionist is an always-on front desk for your phone line. It answers every call instantly, works out why the caller is ringing, answers questions from your knowledge base, takes down what your team needs and books a callback or appointment. Every call is logged with a summary and transcript, 24/7, in more than one language where you need it.
- Evenings, weekends and holidays
- 24/7
What is an AI receptionist?
An AI receptionist is an inbound AI voice agent that answers your business line like a front desk. It greets callers, identifies why they're calling, gives basic information about your business, takes down their requirements one question at a time and schedules a callback or routes them to the right person. It never puts anyone on hold and is never off sick.
What do missed and unanswered calls cost you?
Missed and unanswered calls cost you the business behind them. Calls come in while your team is busy, out of the office or asleep, voicemails pile up, and hiring a receptionist or outsourcing to a call centre is expensive and still doesn't cover evenings and weekends. Callers who can't get through try someone else.
Your team is busy when the phone rings
Every call answered is time taken from the work in front of them.Evenings and weekends go unanswered
Even a staffed front desk covers working hours only.Voicemails pile up
And many callers don't leave one at all.
How does an AI receptionist handle a call?
An AI receptionist handles a call in four steps. It answers instantly with an on-brand greeting, understands why the caller is ringing and answers from your knowledge base, captures the details your team needs one question at a time and reads them back, then hands off: everything is written to your CRM and your team is notified.
With an AI voice agent (inbound)
An inbound call to your number
Answer
Instantly, with a warm, on-brand greeting.Understand
Works out why they're calling and answers from your knowledge base.Capture
Gathers what your team needs, one question at a time, and reads it back.Hand off
Caller details, requirements, summary, sentiment and transcript go to your CRM, Google Sheet or Airtable; your team is notified and a callback or appointment can be booked.
What does a real estate receptionist call look like?
A real estate receptionist call works through the agency's requirements one at a time. For a buyer or tenant, the agent asks for their name, then maximum budget, number of rooms, minimum surface area, preferred floor, parking, preferred neighbourhoods and whether it should be fully equipped. It reads each detail back, takes contact details last and promises a callback with matching listings.
Illustrative call, not a client recording
AgentGood afternoon, you've reached the agency. Are you looking to buy or rent?
CallerRent. A two-bedroom flat.
AgentThank you. What's the maximum monthly budget you'd like to stay within?
CallerAround one thousand.
AgentOne thousand per month. And do you need a parking space?
The agent speaks the local language by default and switches mid-call if the caller uses another. Phone numbers are read back digit by digit, so nothing is taken down wrong.
Can an AI receptionist screen spam calls?
Yes. An AI receptionist can sit in front of your existing ring groups and menus as a call screener: it blocks spam and scam callers and passes genuine callers straight to your team. Screening is careful by default, so any caller it isn't sure about goes through to a person, and genuine callers aren't blocked by mistake.
Which systems deliver it?
An AI receptionist is delivered by an inbound AI voice agent, connected to your CRM, calendar and knowledge base, with a post-call automation that logs every call. You keep your existing number and forward calls to the agent: every call, only after hours, or only when you don't answer within a set number of seconds.
| System | Trigger | What it does | Package note |
|---|---|---|---|
| AI Voice Agents | Inbound call | Answers, captures, books callbacks, routes, logs summary and transcript | Receptionist is a Core package use case; extra languages from Advanced |
| AI Automations | End of call | Writes the call to your CRM, Sheet or Airtable and notifies your team | Part of the voice build |
Where is it used?
An AI receptionist suits small businesses without a dedicated receptionist, clinics, agencies, real estate offices, trades and any business that needs after-hours cover. Clinics call it the front desk or patient line, real estate calls it branch reception or the property enquiry line, and trades call it the office line or an answering service.
Same job, their words
Branch reception that never closes. The property enquiry line takes a full brief from every buyer or tenant, in the caller's language, and sends it to a negotiator for a callback with matching listings.
AI receptionist or human receptionist?
An AI receptionist covers every hour and every call at once, in more than one language, and captures details the same way every time. A human receptionist brings judgement, empathy and local knowledge that AI doesn't replace. Many businesses use both: people answer first, and the AI covers overflow, evenings and weekends. See our AI voice agent vs human receptionist comparison.
What should you know before you start?
By default, the AI receptionist books callbacks rather than transferring live calls; live transfer is scoped separately. It answers from your knowledge base, never quotes prices or makes commitments unless you've agreed it should, and never claims to be human when asked. Call forwarding depends on your carrier and country, so we test it on your line.
- Callbacks by default. Live transfer is scoped separately.
- Guardrails are agreed upfront. What it may and mustn't say.
- Forwarding is tested on your own line before go-live.
Frequently asked questions
Questions
Answer
Can an AI receptionist transfer calls to my team?
By default, an AI receptionist takes the caller's details and books a callback or appointment, and your team is notified straight away with a summary. Live transfer to a person during the call can be added, but it's scoped separately because it depends on your phone setup and who's available to take the call.
Can it speak more than one language?
Yes. English is standard and additional languages are available. On one build for a Romanian real estate agency, the receptionist answers in Romanian by default and switches to English mid-call when the caller does. Packages include up to 2 or up to 3 languages, depending on the level.
Will callers know it's an AI?
The AI receptionist answers as your business, in your name and tone. It never claims to be human when asked: if a caller asks, it says it's an AI assistant and carries on helping.
Can I keep my existing number?
Yes. The agent has its own number behind the scenes, but your customers never need to know it. We forward calls from your existing line or mobile: every call, only after hours, or only when you don't answer within a set number of seconds. Forwarding depends on your carrier and country, so we test it first.
Where do the call details go?
After each call, an automation writes the caller's details, their requirements, a call summary, sentiment and the full transcript to your CRM, Google Sheet or Airtable, and notifies your team. If the agent booked a callback or appointment, that's in your calendar too.
Is it cheaper than hiring a receptionist?
It depends on your call volume and what you need covered. An AI receptionist has a one-off build cost plus running costs for the voice platform, phone line and AI model, billed by the providers and estimated before the build. It covers evenings and weekends, which a single hire can't. We cost it with you on the discovery call, and our AI voice agent vs human receptionist comparison sets out the trade-offs.