You're on a roof, under a sink, or elbow-deep in drywall when your phone rings. You can't answer. The caller hangs up and dials the next contractor on Google. Sound familiar? Studies show that 62% of calls to small businesses go unanswered—and 85% of those callers never call back.
An AI receptionist fixes this permanently. It answers every call 24/7, asks your qualifying questions, books appointments on your calendar, and texts confirmations to the caller—all while you stay focused on the job. This guide walks you through setting one up in under 10 minutes.
What You'll Need
- A Queue Leads account (sign up here—7-day free trial, no credit card)
- Your business name and the type of work you do
- Your weekly availability (the hours you can take jobs)
- Your cell phone number (optional—for live call transfers)
Step 1: Sign Up for the AI Receptionist Plan
Head to queueleads.ai/auth/register and create your account. Select the AI Receptionist plan ($199/month, includes 500 AI minutes—roughly 170–250 calls). Your 7-day free trial starts immediately.
Step 2: Enter Your Business Information
Once logged in, navigate to Settings → AI Receptionist. Fill in three things:
- Business Name—This is how the AI greets callers. For example: “Hi, thanks for calling Mike's Plumbing!”
- Industry—Select your trade from the dropdown (plumber, painter, HVAC, electrician, landscaper, general contractor, or custom).
- Custom Greeting (optional)—Override the default greeting with your own wording if you prefer a specific tone.
Step 3: Choose Your Industry Template
This is the powerful part. When you select your industry, Queue Leads loads a pre-built set of qualifying questions tailored to your trade. The AI asks these questions on every call so you know exactly what the job is before you call back.
Here's what each template includes:
Plumber
- “What type of plumbing issue are you experiencing?”
- “Where in your home is the issue located?”
- “Would you say this is an emergency, or can it wait a day or two?”
- “Have you been able to shut off the water to that area?”
HVAC
- “Is this about your heating system, air conditioning, or both?”
- “Is this an emergency, such as no heat in winter or a complete system failure?”
- “Do you know approximately how old your system is?”
- “When was the last time it was serviced?”
Electrician
- “What electrical issue are you dealing with?”
- “Do you know approximately how old the wiring in your home is?”
- “Is this an emergency situation, like exposed wires or a power outage?”
- “Do you know if you have a fuse box or a circuit breaker panel?”
Painter
- “Is this an interior or exterior painting project?”
- “Is the space currently occupied or vacant?”
- “Roughly how many rooms or how large is the area that needs painting?”
- “When were you hoping to have this completed?”
Landscaper
- “What type of landscaping service are you looking for?”
- “Roughly how large is the area that needs work?”
- “Are you looking for a one-time service or ongoing maintenance?”
- “Do you have a budget range in mind?”
General Contractor
- “What type of project are you looking to have done?”
- “Do you know if this project will need any permits?”
- “Do you have a rough budget range in mind for this project?”
- “What is your ideal timeline for getting this started?”
You can use these templates as-is, reorder questions, add your own, or remove ones that don't apply. Mark questions as required or optional—the AI will always ask required questions but may skip optional ones if the conversation flows naturally.
Step 4: Set Your Availability Schedule
The AI needs to know when you're available so it can book appointments into open slots. Configure:
- Timezone—Select your timezone so the AI offers the right times to callers.
- Daily Hours—Set start and end times for each day of the week. Leave a day blank if you don't work that day.
- Slot Duration—How long each appointment is (15, 30, 45, or 60 minutes). Most home service pros use 30 or 60 minutes.
- Buffer Time—Add 0–30 minutes between appointments for travel time.
Tip: If you do emergency work, keep your availability wide. The AI will flag urgent calls so you can prioritize them.
Step 5: Pick Your AI Voice
Choose from two natural-sounding voices:
- Elliot—Male, professional tone. Good for contractors, electricians, and general trades.
- Savannah—Female, friendly tone. Popular with HVAC companies, painters, and landscapers.
You can also adjust the speaking speed from 0.8x (slower, more deliberate) to 1.2x (faster, more energetic). The default 1.0x works well for most businesses. Set the maximum call duration between 5 and 30 minutes—10 minutes is the default and handles most qualifying calls comfortably.
Step 6: Enable Live Call Transfer (Optional)
This is a game-changer for emergency trades. When enabled, the AI can transfer a caller directly to your cell phone during the conversation—no hang-up, no callback, just a seamless handoff.
To enable it:
- Toggle Enable Live Transfer to on.
- Enter your cell phone number (or your office number).
The AI is smart about when to transfer. If a caller describes a burst pipe, no heat in January, or exposed wires, it will offer to connect them with you immediately.
Step 7: Activate Your AI Receptionist
Click Set Up AI Receptionist. In about 30 seconds, the system will:
- Provision a dedicated local phone number for your business
- Create your AI assistant with all your custom settings
- Connect everything and mark your receptionist as active
That's it. Your AI receptionist is live and ready to take calls. You can forward your existing business number to the new AI number, add it to your Google Business listing, or put it on your truck wraps and yard signs.
What Happens When a Customer Calls
Here's the full flow from the caller's perspective:
- AI Answers—“Hi, thanks for calling [Your Business Name]! How can I help you today?”
- Qualifying Questions—The AI asks your pre-set questions in a natural, conversational way.
- Appointment Booking—The AI checks your availability and offers open time slots. The caller picks one.
- SMS Confirmation—The caller receives a text confirming the appointment date, time, and your business name.
- You Get Notified—You receive an email with the caller's phone number, their answers to every qualifying question, and the appointment details.
- Lead Created—The call appears in your receptionist dashboard with the full transcript, recording, and disposition.
If the caller has an emergency and you've enabled live transfer, the AI transfers them to your phone mid-conversation instead of booking an appointment.
Pro Tips by Trade
Plumbers & Electricians
Mark the urgency question as required. This ensures the AI always asks whether it's an emergency. Pair this with live call transfer so burst pipes and power outages reach you instantly.
HVAC Technicians
Enable live transfer and set wider availability during extreme weather seasons. A “no heat” call in January is time-sensitive—the AI recognizes this and will offer to transfer immediately.
Painters & Landscapers
Your jobs are less urgent, so focus on capturing project details. The default template questions about scope, timeline, and budget give you everything you need to prepare an accurate estimate before calling back.
General Contractors
Budget and timeline questions are critical. The AI captures these upfront, saving you from wasting site visits on projects that don't match your capacity or price range.
How Much Does It Cost?
- $199/month—includes 500 AI receptionist minutes
- Overage: $0.10 per additional minute
- Average call: 2–3 minutes, so 500 minutes covers roughly 170–250 calls/month
- 7-day free trial—no credit card required
Compare that to a human receptionist ($2,500–4,000/month) or an answering service ($300–800/month with limited hours). The AI is cheaper, never calls in sick, and works 24/7/365.
Ready to Stop Missing Calls?
Every missed call is a job going to your competitor. Set up your AI receptionist in under 10 minutes and start capturing every lead that calls your business.
Start your free trial or visit the AI Receptionist page to learn more about features and pricing.