Virtual Office Call Answering

A virtual office gives you a business address and phone presence without renting a front desk. Call answering fills the phone part of that setup: when someone calls your number, a receptionist answers in your business's name instead of the call going to voicemail or ringing an empty office.

AllDayDesk is an AI receptionist built for this. It answers using the business details you save, so callers hear answers about your hours, services, and location. When it doesn't know an answer, a price, or an appointment slot, it takes a message instead of guessing. New appointments are booked on the built-in AllDayDesk dashboard calendar once you've set up your services and availability, and an optional Google Calendar connection is available in Settings after you connect and authorize your Google account.

Because it's software, you can review what happened: calls, transcripts, summaries, and bookings are visible in your dashboard. Changes to existing appointments are sent to you as requests, not confirmed changes, so you stay in control of your schedule.

• Answers calls around the clock using your saved business information
• Takes a message when an answer, price, or appointment time is unknown
• Books new appointments on the dashboard calendar, with optional Google Calendar in Settings
• Shows calls, transcripts, summaries, and bookings in your dashboard
• Sends existing-appointment changes to you as requests, not confirmed edits

You don't need a new number. You keep your public business number and forward your calls to AllDayDesk. The exact forwarding steps depend on your phone service, so check which product you actually have before following any instructions.

For example, Verizon mobile uses *72 plus the 10-digit destination for all-call forwarding, *71 for unanswered calls, and *73 to turn it off, done from the phone while in coverage. T-Mobile uses codes like **21*1 followed by the destination and # for unconditional forwarding. Comcast Business features are managed through My Account or the Comcast Business App, and which steps apply depends on whether you have Voice Mobility, Business Voice, or VoiceEdge. Spectrum Business Voice forwarding is set in the SpectrumBusiness.net portal under Voice Settings or Forwarding Manager.

One important limit: Google Voice does not support forwarding calls from a Google Voice number to an automated system, so a Google Voice line is not a compatible path to AllDayDesk. If you're unsure which service you have, look at your bill or contact your provider, and verify forwarding worked by placing a test call from another phone.

• Keep your public number and forward calls to AllDayDesk
• Forwarding instructions depend on your carrier and exact product
• Verify forwarding with an outside test call after setup
• Google Voice numbers cannot be forwarded to an automated system

Setup starts on the AllDayDesk site. Choose your business or enter its website, then check the business details the system found and correct anything that's wrong. Next, hear a personalized sample of how your receptionist will sound. The sample is a preview only and creates no real booking.

After you're happy with the sample, choose your phone setup and follow the forwarding instructions for your provider. Once calls are coming in, configure your services and availability so the receptionist can book new appointments on the built-in dashboard calendar. If you use Google Calendar, you can optionally connect and authorize your account in Settings.

From then on, check your dashboard to review calls, read transcripts and summaries, see booked appointments, and handle any appointment-change requests the receptionist passed along to you.

• Choose your business or enter its website, then verify the details
• Listen to a personalized sample (no real booking is made)
• Choose phone setup and forward your number per your provider's steps
• Configure services and availability to enable appointment booking
• Optionally connect Google Calendar in Settings

Sometimes a caller needs a person. AllDayDesk can transfer calls to you, but transfers only work after you configure a destination number and rules for when they happen. A transfer is not guaranteed to be picked up or answered immediately, so treat transfers as one tool among several rather than a promise.

When the receptionist doesn't know an answer, a price, or an available appointment time, it takes a message instead of guessing. You see those messages in your dashboard along with the call transcript and summary, so you can call people back with accurate information.

Many owners answer their own phones during the hours they're available and rely on the service the rest of the time. If that's you, configure transfer rules for the hours you want to be reachable and let ordinary message taking cover everything else.

• Transfers require you to configure a destination and rules
• Neither pickup nor immediate response is guaranteed on a transfer
• Unknown answers, prices, or times become messages in your dashboard
• Many owners handle their own calls when available and use the service the rest of the time

You have three broad choices for a virtual office phone: voicemail, an AI receptionist like AllDayDesk, or a human virtual receptionist service. Voicemail is the cheapest but gives callers no answers and no booking. Human services, such as Ruby (plans advertised from $245 per month as of October 9, 2026) or Smith.ai's per-call human receptionist pricing, put real people on your line, with costs that depend on included allowance, overage rates, hours, and contract terms on your quote.

This comparison covers documented features and published starting prices, not hands-on testing, and AllDayDesk is this site's own product. An in-house receptionist does more than answer phones — the Bureau of Labor Statistics describes receptionist duties that include greeting visitors and office tasks — so a phone service is not a full employee replacement.

A practical way to decide: if your callers mostly ask routine questions and want to book times, an AI receptionist handles that around the clock at a predictable monthly cost. If your calls involve judgment-heavy conversations that need a person's discretion, a human service or answering them yourself may fit better. Some owners combine approaches, using each where it works best.

• Voicemail: lowest cost, no answers or booking for callers
• AI receptionist (AllDayDesk): answers from your saved info, books appointments, around-the-clock availability
• Human virtual receptionists: real people, pricing varies by plan and quote (Ruby advertised from $245/month; Smith.ai uses per-call pricing)
• In-house receptionist: full front-desk scope, not just phone coverage