AI Receptionist Setup Checklist: 12 Steps to Go Live

To set up an AI receptionist, pick one job for it, write down your business facts, write short instructions, set who it transfers to, add an AI and recording disclosure to the greeting, test it with realistic calls, then go live on that one job and review conversations weekly. The twelve steps below take most small businesses a few hours of preparation.

Print this page or copy the checklist into your task list.

Step 1: Pick one job

Don't hand the AI every call on day one. Choose a starting job:

• After hours — lowest risk; nobody would have answered anyway
• Overflow — business-hours calls your team didn't pick up in time
• Dedicated line — a separate number, such as an ad or booking line
• Text replies — inbound texts before a teammate responds

See choosing an AI agent role.

Step 2: Pull your top call reasons

Look at two weeks of calls, voicemails and texts. List the ten most common reasons people contact you, and what the right outcome is for each:

Reason	Right outcome
"Are you open?"	Answer from facts
"Do you service my area?"	Answer from facts
"Can I book?"	Collect details, schedule callback
"I have a problem with my order"	Take message or transfer
"Is the owner there?"	Transfer or take message

This table becomes the backbone of your instructions.

Step 3: Write the business facts

The agent should only state facts you've written. Cover:

• Business name exactly as callers should hear it
• Hours, holidays, address, parking, service area
• Services offered and not offered
• Prices or ranges you're comfortable sharing, or "pricing depends on the job; we'll quote after a visit"
• Policies: deposits, cancellations, warranties, payment methods
• Answers to your top ten questions

Write them the way you'd say them aloud. See AI agent business facts sheet.

Step 4: Write instructions

Keep instructions short and specific: what to collect, when to transfer, when to take a message, what never to do. See writing AI phone agent instructions.

Step 5: Write the greeting

A good greeting names your business, says it's an AI assistant, and asks an open question:

"Thanks for calling Northside Dental. This is Mia, an AI assistant. How can I help?"

Disclosing AI up front is the safe practice. Utah's AI law, for example, gives a safe harbor to businesses that clearly disclose generative AI at the start of an interaction. More examples in AI receptionist greeting examples.

Step 6: Choose a voice

Pick a voice that's easy to understand on a phone line. Preview several. See choosing an AI agent voice.

Step 7: Set what the agent can do

Turn on only what this job needs:

• Send text messages (requires your business texting registration)
• Send emails
• Transfer to your team — and to whom

Step 8: Set transfers and fallbacks

Decide:

• Who gets transferred calls: everyone, or one person
• What happens if nobody answers: voicemail or a message
• Which situations always transfer: caller asks for a person, emergencies, billing disputes

See AI-to-human call transfer.

Step 9: Check recording and privacy settings

If calls are recorded, callers should hear a notice. Several states, including California, Florida, Pennsylvania and Washington, generally require consent of all parties to record. See AI call recording disclosure.

Also decide what the AI must never collect, such as full card numbers or Social Security numbers. See sensitive data on AI calls.

Step 10: Test with realistic calls

Before going live, call the agent and play at least ten callers:

• A simple FAQ
• A question not in the facts
• Someone who wants a person
• An urgent problem
• A caller who gives a long, rambling answer
• A misspelled or unusual name
• Someone asking "Are you a real person?"
• Someone asking for a price you didn't list
• A booking request
• A caller who hangs up mid-sentence

See test an AI receptionist before launch.

Step 11: Go live on the one job

Switch on the job you chose in step 1. Tell your team where AI messages and callback requests will appear and who checks them.

Step 12: Review weekly

For the first month:

• Read every AI conversation summary
• Listen to or read the full transcript of any call that ended badly
• Add missing facts
• Tighten instructions where the agent rambled or looped
• Check minutes used against your estimate

See review AI agent conversations.

If you plan outbound calls later

Outbound AI calls are a separate step with stricter rules. The FCC confirmed in February 2024 that AI-generated voices are "artificial" voices under the TCPA, so you need prior express consent before an AI agent calls someone, and prior express written consent for marketing calls. See AI outbound calls and the TCPA.

Common mistakes to skip

• Writing a two-page instruction essay instead of clear rules
• Leaving prices vague so the agent improvises
• No transfer target, or a target who's always on Do Not Disturb
• Not telling the team where AI messages go
• Launching on all calls before testing

More in AI receptionist setup mistakes.

Who should own the AI receptionist

Assign one person to own the agent. Their job:

• Keep business facts current
• Read conversations weekly and note problems
• Make instruction changes and retest
• Watch the minute balance
• Be the transfer target's backup when the main person is out

Without an owner, facts drift, and callers start hearing last season's hours. The owner doesn't need technical skills; the person who knows your customers best is usually the right choice.

A realistic timeline

Day	Work
Day 1	Steps 1 to 3: choose the job, list call reasons, write facts
Day 2	Steps 4 to 9: instructions, greeting, voice, tools, transfers, recording settings
Day 3	Step 10: testing, fixes, retesting
Day 4	Step 11: go live on one job
Weeks 1 to 4	Step 12: daily, then weekly reviews
Month 2	Consider adding a second job (overflow, a dedicated line)

Spreading the work over a few days gives you time to notice missing facts with fresh eyes.

Setting it up in Callata

In Callata, go to AI Workforce and click New agent:

1. Choose a role preset: Receptionist, Sales rep, Support rep, Appointment setter or Custom.
2. Edit the agent name, voice (with preview), inbound greeting and, if needed, outbound opening line.
3. Write instructions and the business facts the agent can share.
4. Under "When it works," assign a dedicated number, and toggle after hours, picking up when nobody answers, and replying to texts.
5. Under "What it can do," toggle texts, emails and transfers, and pick who receives transfers.
6. Save as a draft, test, then Save & go live.

For after hours, also set Admin call handling to "AI receptionist answers." Buy AI minutes at $0.25 per minute in 60, 250 or 1,000-minute packs; agents pause at zero and calls go to voicemail. Callata Office is $99 per month for up to five users. Start your setup.