How do I choose an AI receptionist? 12 questions to ask first

Every AI receptionist website says roughly the same thing: it answers your calls day and night and sounds friendly. The differences hide in the details, and you usually find them on your first bill or your first busy Saturday. So before you pay, it helps to know which questions to ask and how to test the answers yourself.

The short version: pick the one that answers in your business's name and books into the calendar you already use. It should also send leads the way you check them and have a price you can predict. The 12 questions below show you how to check each of those.

The money questions

Prices look simple until you count your calls. Some services charge per minute, some per call and some per caller, and the same month can cost very different amounts depending on which one you pick.

1. How do you charge: per minute, per call or per caller? Count your calls first, then do the math.
2. What's included each month, and what does extra cost? Ask for the exact price per extra minute or call.
3. Is there a setup fee? Many have none. Ask anyway.
4. Is there a contract? Look for month to month and how much notice you need to give.

The "does it do my job" questions

A receptionist that only takes messages is a nicer voicemail. The real value comes when it can finish the job on the call, so the next set of questions is about what it actually does for your callers.

1. Does it book into my calendar during the call, or only take a message? And is booking on the plan you'd buy, or only on a bigger one?
2. Does it work with my calendar? Google, Outlook, iCloud, Calendly, Cal.com, Zoho, Square: check yours is on the list.
3. Does it speak Spanish, if some of your callers do?
4. Does it learn my business, like hours, services and area, or do I type it all in?

The "what happens after the call" questions

The call ends, and then what? This is the part most people forget to ask about, and it decides whether you actually follow up on the leads.

1. How do I get each lead? Email, an app, a dashboard, a phone alert? Pick what you'll actually check.
2. What happens with urgent calls? Are they flagged? Are they put through to you?
3. What happens with spam? Is it blocked, and do you pay for it?
4. Can I keep my number? You should be able to forward the calls you don't answer. See how to forward calls.

Test it like a customer

Answers on a website are one thing. Hearing it yourself is better, and it takes five minutes.

1. Call the demo from your phone.
2. Ask a real question your customers ask, like "Can you come Thursday?"
3. Give a name and number, and say what you need.
4. Check what you get after the call, and how fast.

Say you run a cleaning company and you try this at 7:00 PM from your kitchen. You ask whether they clean on Saturdays and want a quote for a three-bedroom house. A good receptionist answers the question, asks for your address and offers a time. A few minutes later, the lead is in your inbox with your name, number and what you asked for. If you have to dig for it, or half the details are missing, you know what your customers would get too.

Red flags

Some warning signs show up before you even make a test call:

• You can't find a price anywhere.
• Booking or Spanish is only on a much bigger plan than you need.
• You have to sign a year-long contract to start.
• You can't read what was said on a call.

How Cally24 answers the 12 questions

Here are our own answers, so you can hold them next to anyone else's:

See how Cally24 compares with Smith.ai, Ruby, Goodcall, Rosie and Dialzara, see pricing, or hear your own Cally receptionist, built from your website in 30 seconds.

Common questions