What is an AI receptionist?

An AI receptionist is a voice assistant that answers your business phone. It speaks naturally, finds out what the caller needs, answers questions you have approved, takes their details, and can book the appointment or transfer the call to you. It is set up around your services, area, hours and rules.

Will callers know they are speaking to an AI?

It can introduce itself as your business’s virtual assistant, and we recommend being upfront about it. Most callers care far more about getting a quick answer and a booked appointment than about who picked up, and anyone who wants a person can be transferred.

Can an AI receptionist book appointments in my calendar?

Yes. It can check your calendar for open times, offer them to the caller and book the one they choose, following your rules about which jobs can be booked directly and which need your approval first.

What happens if the AI cannot answer a question?

It does not guess. It takes the caller’s details and the question, tells them someone will call back, and sends you a summary straight away. Calls you have marked as urgent, or anyone who asks for a person, can be transferred to your phone.

Does it answer after hours and on weekends?

Yes. It answers every call at any hour, which is when a lot of home-service calls arrive: early mornings, evenings and weekends. You decide what happens after hours, such as booking the next available slot or flagging emergencies to you.

How is an AI receptionist different from an answering service?

A live answering service uses shared operators who take messages, usually billed per minute or per call. An AI receptionist answers instantly, handles several calls at once, and can book straight into your calendar. We compare the two, along with voicemail, in AI receptionist vs answering service .

Does an AI receptionist work with my existing phone number?

Yes. You keep your number. Calls can be forwarded to the AI receptionist all the time, only after hours, or only when you do not pick up within a few rings, so you still answer the calls you can take yourself.

Who sets up AI receptionists in Ottawa?

AdVelocity is an Ottawa marketing agency that sets up AI receptionists for local businesses. We write the answers to your common questions, connect it to your calendar, set the transfer and after-hours rules, and test it before any customer hears it. The set-up is done remotely, so it also works for businesses elsewhere in Ontario and across Canada.

What kinds of businesses use an AI receptionist?

Businesses that miss calls while they work: HVAC companies, plumbers, electricians, roofers and contractors on job sites, and clinics, salons and dental offices when the front desk is busy. It also suits any business that gets calls after hours or on weekends.

AI receptionist

An AI receptionist for Ottawa businesses that answers calls when you cannot.

When you are on a job, with a customer or closed for the day, calls still come in. An AI receptionist answers them, finds out what the caller needs, answers basic questions, takes their details, and can book the appointment or transfer the call to you.

The problem

Missed calls become missed jobs

Most people calling a local business want help soon. If nobody answers, many will call the next company instead of leaving a voicemail.

A technician working up a ladder while a phone rings on the tool box below — Busy on a job, a call comes in and nobody can reach the phone.

On a job

A contractor is up a ladder or under a sink and cannot pick up the phone.

After hours

A homeowner calls in the evening or on a weekend, when the office is closed.

Busy periods

Several calls arrive at once, and only one can be answered.

Voicemail

The caller hears voicemail, hangs up, and calls a competitor.

Read why missed calls cost home service businesses so much

What it does

What an AI receptionist can do

It is set up around your business: your services, your service area, your hours, the questions customers usually ask, and how you want different calls handled.

You decide what it says, which questions it answers, what it is allowed to book, and which calls should go straight to a person.

Answer incoming calls, including after hours and when you are busy
Greet callers as your business
Understand why the person is calling
Answer basic questions you have approved, such as services, areas and hours
Explain your services in plain language
Capture caller information: name, number, address and details of the job
Qualify leads, for example by checking they are in your service area
Check appointment availability in your calendar
Book appointments
Transfer calls to you or your staff when needed
Handle after-hours enquiries
Create call summaries so you know what every call was about

How it works

How a call is handled

01Customer callsThe number they already have.
02AI receptionist answersGreets them as your business.
03Understands the needAsks what the call is about.
04Answers and capturesApproved questions answered, details taken.
05Checks availabilityLooks at open times in your calendar.
06Books the appointmentOr transfers the call if a person is needed.
07Business receives the informationA summary of the caller and the job.

Each business sets its own rules: which questions are answered, which calls are transferred straight to a person, and what can be booked.

Realistic use case

An HVAC technician who cannot answer the phone

A technician is working inside a customer’s home. Another homeowner calls about a furnace that stopped working. Normally the call would go to voicemail, and the homeowner would try the next company.

With an AI receptionist, the call is answered straight away. By the time the technician finishes the job, the new appointment is already booked and the details are waiting.

What the receptionist asks, and whether it books directly or passes the lead on, depends on how it is set up for the business.

01Answers instead of voicemail
02Collects the caller’s name
03Asks what is wrong with the furnace
04Collects phone number and address
05Checks available appointment times
06Books the appointment
07Business receives the lead details

Example call

Step through an example call

Read the call one turn at a time, with a note on what the receptionist is doing at each point.

A worked example

Written example

Incoming
The phone rings at 6:40 in the morning.
Caller
Hi, my furnace stopped working overnight and the house is freezing. Do you do emergency visits?
Receptionist
Sorry to hear that, we can help. Let me check we cover your area. What is the address?
Caller
Barrhaven, near the shopping centre.
Receptionist
That is within our area. I have a technician free at eight this morning, or at eleven thirty. Which works better?
Caller
Eight, please. The sooner the better.
Receptionist
You are booked for eight. Can I take your name and the best number to reach you?
Receptionist
That is confirmed, and you will get a message with the details shortly. A technician will be with you at eight.
Afterwards
The job is in the calendar before the working day starts.

A written example to show the shape of a call, not a recording. What it says, which questions it asks and what it is allowed to book are all set up around how your business works.

Scope

What it handles, and what stays with you

It handles

The repeatable part

Answering: Calls picked up, including evenings, weekends and calls that arrive while you are already on the phone.

Common questions: What you do, where you work, your hours, and how the first visit works.

Booking: Real times from your calendar, added once the caller picks one.

Taking details: Name, number, address and the reason for the call, read back before the call ends.

Transfers: Calls that need a person are passed to you or your team, following your rules.

Summaries: A summary after every call, so nothing depends on memory.

You handle

The part that needs judgement

Quoting the work: Pricing a job stays with you. It gathers what the job involves and leaves the number to you.

Sensitive calls: Complaints, disputes and anything that has already gone wrong are passed to you.

Anything unusual: When a call falls outside what it was set up for, it says so and takes a message instead of guessing.

The work itself: It fills the calendar. Everything after that is still your business.

Getting it running

What it needs from you

01
Your phone number

It works with the number you already advertise. You decide whether it answers every call, or only the ones you miss.
02
How you work

Your services, area, hours, what you will and will not take on, and which calls should be transferred. This is what makes it sound like your business.
03
Your calendar

The calendar you already use. It reads open times from there and adds appointments back, so there is no second calendar to manage.

Worth saying plainly

It is AI, and it says so.

Callers are told they are speaking with an assistant if they ask. Pretending otherwise is usually noticed quickly, and a caller who feels misled is not a good start to a customer relationship.

Before it goes live: You hear it handle test calls and change what it says until it sounds right.

After it goes live: Call summaries show the questions people actually ask, which often improves your ads and website too.

Who it can help

Businesses that miss calls while they work

It is most useful for businesses where the people doing the work are also the people answering the phone, and where a missed call usually means a lost job.

HVAC companies
Plumbers
Electricians
Roofers
Renovation companies
Cleaning companies
Clinics
Salons
Any business that gets calls after hours

Questions

AI receptionist questions

Next step

Explore an AI receptionist for your business

Bring a rough idea of how many calls go unanswered in a normal week. On a free call we will look at how your calls are handled now and what the receptionist would need to know.

Book a free strategy call Send a message instead