AI Receptionist for Australian Businesses
Telonline AI Reception is an AI receptionist that answers your business calls. It answers callers’ questions with the wording you give it, routes each call to the right person or team, and puts the caller through or takes a message and emails it. It runs inside your hosted phone system with us, follows the rules you set, and runs on our own equipment here in Australia.
Missed calls go to the next business
Most small businesses don’t have someone free to answer the phone all day. It rings while you’re with a client, out on a job, at lunch or after you’ve gone home. The caller gets voicemail, and plenty of them hang up and ring someone else.
A full-time receptionist fixes that, but it’s a big cost for a small office. An answering service helps, but it sits outside your phone system, so getting a caller through to the right person isn’t simple.
How the AI receptionist works
It answers the call
AI Reception is set up as an extension on your phone system. You choose which calls go to it: every call, calls after hours, or calls your reception can’t get to. Every call starts by telling the caller they’re speaking with an AI assistant and that the call may be recorded.
It answers questions and routes the call
The caller says what they need. If it’s a question you’ve given it an answer for, like your hours, where you are or what you do, it answers in your words. If they ask for a person or a team, or the call is about a topic you’ve set up, it routes the call to whoever handles it.
It puts them through or takes a message
If the person is free, the call goes to their extension. If they’re not free, AI Reception takes the caller’s name, number and reason for calling, and emails the message to that staff member. Every call and message also shows up in your online portal, so you can see what came in while you were busy.
You set the rules
We set AI Reception up with you. After that, you change it yourself in the portal, with no need to ring us to update a greeting or someone’s hours.
- Your people and teams. Staff names come straight off your phone system when we set you up.
- Your business hours, and each person’s own hours.
- What it says, word for word: your greeting, the answers to common questions, and what callers hear when someone’s out.
- Where a call goes when someone can’t take it.
- How long call details, recordings, transcripts and messages are kept.
- Who in your business can log in, and what each login can do.
Every change is recorded: who made it, when and what changed.
Part of your phone system
Many AI receptionists are a separate service you forward calls to. AI Reception sits inside your hosted phone system as a normal extension. Your phone system still does all the call handling, so transfers go to your own extensions and your call flows stay as they are.
If you’re already on our hosted phone system, we add AI Reception to your service. If you’re not, we move your phone system across, keep your existing numbers, including 1300 and 1800 numbers, and set up AI Reception at the same time. We can supply the business phone lines, business internet and 4G internet backup as well, so one business looks after all of it.
We’re a telecommunications business looking after clients Australia-wide. We set up your phone system and AI Reception, and you deal with us directly when something needs changing.
Who it’s for
AI Reception suits businesses that get more calls than they can comfortably answer:
- Accounting and professional offices, where staff are with clients and calls need to reach the right person.
- Service businesses and trades, where the team is out on jobs.
- Offices with one receptionist who needs cover for lunch, leave and busy periods.
- Businesses that want calls answered after hours, with the messages waiting in the morning.
Where your callers’ information is kept
Speech recognition, the AI and the records it keeps all run on equipment we control, in Australia. Your calls aren’t sent to an overseas AI service to be understood or answered. Two things do pass through other companies on the way to you. Messages go by email, through the email services that carry email for us and for you. The portal reaches you over the internet through Cloudflare, the same network that carries our website.
Your administrator decides who in your business has a login and what each one can do. Administrators confirm their login with a code sent by email, and can choose to trust their own browser for 30 days. We can see your calls too, and use them only to run and support your service.
Recordings, and how long anything is kept
Every call starts by telling the caller they’re talking to an AI and that the call may be recorded. That notice can’t be turned off. We record only the part of the call with the AI, and our recording stops once the call is transferred. If call recording is also switched on for your phone service, that records the whole call, including after a transfer, and is kept under your phone service. Call details, recordings, transcripts and messages are each kept for the period you choose in the portal, then deleted.
It gives the answers you’ve written
It answers questions with the wording you’ve given it. Like any receptionist it can mishear a caller, so treat its messages the way you’d treat any message taken for you, and call back on anything important.
It isn’t an emergency service. Anyone with an emergency should ring 000.
AI Receptionist Pricing
One flat monthly price, month to month, with no charge per call. Pick the plan that fits how many calls AI Reception answers for you.
| Starter | Business | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $99 a month inc GST | $199 a month inc GST |
| Calls answered by AI Reception | Up to 150 a month | Up to 400 a month |
| Put through or message emailed | Yes | Yes |
| Your own portal, rules and wording | Yes | Yes |
Setup is $275 inc GST, once.
Starter for $79 a month with our phone system and internet
When your hosted phone system and business internet are both with us, Starter drops to $79 a month inc GST and there’s no setup fee.
If you’re regularly answering more calls than your plan covers, we’ll talk to you about moving up a plan. One busy month doesn’t count. For more than 400 calls a month, we’ll quote.
AI receptionist FAQs
What is an AI receptionist?
An AI receptionist answers your business calls for you. Telonline AI Reception answers callers’ questions, routes each call to the right person or team, and puts the caller through or takes a message and emails it to that person. It runs on your hosted phone system with us.
Will callers know they’re talking to an AI?
Yes. Every call starts by telling the caller they’re speaking with an AI assistant and that the call may be recorded. That can’t be turned off.
What happens if the person they want isn’t free?
AI Reception takes the caller’s name, number and reason for calling and emails the message to that staff member. You can also see every message in the portal.
Can we still answer calls ourselves?
Yes. You choose which calls go to AI Reception: every call, calls after hours, or calls your reception can’t get to.
Do I need to change my phone system?
AI Reception runs on our hosted phone system. If you’re already on it, nothing changes on your phones. If you’re not, we move your phone system across and keep your existing numbers.
Where is my callers’ information kept?
On equipment we control in Australia. Your calls aren’t sent to an overseas AI service to be understood or answered. Messages reach you by email, and the portal reaches you over the internet through Cloudflare.
Are calls recorded?
We record the part of the call with the AI, and our recording stops when the call is transferred. If call recording is switched on for your phone service, that records the whole call. You choose how long our recordings and transcripts are kept, from 7 days up. Your staff need to be told their calls may be recorded, and we give you a staff notice for that.
What if it gets something wrong?
It can mishear a caller, like any receptionist, so check messages and call back on anything important. You can see each call in the portal. If AI Reception can’t take a call, the call goes to a backup number you give us wherever possible.
Can it book appointments?
Not at the moment. Today it answers calls, puts callers through and takes messages.
Can it handle emergency calls?
No. It isn’t an emergency service and shouldn’t be set up to deal with emergencies. Anyone with an emergency should ring 000.
How much does an AI receptionist cost?
AI Reception starts at $99 a month including GST for up to 150 calls, or $199 a month for up to 400 calls, plus a one-off $275 setup. With your hosted phone system and business internet both with us, Starter is $79 a month and setup is free. It’s month to month, with no charge per call.
Can I hear it before I decide?
Yes. Book a demo and we’ll show you how it would answer calls like yours.
Hear it answer a call
Tell us a little about your business and how you handle calls now. We’ll set up a demo so you can hear how AI Reception would answer calls like yours.
You can also call 1300 088 088 or email [email protected].