An AI receptionist is only as good as what you teach it. Spend 20 minutes on setup and it'll handle calls confidently. Skip this and callers will get vague, unhelpful responses.
Here are the five things your AI needs to know before its first call.
1. Your services and pricing
This is the most common question callers ask. Your AI should be able to answer: "What do you charge for a haircut?" or "How much is a service call?" with a real, specific answer.
What to include:
- Every service you offer, with a clear name
- Pricing — exact where possible, ranges where variable
- Duration for each service (important for booking)
- Any common add-ons or packages
If your pricing varies by job (e.g. trades work), give the AI a realistic range and an explanation: "Our electricians charge between $120–$180 per hour depending on the job. We can give you a more accurate quote once we understand what you need."
2. Your availability and booking rules
The AI needs to know when you can take bookings — and any rules around them.
What to include:
- Business hours
- Days you're available
- How far in advance you book (e.g. "we typically book 1–2 weeks out")
- Any blackout periods or seasonal variations
- Minimum booking notice (e.g. "we need at least 24 hours notice")
- Cancellation policy
If you use Google Calendar or Square, the AI can check real-time availability automatically. But it still needs to know your general rules.
3. Your service area
For location-based businesses — trades, mobile services, delivery — callers often ask "do you come to [suburb]?"
What to include:
- Suburbs or postcodes you service
- Any areas you don't cover
- Whether you charge a travel fee and when
- Your base location / main office
A clear service area prevents the AI from booking jobs you can't take — and avoids awkward conversations when a technician can't make it to a caller's location.
4. Your FAQs
Every business has the same 10 questions it gets asked repeatedly. Document them and your AI will handle them confidently.
Common FAQs to include:
- Do you offer emergency / after-hours service?
- Are you licensed / insured?
- What payment methods do you accept?
- Do you provide quotes before the work?
- How long does [specific service] take?
- Can I reschedule or cancel?
If you're not sure what your FAQs are, look at your voicemails and email enquiries from the past month. The same questions appear over and over.
5. What to do when the AI can't help
Not every call can be handled by AI. A complex complaint, a very specific technical question, or a caller who simply wants to speak to a person — these need a human.
Define your handoff protocol:
- Who should the AI offer to connect callers to?
- What's the callback timeframe you can reliably commit to? ("someone will call you back within 2 hours" — only if you can actually deliver this)
- Is there an urgent escalation path for genuine emergencies?
A good AI handles this honestly and gracefully — "That's a great question for our team. Can I arrange a callback for you?"
Turnless walks you through all of this during onboarding. Most businesses are set up and taking calls in under 15 minutes. Start here.