Customer Support and Voice AI
AI receptionist for small business: calls, bookings and handoffs
What an AI receptionist does on a real call, the rules that apply, a sample greeting and a pass/fail checklist to launch one safely.
Inbound
AI Inbound Call Agent
Every inbound call answered on your number and handled by the call flows you define, with a full record kept.
Some phone lines do not fit a front-desk script. Callers want an order checked, a technician sent or a quick answer, all on the same number. This agent answers that line and runs up to five call flows you define, each with its own questions, lookups and transfer rules. Every call ends with a transcript, a summary and an outcome in the systems you choose.
- Runs up to five distinct call flows on one number
- Hands unmatched or tricky calls to a person, never a guess
- Logs a transcript, summary and outcome for every call
$4,900
20–30 working days
Optional maintenance $249/mo
What it is
AI Inbound Call Agent answers your inbound line and runs the call flows you define, covering order checks, dispatch requests or general enquiries. It is the flexible base for inbound phone work, built for businesses that need more than a receptionist or support script.
Why businesses buy it
A mixed inbound line pulls staff in every direction. Someone checking an order is interrupted by a dispatch request, and calls after hours simply ring out. Each missed or rushed call costs a sale, a job or a customer's patience. This agent takes the repeatable calls off your team, works them through to a recorded outcome and passes the rest to a person with context. The Scope Card fixes the number of flows, systems and test calls before you pay, so you can start with the flows you need now and add more later.
Problems this solves
Customers call to check order status and tie up your team
Order checks can be one of up to five call flows you define. The agent looks up the order in your connected system and gives the caller the current status.
Dispatch requests taken by phone arrive missing key details
A dispatch call flow asks for each detail your team needs before the call ends. The request is recorded in your connected system, ready for someone to act on.
Your inbound calls do not fit a standard receptionist script
The agent runs the call flows you define rather than a fixed script. It suits businesses whose inbound calls need more than a greeting, a message and a transfer.
Peak-time callers wait on hold for simple answers
General enquiries are answered from up to fifty documents or an FAQ set. Callers who need a person are transferred live, so staff spend their time where it counts.
A good fit if
Your inbound calls do not fit one template, for example a mix of dispatch requests, order checks and general enquiries on the same line.
You want one working call flow now and plan to add or reshape flows as your phone work changes.
You already run a telephony account, such as Twilio or Aircall, and a system of record you want call outcomes written to.
You need calls answered, logged and routed correctly without committing yet to a front-desk or support-desk script.
Not the right fit if
Your calls are mostly reception tasks: hours, bookings and transfers. See AI Voice Receptionist, built around a front-desk script.
Callers need real troubleshooting from a knowledge base. See AI Voice Customer Support, which resolves support calls and escalates what it cannot answer.
You are replacing a press-1-for-sales menu. See AI IVR Intelligence, which handles the routing layer itself rather than the conversation behind it.
You mainly need to call people rather than answer them. See AI Outbound Calling Agent.
How it works
- The call lands on your number and is answered straight away, using the greeting and disclosure you set for that line.
- What the caller wants is matched against the call flows you defined at intake, for example an order check, a dispatch request or a general question.
- Inside an approved flow, it asks the questions it needs, checks the systems you connected, and gives a direct answer or takes the requested action.
- Anything outside the agreed flows, or where it is not confident, is passed to the transfer number you set for that call type.
- The call closes with a transcript, a short summary and an outcome written to your CRM, so nothing depends on someone remembering to log it.
What you provide within 72 hours
Your portal lists these the moment you order. Delivery starts the working day after everything is in and your access is checked.
- A telephony account in your name, such as Twilio, Vonage or Aircall, with the number this line should use.
- A plain description of each call type you want handled, so we can turn it into a working flow.
- The transfer number for each call type, and who should receive calls the line cannot resolve.
- Access to the calendar and CRM this line should read from or write to.
- Your preferred voice, and the recording disclosure wording callers should hear.
- Admin access and API keys for every connected system, shared by adding our team as a user or creating a key you control, never by email.
- One person on your side who can approve the call flows and sign off the test calls.
- An API key for your own AI model account (for example OpenAI or Google Gemini), created for this build with a spending limit.
The 72-hour rule. Send everything on your checklist, including access, within 72 hours of ordering so your build starts on time.
Timeline
Start
Intake confirmed and your call flows scoped out.
Weeks 1–2
Flows, voice and knowledge base built to match what you described.
Week 3
Calendar, CRM and transfer numbers connected and tested.
Weeks 3–4
Fifty test calls run across every flow, transcripts sent to you.
Week 4
Your review, with two rounds of changes to the flows.
Go-live
Live on your number, recorded handoff session held, support begins.
| Option | Delivery time | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Standard | 20–30 working days | $4,900 |
| Express | 15–25 working days | $5,750 |
| Rush | 10–20 working days | $6,600 |
What you receive at handover
- The AI Inbound Call Agent live on one phone number
- Workflow, prompt and guardrail configuration for up to five call flows plus live transfer
- Connections to up to two agreed systems, such as an order system and CRM
- A test report from test calls, with transcripts
- An admin guide and a recorded handoff session
- 30 days of post-launch support
Expected benefits and how to measure them
- Can take routine inbound calls off your team's plate.
- Helps phone requests arrive complete and recorded.
- Makes it practical to handle calls your way rather than through a generic script.
- Calls completed without a transfer
- Count them in the call log each month. Compare call types to see where the agent handles the whole call.
- Requests needing a follow-up for details
- Staff tally these for two weeks before launch. They repeat the tally two weeks after.
- Average hold time
- Use your phone system's report. Compare the four weeks before launch with the four weeks after.
Before you start: Export four weeks of call data, including hold times and call reasons if you track them. List the call types you want the agent to handle.
These are things to track, not promised results. Outcomes depend on your data, your team and your market.
Running costs
The build price is paid one time. Running the line is billed in your own telephony and AI accounts, roughly $0.13 to $0.31 per call minute all in, covering the voice platform, the model and the call itself, plus your number rental. Because one line here can carry several call types, your monthly total tracks total call volume across all of them, not a single flow.
AI usage during the build and testing is also billed to your own accounts, so every provider relationship stays yours. Nothing routes through us.
Ask about running costsCustom requirements
Need a flow that does not fit the Scope Card? Add a note at checkout and you get a written Change Quote, with work starting only once you accept it. Your original order still runs on its normal timeline. Larger or bespoke projects go through the Custom AI request form instead.
Request a custom versionKeep it running
We recommend monthly maintenance: monitoring, fixes, and monthly change hours, enough to add a seasonal flow or adjust an existing one. Maintenance starts after the thirty days of included support and can be cancelled any month.
$249/mo (the minimum fee, includes 2 change hours)
Optional. Starts after the post-launch support period. Cancel any month.
How maintenance worksHow this compares
| Do it yourself with a SaaS tool | Hire a custom agency | Upmark Labs | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | A call-handling tool charges a recurring seat or usage fee | A custom build gets quoted after discovery calls | Ours is one fixed price, shown on this page before you buy |
| Scope | A generic IVR tool ships one flow type at a time | An agency agrees flows during the project | Ours covers up to five call flows on one Scope Card |
| Delivery | A self-serve tool still needs you to build the flows | An agency build usually runs several weeks | Ours has a fixed delivery time shown before you buy, with faster options |
| Call records | Most tools log calls without a written outcome | Depends on what was agreed with the agency | Ours writes a transcript, summary and outcome into your CRM |
Questions about this product
How many call types can the AI Inbound Call Agent handle on one line?
It covers up to five distinct call flows on one number, for example order checks, dispatch requests and general enquiries running side by side. Each flow gets its own questions, data lookups and transfer rules. A sixth flow, or a second number, is quoted as an Additional Workflow add-on rather than folded into the base build.
What happens to a call that does not match any flow?
It is transferred to the number you set for unmatched calls, and if nobody answers, the line takes a message and logs it with the transcript. The agent never guesses at a flow it was not given, so callers are handed to a person rather than met with a wrong answer.
How does this compare to the AI Voice Receptionist?
The Receptionist is written specifically around front-desk work: hours, bookings and transfers. This build is the broader base, meant for inbound work that does not fit that script, such as dispatch or order status lines. Each of its five flows gets its own questions, lookups and recorded outcome, so a mixed line is handled properly rather than squeezed into a front-desk template.
What does the AI Inbound Call Agent cost to run each month?
Call minutes run roughly $0.13 to $0.31 all in, covering the voice platform, the AI model and telephony, plus your number rental, paid directly in your own accounts. A business taking a few hundred calls a month typically lands in the low hundreds of dollars. Monthly maintenance for changes is optional.
How long before the AI Inbound Call Agent is live on our number?
The delivery panel on this page shows the fixed timeline for each speed. The clock starts once your intake is complete and access is verified: telephony account, call scripts, transfer numbers and access to your two systems. Before go-live we run fifty test calls and give you two rounds of changes, so the agent starts on your line already tuned to how your callers talk.
Do callers know they are speaking to an AI agent?
Yes. The greeting includes a short disclosure in wording you approve, so callers hear it before the call continues. Several US states and countries now require this on automated calls. You set the exact phrasing during intake, and it can be updated later through maintenance.
Can we add a new call flow after launch?
Small edits to an existing flow, such as new questions or updated hours, fit inside the monthly change hours that come with maintenance. A genuinely new flow, for example a new call type your business starts taking, comes through the Additional Workflow add-on, priced and agreed before the work starts.
Guides on this topic
All guides Give every kind of inbound call somewhere to go.
Order the AI Inbound Call Agent and it is answering your line on a fixed delivery date, running the call flows you defined.
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