On request
A caller who asks for a person is transferred, always. The receptionist does not argue.
AI receptionist, explained
A receptionist that answers every call, and knows when to hand it over.
An AI receptionist answers the phone in your business name, works out what the caller wants, books or takes a message, and transfers to a person when your rules say so. This page covers what it does on a call, how bilingual answering works and what you see afterwards.
- English and French on the same number
- Escalation rules you define
- A transcript of every conversation
Example
AI receptionist
Intent: booking · Confidence high
AI receptionistThanks for calling. How can I help today?
Inbound callerHi, I’d like to book a cleaning for next week, ideally Tuesday morning.
AI receptionistTuesday at 9:30 or 11:00 are open. Which works better?
Inbound caller9:30, please.
AI receptionistBooked. You’ll get a text confirmation. Anything else?
Appointment created in calendar
Transcript sent to front desk
Escalation rule: billing questions → office manager
An AI receptionist is a service that answers business calls with a natural conversation instead of a menu. It greets the caller, identifies what they need, answers questions from information you provide, books appointments where a calendar connection is scoped, takes messages, and transfers to a person according to rules you set. 3CTel's AI receptionist works in English and French and sends a transcript of every call.
What happens on a call
Answer
The call is answered in your business name, immediately, whether it is the first call of the day or the fifth at once. There is no hold and no menu to press through.
Understand
The caller says what they need in their own words. The receptionist recognizes a booking, a question, a message for someone or a situation that needs a person.
Act
It answers from the information you provided, offers available times and books where a calendar connection has been scoped, or takes a message with the caller's details.
Escalate
If the caller asks for a person, mentions something you flagged as urgent or the receptionist cannot resolve it, the call is transferred according to your rules.
Report
A transcript and a short summary reach the people you chose by email or in the app, so nothing said on the call is lost.
AI Receptionist
Answers, understands and books — in English and French.
Learn more: AI ReceptionistAppointment booking
Bookings taken by phone, confirmed by text, and handed to a person when needed.
Learn more: Appointment bookingAI receptionist guides
What an AI receptionist does, where it fits, and how to set it up so callers still reach a person.
Learn more: AI receptionist guidesEnglish and French, on the same number
Canadian businesses often need both languages, and the pattern of a French greeting followed by an English menu satisfies nobody. The AI receptionist greets in the language you choose and continues in the language the caller uses. A caller who switches mid-conversation is followed. Transcripts are delivered in the language of the call.
For businesses in Quebec, Ontario, New Brunswick and anywhere else with bilingual customers, this means one number and one receptionist rather than two of each.
Montreal
French-first greetings, bilingual menus and 514/438 numbers on one cloud system.
Learn more: MontrealOttawa
613 and 819 numbers on one system, bilingual by default, across the river.
Learn more: OttawaProfessional Services
Partner extensions, assistant coverage and call records for firms that bill their time.
Learn more: Professional ServicesEscalation rules you control
On keywords
Words or situations you list, such as an emergency, a complaint or a named account, transfer immediately to a person or a group.
By time
During hours, escalate to the front desk. After hours, take a message unless the situation is on the urgent list, which rings the on-call phone.
By destination
Sales questions go to the sales group, service to service, a named person to their extension. If nobody answers, the receptionist takes the message.
Boundaries
Topics the receptionist should not handle, such as pricing negotiations or medical advice, are passed to a person or captured as a message.
Call routing
Decide who answers, in what order, and what happens when they cannot.
Learn more: Call routingAfter-hours calls
A plan for every call that arrives after closing, on a weekend or on a holiday.
Learn more: After-hours callsCall routing
The rules that decide where each incoming call goes and what happens when nobody answers.
Learn more: Call routingWhat you see afterwards
Every conversation produces a transcript, a summary of what the caller wanted and what was done, and the caller's details. Bookings appear in the connected calendar. Messages reach the right person by email or in the app. If a call was transferred, the transcript up to the transfer travels with it so the person picking up knows what has been said.
Reviewing transcripts in the first weeks is how the receptionist improves: answers get added, escalation rules are tightened, and phrasing is adjusted to sound like your business.
Common situations and what the receptionist does
| Situation | What happens |
|---|---|
| Caller wants to book | Offers available times and books, where a calendar connection was scoped; otherwise takes details for a callback |
| Caller asks your hours, address or a common question | Answers from the information you provided |
| Caller asks for a person by name | Transfers to that extension; takes a message if unanswered |
| Caller describes an emergency you flagged | Transfers to the on-call destination immediately |
| Caller speaks French | Continues in French; transcript delivered in French |
| Caller asks something outside its scope | Explains it will have someone follow up and takes a message |
| All staff busy during the day | Answers overflow so the caller is not sent to voicemail |
AI receptionist vs answering service
Three ways to handle calls nobody can pick up, compared without a sales pitch.
Learn more: AI receptionist vs answering serviceAI phone answering service
AI, a human service or voicemail: which should take the calls you cannot?
Learn more: AI phone answering serviceQuestions Canadian businesses ask about AI receptionists
Will callers know they are speaking to an AI?
The receptionist can introduce itself as an automated assistant, and most businesses choose to do so. Callers generally respond well when the assistant is clear about what it can do and hands over quickly when asked. Being upfront also avoids the awkward moment where a caller assumes a person has been unhelpful.
Can the AI receptionist replace our front desk?
It can answer every call, but most businesses use it alongside people rather than instead of them: after hours, at lunch, during the busy hour and when everyone is with a customer. The front desk then handles the calls that need a person, with a transcript of what was already said. Where a business has no front desk at all, the receptionist is often the first one it has had.
How does it know about our business?
During planning you provide the information callers ask for: hours, location, services, common questions and answers, who handles what, and the situations that need a person. 3CTel configures the receptionist from that material and tests it on a temporary number with you before it takes real calls. Updates are made as the business changes.
Related pages.
AI Receptionist
Answers, understands and books — in English and French.
Learn more: AI ReceptionistAI phone answering service
AI, a human service or voicemail: which should take the calls you cannot?
Learn more: AI phone answering serviceAppointment booking
Bookings taken by phone, confirmed by text, and handed to a person when needed.
Learn more: Appointment bookingAfter-hours calls
A plan for every call that arrives after closing, on a weekend or on a holiday.
Learn more: After-hours callsAI receptionist vs answering service
Three ways to handle calls nobody can pick up, compared without a sales pitch.
Learn more: AI receptionist vs answering serviceMedical & Dental Clinics
Appointment lines, provider routing and after-hours coverage for clinics.
Learn more: Medical & Dental ClinicsFrequently asked questions.
Yes. Many businesses use it after hours and as daytime overflow only. When it answers is a routing rule you set.
Where a calendar connection is scoped during planning, yes. Availability is confirmed before activation because it depends on the calendar system you use.
No. Payment and pricing conversations are typically passed to a person or captured as a message.
It asks again, and if it still cannot help it takes a message or transfers, according to your rules. The transcript shows what happened so the setup can be improved.
Yes. It is configured and tested on a temporary number that you call yourself before it answers customers.
Plan what your AI receptionist should say.
Share your hours, services and who handles what. A specialist configures the receptionist, tests it with you on a temporary number and quotes it before activation.