Setting Up Your AI Receptionist: A Step-by-Step Guide

An AI receptionist can transform your plumbing business - capturing leads while you're on jobs, answering calls at 2am, and qualifying customers before you even speak to them. But setting one up might sound intimidating if you're not tech-savvy.

Good news: it's actually straightforward. This guide walks you through the entire process, step by step.

What You Need Before Starting

Before diving into setup, gather these details:

Your business name (how you want the AI to introduce itself)
Your service area (suburbs/regions you cover)
Services you offer (and any you don't - like gas if you're not certified)
Your typical availability (for booking appointments)
Emergency vs non-emergency criteria (what counts as urgent)

Having these ready will make configuration much faster.

Step 1: Configure Your Greeting

The greeting is what callers hear first. Keep it natural and professional. Here's a template that works well:

"Thanks for calling [Business Name], this is our automated assistant. I can help you book an appointment or get information about our services. How can I help you today?"

Tips for a good greeting:

Be upfront that it's an automated assistant (builds trust)
Keep it under 10 seconds (people are impatient)
End with an open question (invites the caller to explain their need)

Step 2: Set Up Qualifying Questions

The AI needs to gather information to qualify the lead. Configure it to ask:

What's the issue? (Lets you understand the job type)
Is this urgent/emergency? (Helps prioritise response)
What's the property address? (Confirms they're in your service area)
What's their name and best contact number? (Ensures you can reach them)

The AI will ask these conversationally, not like a robotic checklist. If the caller mentions something urgent upfront, it adapts accordingly.

Step 3: Define Your Service Area

Tell the AI which areas you service. Be specific - list suburbs, postcodes, or draw a service radius. When someone calls from outside your area, the AI can politely explain you don't service that location.

This saves you from wasting time on leads you can't serve.

Step 4: Configure Call Routing

Decide what happens with different types of calls:

Emergency calls: You might want these forwarded to your mobile immediately
Standard enquiries: AI captures details and texts you for follow-up
Existing customers: Can be handled differently if you have caller ID matching
After-hours calls: Full AI handling with appointment booking for next available slot

Most plumbers set emergencies to forward immediately and everything else to text notification.

Step 5: Connect Your Calendar

For the AI to book appointments, it needs access to your calendar. Connect your Google Calendar or set up availability windows manually.

Configure:

Working hours (when appointments can be booked)
Buffer time between appointments (for travel)
Appointment duration defaults (by job type if possible)
How far ahead customers can book

Step 6: Set Up Notifications

Configure how you want to be notified about calls:

SMS notifications: Get a text summary after each call
Email summaries: Daily digest of all calls
App notifications: Real-time alerts in the pipehq app

Most plumbers use SMS for immediate awareness, plus email for end-of-day review.

Step 7: Test Before Going Live

Before routing real calls to your AI receptionist, test it thoroughly:

Call your own number and go through the full flow
Test different scenarios (emergency, standard, out of area)
Check that notifications arrive correctly
Verify calendar bookings appear properly
Have a friend call and give honest feedback

Fix any issues before going live. It's better to catch problems in testing than with real customers.

Step 8: Go Live and Monitor

Once testing looks good, activate the AI receptionist for real calls. For the first few days:

Monitor call recordings to ensure quality
Check that bookings are appearing correctly
Note any scenarios the AI struggles with
Adjust configuration based on real-world performance

Most plumbers find they need minor tweaks in the first week, then it runs smoothly from there.

Common Questions

Will customers know it's AI?

We recommend being transparent about it. Most customers don't mind - they'd rather talk to an AI that answers immediately than wait for a callback. The AI is designed to sound natural and helpful.

What if the AI can't handle a call?

The AI knows its limitations. If a call gets too complex, it offers to take a message and have you call back. You can also set keywords that trigger immediate forwarding to your mobile.

How long does setup actually take?

About 30-60 minutes for basic setup. Our team walks you through it during onboarding, so you're not figuring it out alone.

Ready to Get Started?

Setting up an AI receptionist is one of the highest-impact changes you can make to your business. Never miss another call, capture every lead, and let the AI handle routine enquiries while you focus on plumbing.

Book a demo and we'll show you exactly how it works for your business.