How to Brief Your AI Receptionist: What to Write Down Before Go-Live

When a new receptionist starts, nobody expects them to answer every question on day one. You sit them down, walk them through the services, tell them what to say about pricing, show them where the calendar lives and explain which calls should go straight to the owner. An AI receptionist needs exactly the same briefing. The difference is that it will follow what you write down very literally, so the quality of the briefing shows up directly in the quality of the calls.

This guide covers what to include, how to phrase it so it works on a phone call, and how to keep it current once you are live.

1. The basics callers ask about every day

Start with the facts that make up most routine calls. Write them as plain sentences, the way you would say them out loud:

• Business name, and how you want it said on the phone.
• Address, with a landmark or parking note if people get lost.
• Opening hours, including lunch closures, seasonal hours and public holidays.
• Service area, if you travel to customers. List towns or postcodes rather than "the greater area".
• Website and the best email address for documents or photos.

2. Your services, in the words customers use

Callers rarely use your internal names for things. A dental patient asks for "a cleaning", not "a hygiene appointment". A homeowner says "my boiler is making a noise", not "a diagnostic visit". For each service, write what it is called inside the business, what customers usually call it, who it is for, how long it takes, and anything the caller needs to know or bring.

Just as important: list what you do not do. A clear "we don't service commercial units, but you could try a commercial specialist" is a much better call than a vague answer that leads to a wasted visit.

3. Pricing: decide what you are willing to say

Pricing is where briefings most often go wrong. Decide in advance which of these applies to each service:

• A fixed price the assistant can quote.
• A "from" price or range, with what changes it.
• A call-out or consultation fee, with what it covers.
• No price on the phone, with a reason and what happens instead (for example, a free quote visit).

Whatever you choose, make it consistent with your website. Callers notice when the phone and the site disagree.

4. Booking rules

If the assistant can book into your calendar, it needs the rules your team follows without thinking: appointment lengths per service, buffer time between jobs, which staff do which services, how far ahead people can book, the minimum notice for same-day slots, and your cancellation policy. Write down what information must be collected for a booking to be useful, such as name, phone number, address for site visits, and a short description of the problem.

5. When to hand off to a person

This is the most important section, and the one most often left vague. Write a short list of situations that should always reach a human, and say who and how:

• Emergencies, defined specifically for your business, for example an active leak, no heating in freezing weather, or severe pain.
• Complaints, or callers who are upset.
• Existing customers chasing a job already in progress.
• Anything involving money already paid, refunds or disputes.
• Any caller who asks for a person.

For each, say whether the call should be transferred live, during which hours, to which number, and what should happen if nobody answers. A handoff without a fallback is just a longer route to voicemail.

6. Tone and the few things never to say

Describe how you want callers to feel: warm and unhurried, brisk and efficient, reassuring. Give one or two example phrases you like. Then list anything the assistant must never do, such as diagnose a problem, promise a specific arrival time, or comment on a competitor. Short, specific rules work better than long style guides.

7. The questions you actually get

Ask your team to write down the questions they answered last week, in the caller's words. "Do you take card?", "Is there parking?", "Can I bring my child?", "Do you do weekends?". This list is often more useful than anything else in the briefing, because it is real. Answer each one in a sentence or two.

Phrase it for the ear, not the page

A phone answer is heard once. Keep answers short, put the important part first, and avoid tables, abbreviations and long lists of options. "We're open eight till six on weekdays and nine till one on Saturdays" works on the phone. A pasted opening-hours table does not.

Test before callers do

1. Call as a new customer with a simple booking.
2. Call with an awkward question you know is not in the briefing, and check the assistant says so and takes a message rather than guessing.
3. Call as an emergency and confirm the handoff reaches the right person.
4. Call as an upset customer and listen to how it is handled.
5. Read or listen to the first week of real calls and fix the briefing wherever an answer was wrong or clumsy.

Keep it current

A briefing goes stale the same way a website does: prices change, a service is added, holiday hours come round. Give one person ownership of it, and put a short review in the calendar every month and before every holiday period. Each time a caller asks something the assistant could not answer, add the answer.

Frequently asked questions

How long should the briefing be?

As long as it needs to be to cover your real calls, and no longer. Most small businesses can cover the essentials in a few pages. Clarity matters more than length.

Can I just give it my website?

Your website is a good starting point, but it is written to be read, not heard, and it rarely covers booking rules, handoff rules or what not to say. Use it as raw material and add the rest.

What happens when a caller asks something that is not covered?

A well-set-up assistant should say it does not have that information, take the caller's details and pass the question on, rather than invent an answer. Make that behaviour explicit in your briefing.

Brief your AI receptionist the way you would brief your best new hire: clearly, specifically, and with a plan for the calls it should not take.