How to set up an AI receptionist: from call log to first week of live calls

Before you set up: count your calls and write your answers

Setup goes faster with three things ready. First, four weeks of call records: how many calls, how long, how many after hours. Second, the questions callers actually ask: hours, service area, quotes and booking rules. Third, a decision on which calls must reach a person, and the phone number that should ring for them. The steps below use My AI Front Desk's help center as the worked example, read on October 23, 2026. The same preparation applies to any AI receptionist.

Setup steps: from sign-up to a working agent

• Create the account. The sign-up flow asks for an email address, business name and type, a few questions on how calls should be handled, the receptionist's name and an email verification code.
• Open Receptionist, then the Configure tab. A completion tracker shows which items are required, recommended or optional.
• Set the greeting, the voice and the languages.
• Add business information as text, a website address or uploaded documents, then add common questions and answers.
• Set in-call actions: transfer rules, text messages, an intake form and calendar booking.
• Turn on notifications so your team hears about calls and messages.

Write the knowledge base and transfer rules that carry the load

The agent answers from what you give it, so this step decides call quality. Use plain text for services, hours, areas and policies. A text entry can hold up to 100,000 characters, a website entry up to three addresses, and an uploaded PDF, DOCX or TXT file can be up to 20 MB; processing takes about three to five minutes. Add question-and-answer pairs in the words callers use.

For transfers, write each rule as a scenario, such as a caller asking for the manager, and attach a phone number. The help center describes hot transfers that can play a whisper summary for the person who answers and dial backup numbers, and a setting that returns the caller to the agent if the transfer fails. Write the rule for urgent callers first.

Test before launch: browser call, phone call and shared link

Run at least one call for each scenario you wrote: a booking, a quote question, an upset caller and an urgent one.

• Join Audio runs a call in your browser. Text sending and transfers do not work in it.
• Receive Call has the agent call your own phone. Test calls last up to 15 minutes, and this is the way to check transfers and texts.
• Share Demo copies a link so a colleague can try the agent and give feedback.
• Test calls need voice credits, and each one appears in your call log with a transcript and summary. Read them after every change.

Launch with forwarding, then verify the first week

Forward your business line to the number the service provisioned. The vendor says you can forward every call, or only calls nobody answers, after hours or on weekends. Starting with after-hours forwarding limits the risk while you learn.

Read every log for the first week. Where did the agent guess, which question was missing from the knowledge base, which calls should have transferred? Edit the knowledge base and rules, then test again. Recording and consent rules vary by state and profession, so confirm yours with a lawyer before you turn recording on.

The same steps on other services

Smith.ai describes a similar path: set up a profile, define goals and scenarios, run simulated calls in Quality Studio, apply suggested fixes, then go live, with about 15 minutes quoted for setup. To compare services before you start, see the small-business shortlist, and for plan limits see My AI Front Desk pricing.