workflow 06 · new · for after hours

After-hours front desk new

The after-hours front desk is an AI receptionist that answers your phone when you're closed: nights, weekends and holidays. It answers questions from what you've approved, books appointments into your calendar, takes messages, and hands anything urgent or unusual to a person.

I want this How it works

Hands off to you when it should

A clay receptionist in a headset at a rounded front desk with a bell
example · Saturday, 8:14 PM Call answered after hours Not an emergency · visit booked Monday, 9:00 AM Summary sent to you

What is an after-hours front desk?

Calls don't stop when you lock the door. A burst pipe at 9 PM, a “can you come Saturday?”, a new customer comparing three businesses on a Sunday. Voicemail loses many of them, and an answering service can only take a message.

The after-hours front desk answers in a natural voice, using only what you've told it: your services, hours, service area and booking rules. It books the visit, takes a clear message and sends you a summary. Emergencies and anything about price go straight to a person.

Written by Joe Lissy, founder of chalkthis., Sound Beach, NY. Updated .

how it works

How does the after-hours front desk work?

  1. Teach it your business

    Your services, hours, service area, booking rules and what counts as an emergency. You approve what it says before it takes a single call.

  2. It answers when you're closed

    After hours and on weekends it picks up, tells callers it is an automated assistant for your business, answers from what you approved, books into your calendar and takes messages.

  3. You get the summary

    Every call comes to you as a short summary: who called, what they need, what was booked. Urgent calls go to you or your on-call person right away.

the rules are part of the build

What stays in your control.

  • It only says what you've approved. No prices, promises or guesses.
  • Emergencies and anything unusual go straight to a person.
  • It tells callers it's an automated assistant.
  • During business hours, your phone rings like it always has.
  • Call summaries stay in accounts you control.

worth knowing

In a study of 1.25 million sales leads, firms that tried to reach a lead within an hour were nearly seven times as likely to qualify it as firms that waited even one hour longer.

Source: Harvard Business Review, "The Short Life of Online Sales Leads," March 2011

run your own numbers

3 after-hours calls a week × 40% real jobs × 30% won × $500 average job

≈ $780 a month, walking out the door

An example, not a promise. Put in your own week on the Leak Check.

Run your own numbers →

questions owners ask

Questions about the after-hours front desk

What is an AI receptionist?

A phone assistant that answers calls in a natural voice, answers common questions from information you approve, books appointments and takes messages. The after-hours front desk is one that works when you are closed.

Will callers know it's not a person?

Yes. It tells callers it is an automated assistant for your business, and it hands them to a person whenever they ask for one or need one.

What happens with an emergency call?

You decide what counts as an emergency. Those calls go to you or your on-call person right away, by call or text, instead of waiting for morning.

Can it book appointments into my calendar?

Yes, by your rules: which services, which days, how long each job takes and how far you travel. Anything outside the rules becomes a message for you.

Does it answer during business hours too?

Only if you want it to. By default your phone rings as usual during business hours, and the front desk takes over when you close.

How is this different from call text-back?

Call text-back texts people whose calls you missed. The front desk answers the call itself, so the customer talks to someone right away. Many businesses start with text-back and add the front desk later.

What does it cost?

It depends on the business and the leak. On a short call we'll show you what fixing it is likely worth, and you'll see the price before anything starts. No long contract.

The other five.

Each one plugs a different leak. Start with the one that costs you the most, and add the next when it pays for itself.

Ready to answer after hours?

Tell us what's costing you the most. We reply within one business day.

What do you want help with?
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or email joe@chalkthis.ai