Setting up the receptionist is a few short screens, one decision on each. Everything saves as you go, so you can leave and pick it up later, and nothing answers your callers until you say so.
You need to be an admin of your team to set it up.
Click Receptionist in the sidebar.
Click Get started.
Each screen has Back and Continue, and the ones you can come back to later have Skip for now. The bar at the top shows where you are, like "Step 3 of 7". On a wide screen, click a step's name to go back to it.
If you leave part-way, the Overview shows Finish setting up your receptionist. Click Continue setting up to carry on where you were.
This is what the receptionist tells callers: what you do, where and when. It's your Business Profile, the same one your Portfolio uses.
Under Fill from your website, type your website's address and click Fill in my details. It takes up to a minute.
Check each section. The tinted fields came from your website. Fill in anything it missed.
Switch on the days you're open under Opening hours. Setup won't go on without them. Out of these hours, the receptionist handles a call the same way as in them, unless you change your call flow to do something else, like only taking messages. See How to change your call flow.
Click Continue. It saves your details.
No website? Fill the sections in by hand. See How to fill in your business profile for what each one is for.
Pick one. The call flow is written around it, and you can change it any time.
Book a quote visit: it finds out about the job and books a visit in your calendar, when you're free and close enough.
Arrange a callback: it puts a time to ring them back in your calendar, when you're free.
Take their details: it finds out about the job and where it is, and passes it all on for you to get back to them.
Whichever you pick, it also answers questions about your business, takes messages, and puts callers through to you when they ask.
Once it knows what the job is, it asks these one at a time. Untick any you don't want, and add up to six of your own under Your own questions. See How to choose what your receptionist asks callers.
Type Your mobile. The receptionist texts you about calls on it, can put callers through to you, and rings it when it can't answer.
Choose when it answers: The receptionist answers every call, Ring me first in working hours, Ring me first, always or Choose the hours.
Click Continue.
It starts on Ring me first in working hours: you take the calls you can, and it answers the rest and everything out of hours. See How to choose when your receptionist answers.
When you click Continue, it starts writing your call flow from your business details. You'll see Writing your call flow from your business details while it does. It usually takes under a minute.
This step only shows if you picked Book a quote visit or Arrange a callback. Connect your own calendar so it only books when you're free and puts visits straight in it. Under Bookable people, click Ask to connect next to anyone else it books visits with. See How to choose who your receptionist books visits with.
Without a calendar, it books by your working hours alone and can double-book you. The button reads Skip for now until your own calendar is connected, then Continue.
Pick the kind of number, search by area code or town, pick one and click Use this number. It's yours straight away. See How to get your receptionist's phone number.
Under Give it a ring, click Call, allow your microphone and talk to it like a customer would. Or click Type and type instead. Test calls book nothing and text nobody. See How to make a test call.
Under If it can't answer, check the Fallback number: where calls go when it's paused, past its minutes or can't answer. It's your mobile unless you change it. Click Save fallback number if you change it.
Look down Before it goes live. Anything marked as needed has a Fix link.
Click Publish and go live.
If everything it needs is there, you'll see Your receptionist is live and the number it's answering. Click Finish.
It's published, but something it needs to answer calls is missing, usually its phone number. The screen lists what's left. Sort it, then put it live from the Overview or Settings. See How to put your receptionist live, pause it and publish changes.
Either your call flow is still being written, or it has a problem that would make calls go wrong. The page says Your call flow's problems need sorting before it can be published. Click Fix next to it to go to the first one.
You picked Take their details, which doesn't book anything. Pick another answer on What should a call end with? and the Calendar step comes back.
On a free trial the receptionist page says The receptionist starts with your plan instead. See Why the receptionist isn't on the free trial.
