AI receptionist FAQ

What is an AI receptionist?

An AI receptionist is software that answers your business phone with a natural-sounding voice, any hour of the day. It greets callers, answers questions from your own business information, books appointments, takes messages, and passes urgent calls to a person, so you stop losing customers to voicemail.

What is AssistStaff?

AssistStaff is an AI receptionist for small businesses such as home services, law firms, and salons. It answers calls 24/7 in English, Spanish, and Korean, books appointments on your Google Calendar, takes messages, transfers urgent calls, and logs every caller with a transcript in a built-in CRM. It is run by Taskflowify, LLC in Houston, Texas.

How do I get started?

Getting started takes four steps:

1. Sign up and complete the onboarding flow.
2. Add your business information: hours, services, policies, FAQs, and any documents callers ask about.
3. Set up your receptionist: its name, greeting, and calendar connection.
4. Use the AssistStaff number included with your plan: forward your existing business number to it, or give callers the new number to dial directly, and go live.

How long does setup take?

Most businesses go live in minutes: forward your number, add your business information, and the receptionist starts answering. You can keep improving its answers as you read call transcripts. If you would rather have help, setup is optional and one-time: Self-Serve $0, Guided Setup $149, Custom Build $499.

Do I need any technical skills to set up AssistStaff?

No. Everything is set up in a visual dashboard: adding business information, setting up the receptionist, connecting your phone number, and managing contacts. No coding is required.

Should callers be told they are talking to AI?

We recommend it. The voice sounds natural, but saying so up front in the greeting builds trust and sets the right expectations, for example "Thanks for calling, this is the virtual assistant for your business." You write the greeting, so you control exactly what callers hear.

How much does an AI receptionist cost?

AssistStaff plans run from $29 to $249 a month: Business Starter $29 a month (100 voice minutes); Business Essential $69 a month (250 voice minutes); Business Growth $129 a month (600 voice minutes); Business Pro $249 a month (1,200 voice minutes). Optional one-time setup help: Self-Serve $0, Guided Setup $149, Custom Build $499.

What is the difference between an AI receptionist, a virtual receptionist, and an answering service?

An AI receptionist is software that answers every call itself, 24/7, and can book appointments and look up your business information during the call. A virtual receptionist usually means a remote human receptionist who answers on your behalf during set hours. An answering service uses live operators who mostly take messages; they commonly charge per minute or per call. An AI receptionist handles routine calls around the clock at a flat monthly price, while a person can handle more unusual conversations; the right fit depends on your call volume and how complex your calls are.

What billing intervals do you offer?

Monthly, semi-annual (save 10%), and annual (save 15%). You choose your interval at checkout.

How does payment work?

Payments are processed securely through Stripe. We accept major credit and debit cards. Your subscription renews automatically at the end of each billing period unless you cancel.

Can I cancel my subscription?

Yes, any time, from the Billing page in your dashboard. Your plan stays active until the end of the period you have paid for, and then it ends. We do not give refunds for partial periods.

Is there a free trial?

We do not offer a free trial, but we do offer a free demo. Use the contact form to book one. On the demo we talk through what your business needs and make sure AssistStaff is a good fit. If it is, we set up your account and our support team helps you build your solution.

How does the voice agent work?

Your receptionist answers inbound calls in a natural voice and uses your business information (hours, services, policies, FAQs, and documents) to answer questions. During the call it can book appointments, take messages, create follow-up tasks, and transfer the caller to you.

Can it book appointments on my calendar?

Yes. Connect your Google Calendar and the receptionist checks your availability, books and reschedules appointments during the live call, then emails the caller a confirmation when an email is on file. A plumber can fill service slots, a law firm can book consultations, and a salon can book cuts and color without anyone picking up the phone.

What happens when it cannot answer? Can it transfer to a person?

Yes. When a question is outside what it knows, or a caller asks for a person, it can transfer the call to you or your staff. If nobody picks up, it takes the details and sets up a callback, and it can create a follow-up task. You decide which calls get transferred.

Can it handle urgent and after-hours calls?

Yes. It answers nights, weekends, and holidays. When a call sounds urgent, such as a burst pipe or no heat, it flags the call and transfers it to you or alerts you, and it takes full details on everything else so you can follow up in the morning.

Does it speak Spanish and Korean?

Yes. AssistStaff answers in English, Spanish, and Korean. The language for each caller comes from the preferred language saved on their contact, and Korean calls use a native Korean voice.

Can it make outbound calls too?

Yes. You can place outbound calls from the dashboard for follow-ups, appointment reminders, and customer outreach. Every outbound call is logged to the contact automatically, just like inbound calls.

How many calls can it handle at once?

It depends on your plan. Calls answered at the same time: Starter 2, Essential 3, Growth 7, Pro 15. Every caller gets a real answer instead of a busy signal or hold music, up to that limit.

Can I customize the receptionist's voice, name, and greeting?

Yes. Choose a voice from several options, and set the receptionist's name, greeting, conversation style, and how it introduces your business. The Pro plan adds a custom voice and custom prompts.

What phone numbers are supported?

Every plan includes a US phone number. Callers can dial it directly, or you can keep your existing business number and forward calls to it from your current phone service.

Are calls recorded and transcribed?

Every call is transcribed. You can review transcripts, search past conversations, and check how the receptionist did from the dashboard. Call recording is off unless the account owner turns it on. When it is on, only calls that match your recording rules are recorded: contacts you set to always be recorded, contacts with tags you pick, callers who are not in your contacts, or calls where the caller says a phrase you pick (a recording started by a phrase begins at that point in the call). Recordings are stored as audio in cloud storage and play back from the Calls page. Transcripts and recordings are kept while your account is active, you can delete them at any time, and they are erased when your account is removed. We never use call recordings to train AI models. You are responsible for giving callers any notice and getting any consent your location's law requires; you can turn on a built-in recording notice in Settings.

Is it legal to record calls in Texas?

Texas is a one-party-consent state, which generally means a call can be recorded when one person on the call agrees. Recording in our service is off by default. If you turn it on and your callers are in other states, some states require everyone on the call to agree, so you are responsible for giving any notice your callers' location requires. This is general information, not legal advice.

What is the knowledge base?

The knowledge base is where your business information lives: PDFs, text files, FAQs, service lists, and policies. AssistStaff turns these documents into searchable pieces that your receptionist checks during every call so it answers from your facts.

What file types can I upload?

PDFs, plain text files, and common document formats. The content is processed automatically and becomes available to the receptionist during calls.

How does the receptionist use my documents to answer?

When a caller asks a question, the receptionist searches your knowledge base for the most relevant information and uses it to answer. That way it answers from your actual business details, not generic information.

Can I update the knowledge base after going live?

Yes. Add, update, or remove documents at any time. The receptionist uses the updated information on the next call.

Does AssistStaff include a CRM?

Yes. Contacts are created automatically from incoming calls, with call history, transcripts, notes, and activity attached. You can also add contacts by hand and organize them with tags and custom fields.

Are contacts created automatically from calls?

Yes. When someone calls, their contact record is created or updated with the caller's details, the call transcript, and anything done during the call. No manual data entry.

Can I customize contact fields for my business type?

Yes. You can add custom fields that fit your business. For example, a home-services company might track the service address and equipment type, a law firm might track the matter type and how the client heard about the firm, and a salon might track a preferred stylist.

Does it work with ServiceTitan, Jobber, or other business software?

Not today. AssistStaff works with Google Calendar and Google Workspace (Gmail, Drive, and Calendar). It does not connect to field-service or practice software such as ServiceTitan, Jobber, or Housecall Pro yet. Calls, contacts, and appointments are kept in the built-in CRM and on your Google Calendar.

Does AssistStaff have task management?

Yes. Create tasks, set due dates, assign them to team members, and track completion. The receptionist can also create tasks during calls, such as a follow-up when a caller asks for a callback.

Are there reminders and notifications?

Yes. Set reminders on tasks and notes so follow-ups do not slip. Overdue tasks are shown in your dashboard task list.

Can I send text messages through AssistStaff?

Yes, for transactional messages such as appointment confirmations, callback confirmations, and follow-ups to customers who gave you their number. Bulk marketing texts are not permitted. Text conversations are logged to the contact automatically.

How is my data protected?

Traffic between your browser and our website is encrypted with TLS. Passwords are stored only as one-way hashes, and MFA secrets and connected-provider credentials are encrypted with AES-256. Role-based access controls, multi-factor authentication (MFA), nightly encrypted backups, and automated security scanning protect your account and business data.

Do you sell my data?

No. We do not sell, rent, or trade your personal information or business data. We share data only with essential service providers (payment processing, cloud hosting, and AI and phone services) that are contractually required to protect it. See our Privacy Policy for details.

Is MFA (multi-factor authentication) supported?

Yes. Use an authenticator app such as Google Authenticator or Authy, or codes sent by text message. Set either up from your account settings.

Where is my data stored?

On servers in the United States, with nightly encrypted database backups. Our Privacy Policy lists the AI and phone providers that process call data to deliver the service.

What are my privacy rights?

As a Texas-based company, we comply with the Texas Data Privacy and Security Act (TDPSA). You have the right to access, correct, delete, and port your personal data, and to opt out of targeted advertising or data sales. California residents have additional rights under the CCPA/CPRA. See our Privacy Policy for complete details.

How do I get support?

Customers get support 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, through the Service Desk in their AssistStaff dashboard. How tickets work and our reply times are in the Support Policy document there. Not a customer yet? Send us a message through the contact form.

Can multiple team members use the same account?

Yes. Each plan includes a set number of team seats. Invite team members, assign roles, and control what each person can see.

What browsers are supported?

AssistStaff works in current versions of Chrome, Firefox, Safari, and Edge.