Receptionist Solutions: Your Options and How to Connect Them

There are four broad ways to cover your business phone. Each handles a different slice of the work, and combining two of them is an option worth considering.

An in-house receptionist is a salaried person you employ. The US Bureau of Labor Statistics describes receptionist work as including greeting visitors, scheduling, and office tasks beyond just phone answering, so compare the full scope of the job rather than treating a phone service as a complete employee replacement.

A human answering service or virtual receptionist company answers calls with trained people. Providers such as Ruby and Smith.ai offer human receptionist plans, and AnswerConnect offers around-the-clock live answering by people. Pricing models differ: Ruby advertises plans starting at $245 per month, while Smith.ai uses per-call pricing, so always compare the current quote, what's included, overage rates, hours, and contract terms before deciding.

An AI receptionist answers calls with software. AllDayDesk, the product on this site, is an AI receptionist that answers calls around the clock using the business information you save. It takes messages, answers questions from your saved details, and books new appointments into the built-in AllDayDesk calendar once you've configured your services and availability. An optional Google Calendar connection is available in Settings after you connect and authorize your Google account. Calls, transcripts, summaries, and bookings show up in your dashboard. A voicemail box or auto attendant is the simplest option: callers hear a greeting and press keys or leave a message. There's no per-call service to compare quotes for, but callers do the work themselves.

• In-house employee: broadest scope, a salaried position, limited to working hours
• Human answering service: real people; pricing models vary by provider (per call, per minute, or monthly plans), so compare current quotes
• AI receptionist: software answers, takes messages, and books appointments; available around the clock
• Voicemail or auto attendant: no per-call service to compare, but callers must leave messages or navigate menus

Start with your call pattern, not with the product. Estimate how many calls you get in a typical week, how many arrive when you're busy or closed, and how many are simple questions versus appointment requests.

If most calls need judgment, negotiation, or handling of sensitive matters, human coverage may fit better. If most calls are routine questions, scheduling requests, and messages you can return later, an AI receptionist handles that pattern well. If your call volume is very low, a well-written voicemail greeting may be enough for now.

Also decide what happens to appointments. AllDayDesk books new appointments into its built-in dashboard calendar by default, and can optionally connect to Google Calendar in Settings. Changes to existing appointments are passed to you as requests, not confirmed changes, so you stay in control of your schedule. When the caller asks something the system doesn't know, such as a price or an answer not in your saved business information, it takes a message instead of guessing.

Finally, check the transfer rules. AllDayDesk can transfer calls to you, but only after you configure a destination and the rules for when transfers happen. A transfer is not guaranteed to be picked up or answered immediately, so think about which calls genuinely need to interrupt you.

• Count your weekly calls and how many land outside working hours
• Sort calls into questions, scheduling, and messages you return later
• Decide where new appointments should land: the built-in calendar or Google Calendar
• Set transfer rules only for calls you truly want to take live

A common approach is to keep the phone number customers already know and forward calls to the receptionist solution. AllDayDesk works this way: you keep your public number and forward calls to it. The exact forwarding steps depend on your phone carrier or phone system, so check which product you actually have before following any instructions.

Examples from published carrier guides: Verizon mobile uses *72 plus the destination for all-call forwarding and *71 for unanswered calls, with *73 to turn it off. T-Mobile uses codes like **21*1 followed by the destination for unconditional forwarding. AT&T Phone for Business uses *72 for all calls, *92 for no-answer, and *90 for busy, while AT&T Collaborate uses a different set. Spectrum Business Voice manages forwarding through the SpectrumBusiness.net portal rather than star codes. Optimum Business Phone uses *72 with a confirmation step, and Vonage Business Communications enables forwarding from its Call Forwarding setting.

One important limit: Google Voice can forward calls to linked phone numbers, but Google explicitly says forwarding calls from a Google Voice number to an automated system is unsupported. If your business runs on Google Voice, confirm your options with Google support before signing up for any automated receptionist.

If your carrier isn't listed here, look up the forwarding instructions for your exact product name on your bill or in your account portal, since the same carrier often uses different codes for wireless, landline, and business VoIP products.

• Identify your exact phone product before using any forwarding code
• All-call forwarding sends every call; conditional forwarding sends only busy, unanswered, or unreachable calls
• Test forwarding with a real call from another phone after activating it
• Google Voice numbers cannot be forwarded to automated systems per Google's own documentation

Setup starts by choosing your type of business or entering its website, then checking the business details the system pulled together. You hear a personalized sample of how your receptionist would sound, and the sample creates no real booking. Then you choose your phone setup and forward your existing number using your carrier's instructions.

After that, calls your receptionist handles show up in the dashboard with transcripts, summaries, and any bookings. New appointments go to the built-in AllDayDesk calendar by default once you've configured your services and availability, or to Google Calendar if you connect it in Settings. Most owners answer their own phone, so transfers are optional: you configure the destination and the rules for when a caller gets passed to you.

• Enter your business type or website and confirm the details
• Listen to the personalized sample before going live
• Forward your existing number using your carrier's steps
• Review calls, transcripts, and bookings in the dashboard