# SimpleAnswering - Complete Documentation > AI phone answering service for small businesses. Transform missed calls into captured leads. ## Product Overview SimpleAnswering is a 24/7 AI virtual receptionist built specifically for small businesses. Unlike traditional answering services or voicemail, it: 1. **Answers calls instantly** - No hold times, no missed calls, 24/7/365 2. **Sounds completely human** - Natural conversation with realistic pauses 3. **Knows your business** - Trained from your website in minutes 4. **Captures every lead** - Extracts caller info, reason, and action items 5. **Notifies you immediately** - Email summaries with urgency flags ### Why SimpleAnswering - **1-Click Website Setup**: Paste your URL, AI scans your site, receptionist is ready in seconds. No code, no consultants. - **Sounds Human**: Natural conversation with realistic pauses and conversational flow. Most callers don't notice it's AI. - **24/7/365 Coverage**: Every call answered instantly - nights, weekends, holidays. No hold times, no busy signals. - **Call Summaries with Action Items**: After every call, get who called, why, and what to do next with urgency flags. - **Unlimited Simultaneous Calls**: Handle 1 or 100 calls at once. No caller ever gets a busy signal. - **Fraction of the Cost**: $49-199/month vs $3,000-5,000/month for a human receptionist. --- ## How It Works ### Step 1: Paste Your Website We read your site and learn your services, hours, and FAQs. That's it. ### Step 2: Review Business Information See what we found. Change anything you want before going live. ### Step 3: Get a Phone Number We give you a free local number. Or forward your existing one to us. ### Step 4: We Start Answering Calls get answered. You get a summary after each one. Total setup time: Under 5 minutes. No technical skills needed. --- ## After Every Call You Receive - **Who Called**: Name and phone number captured automatically - **Why They Called**: Conversation summary and specific request - **What To Do**: Action items flagged by urgency (callback needed, quote request, urgent, etc.) - **Full Transcript**: Complete conversation text, searchable - **Audio Recording**: Listen to the actual call anytime --- ## Pricing | Plan | Monthly | Included Minutes | Overage Rate | Receptionists | |------|---------|------------------|--------------|---------------| | Starter | $49 | 100 min | $0.55/min | 1 | | Pro | $99 | 250 min | $0.45/min | 2 | | Scale | $199 | 500 min | $0.35/min | 5 | **All plans include:** - 7-day free trial - Free local phone number - Unlimited simultaneous calls - Call recordings & transcripts - Email notifications - Lead management dashboard (CRM) - Knowledge base editing - Schedule control (business hours or 24/7) - Spam call filtering - No setup fees - Cancel anytime --- ## Key Capabilities (Feature Comparison by Plan) ### Call Handling | Feature | Starter | Pro | Scale | |---------|---------|-----|-------| | 24/7 AI receptionist | Yes | Yes | Yes | | Included minutes/month | 100 | 250 | 500 | | Overage rate per minute | $0.55 | $0.45 | $0.35 | | Call recordings | Yes | Yes | Yes | | Full transcripts | Yes | Yes | Yes | | AI-generated summaries | Yes | Yes | Yes | | Spam call filtering | Yes | Yes | Yes | ### Phone Numbers | Feature | Starter | Pro | Scale | |---------|---------|-----|-------| | Free local phone number | Yes | Yes | Yes | | Use existing number (forwarding) | Yes | Yes | Yes | | Number of receptionists | 1 | 2 | 5 | ### Business Intelligence | Feature | Starter | Pro | Scale | |---------|---------|-----|-------| | Automatic website scanning | Yes | Yes | Yes | | Custom knowledge base | Yes | Yes | Yes | | Action item extraction | Yes | Yes | Yes | | Urgency flagging | Yes | Yes | Yes | | Callback request detection | Yes | Yes | Yes | ### Lead Management (CRM) | Feature | Starter | Pro | Scale | |---------|---------|-----|-------| | Contact capture & history | Yes | Yes | Yes | | One-tap callback | Yes | Yes | Yes | | Search all conversations | Yes | Yes | Yes | ### Notifications & Control | Feature | Starter | Pro | Scale | |---------|---------|-----|-------| | Email notifications | Yes | Yes | Yes | | Business hours scheduling | Yes | Yes | Yes | | On/off toggle | Yes | Yes | Yes | | Timezone support | Yes | Yes | Yes | ### Support & Billing | Feature | Starter | Pro | Scale | |---------|---------|-----|-------| | 7-day free trial | Yes | Yes | Yes | | No contracts | Yes | Yes | Yes | | Cancel anytime | Yes | Yes | Yes | | Email support | Yes | Yes | Yes | | Priority support | No | Yes | Yes | | Dedicated account manager | No | No | Yes | --- ## Cost Comparisons ### SimpleAnswering vs In-House Receptionist | Factor | SimpleAnswering | In-House Receptionist | |--------|-----------------|----------------------| | Monthly cost | $49-199/month | $3,000-5,000/month | | Available hours | 24/7/365 | 40 hours/week | | Sick days & vacation | Never | 2-4 weeks/year | | Simultaneous calls | Unlimited | One at a time | | Training time | Minutes | Weeks | | HR headaches | None | Many | **Bottom line**: An in-house receptionist costs 15-100x more per month, works limited hours, and handles one call at a time. SimpleAnswering works around the clock with no HR overhead. ### SimpleAnswering vs Traditional Call Center | Factor | SimpleAnswering | Traditional Call Center | |--------|-----------------|------------------------| | Pricing model | Monthly + minutes included | Per minute charges ($1-2/min) | | Consistency | Same quality every call | Varies by operator | | Business knowledge | Learns your business deeply | Generic scripts | | Setup time | Minutes | Days to weeks | | Call summaries | Instant, detailed with action items | Basic or none | **Bottom line**: Call centers charge $1-2 per minute with no consistency guarantee. SimpleAnswering gives you flat monthly pricing, deep business knowledge, and instant summaries. ### SimpleAnswering vs Voicemail 85% of callers hang up when they reach voicemail instead of leaving a message. Every missed voicemail is a lost lead. SimpleAnswering actually converses with callers, answers their questions, captures their information, and sends you an actionable summary. Callers get instant help instead of leaving a message and hoping for a callback. ### SimpleAnswering vs Website Chatbot Chatbots only help visitors who reach your website. 60% of local business leads come from phone calls, especially urgent ones. SimpleAnswering captures the phone leads that chatbots miss entirely. For best results, use both - a chatbot for website visitors and SimpleAnswering for phone callers. --- ## Service Pages ### Virtual Receptionist AI-powered receptionist that answers calls 24/7. Professional phone answering for small businesses at a fraction of the cost of hiring. Handles common questions, takes detailed messages, captures leads, and sends instant summaries. - URL: https://simpleanswering.com/virtual-receptionist ### After Hours Answering Service 24/7 coverage for nights, weekends, and holidays. Never miss an after-hours call again. When your office is closed, your receptionist is still answering. Get summaries to follow up the next business day, or immediately if urgent. - URL: https://simpleanswering.com/after-hours-answering-service ### Small Business Answering Service AI receptionist built for small business budgets. From $49/month. Professional phone answering without the overhead of hiring, training, or managing staff. Every call answered, every lead captured. - URL: https://simpleanswering.com/small-business-answering-service --- ## Free Tools ### Missed Call Calculator Calculate how much revenue your business is losing from missed calls. Enter your average calls per day, close rate, and average job value to see the annual cost of unanswered calls. - URL: https://simpleanswering.com/tools/missed-call-calculator ### Voicemail Script Generator Generate professional voicemail greeting scripts for your business. Customize by industry and business type. - URL: https://simpleanswering.com/tools/voicemail-script-generator --- ## Supported Industries ### Professional Services - [Accountants & CPAs](https://simpleanswering.com/ai-receptionist/virtual-receptionist-for-accountants) - [Consultants](https://simpleanswering.com/ai-receptionist/virtual-receptionist-for-consultants) ### Home Services - [Appliance Repair](https://simpleanswering.com/ai-receptionist/appliance-repair-answering-service) - [Cleaning Services](https://simpleanswering.com/ai-receptionist/cleaning-company-answering-service) - [Electricians](https://simpleanswering.com/ai-receptionist/electrician-answering-service) - [Excavation Companies](https://simpleanswering.com/ai-receptionist/excavation-answering-service) - [Garage Door Companies](https://simpleanswering.com/ai-receptionist/garage-door-answering-service) - [General Contractors](https://simpleanswering.com/ai-receptionist/contractor-answering-service) - [Gutter Cleaning](https://simpleanswering.com/ai-receptionist/gutter-cleaning-answering-service) - [HVAC Companies](https://simpleanswering.com/ai-receptionist/hvac-answering-service) - [Landscapers](https://simpleanswering.com/ai-receptionist/landscaper-answering-service) - [Locksmiths](https://simpleanswering.com/ai-receptionist/locksmith-answering-service) - [Moving Companies](https://simpleanswering.com/ai-receptionist/moving-company-answering-service) - [Painters](https://simpleanswering.com/ai-receptionist/painter-answering-service) - [Pest Control](https://simpleanswering.com/ai-receptionist/pest-control-answering-service) - [Plumbers](https://simpleanswering.com/ai-receptionist/plumber-answering-service) - [Pool Service](https://simpleanswering.com/ai-receptionist/pool-service-answering-service) - [Roofers](https://simpleanswering.com/ai-receptionist/roofer-answering-service) ### Automotive - [Auto Repair Shops](https://simpleanswering.com/ai-receptionist/auto-repair-answering-service) - [Towing Companies](https://simpleanswering.com/ai-receptionist/towing-answering-service) ### Education & Childcare - [Daycares & Kids Programs](https://simpleanswering.com/ai-receptionist/daycare-answering-service) ### Construction & Industrial - [Equipment Rental Companies](https://simpleanswering.com/ai-receptionist/equipment-rental-answering-service) ### Creative Services - [Event Planners](https://simpleanswering.com/ai-receptionist/event-planner-answering-service) - [Photographers](https://simpleanswering.com/ai-receptionist/photographer-answering-service) ### Financial Services - [Financial Advisors](https://simpleanswering.com/ai-receptionist/virtual-receptionist-for-financial-advisors) - [Insurance Agents](https://simpleanswering.com/ai-receptionist/insurance-agent-answering-service) ### Personal Services - [Funeral Homes](https://simpleanswering.com/ai-receptionist/funeral-home-answering-service) ### Fitness & Recreation - [Gyms & Fitness Studios](https://simpleanswering.com/ai-receptionist/gym-answering-service) ### Health & Wellness - [Hair Salons & Spas](https://simpleanswering.com/ai-receptionist/salon-answering-service) ### Technology - [IT Services](https://simpleanswering.com/ai-receptionist/it-support-answering-service) ### Legal - [Lawyers & Law Firms](https://simpleanswering.com/ai-receptionist/virtual-receptionist-for-lawyers) ### Event Services - [Party & Event Rental Companies](https://simpleanswering.com/ai-receptionist/party-rental-answering-service) ### Real Estate - [Property Managers](https://simpleanswering.com/ai-receptionist/property-management-answering-service) - [Real Estate Agents](https://simpleanswering.com/ai-receptionist/real-estate-answering-service) ### Healthcare - [Veterinarians](https://simpleanswering.com/ai-receptionist/veterinarian-answering-service) --- ## Frequently Asked Questions ### Pricing & Billing **Q: How does the 7-day free trial work?** A: Your trial starts when you sign up. You get full access to all features and can make real calls. We only ask for payment info upfront to prevent abuse. You won't be charged until day 8, and you can cancel anytime before that with no charge. **Q: What happens if I go over my included minutes?** A: You'll be charged for overage at your plan's rate ($0.55/min for Starter, $0.45/min for Pro, $0.35/min for Scale). We don't cut off your calls mid-conversation. You can track your usage in your dashboard at any time. **Q: Can I change plans later?** A: Yes. Upgrade or downgrade anytime from your account settings. Changes take effect on your next billing cycle. If you upgrade mid-cycle, you'll get prorated access to the higher tier immediately. **Q: Is there a setup fee?** A: No. There are no setup fees, no hidden costs, and no long-term contracts. You pay only the monthly subscription and any overage minutes you use. **Q: What payment methods do you accept?** A: We accept all major credit cards (Visa, Mastercard, American Express, Discover) through our secure Stripe payment processor. We don't store your card details on our servers. **Q: Can I cancel anytime?** A: Yes. Cancel from your account settings with one click. No phone calls, no retention tactics, no cancellation fees. If you cancel, you'll keep access until the end of your current billing period. **Q: Do you offer refunds?** A: If you're not satisfied, contact us within the first 7 days of your paid subscription and we'll work with you to make it right. We want you to succeed, not feel stuck. **Q: Is there a discount for annual billing?** A: Not currently, but we're considering it. Our monthly pricing is already competitive with traditional answering services, and you get the flexibility to cancel anytime. **Q: Do unused minutes roll over?** A: No. Minutes reset at the start of each billing cycle. We recommend starting with a plan that matches your typical call volume, then upgrading if you consistently need more. **Q: What's included in the Enterprise plan?** A: Enterprise includes unlimited receptionists, custom integrations, volume pricing, dedicated account management, and SLA guarantees. Contact us for a custom quote. ### Product & Features **Q: How accurate is the AI receptionist?** A: Our AI is powered by state-of-the-art language models and achieves over 95% accuracy in understanding caller intent and extracting key information. It's trained on thousands of real business conversations across dozens of industries. **Q: Can the AI handle complex questions about my business?** A: Yes. The AI learns from your website and any information you provide. It can answer questions about your services, pricing, hours, location, and FAQs. For questions it can't answer, it will politely take a message and flag it for your follow-up. **Q: What if a caller wants to speak to a human?** A: The AI will acknowledge their request, capture their contact information and reason for calling, and let them know someone will call them back. You'll get an immediate notification marked as urgent so you can follow up promptly. **Q: Can I customize what the receptionist says?** A: Yes. You control the greeting, the information the AI shares, and how it handles different types of inquiries. You can also customize the voice and personality to match your brand. **Q: Does it work for my industry?** A: Yes. We support 30+ industries including law firms, medical offices, contractors, real estate, salons, and more. The AI adapts its conversation style and terminology to your specific business type. **Q: Can it take appointments or reservations?** A: The AI captures all appointment and reservation requests with full details (date, time, service needed, contact info) and notifies you immediately. Direct calendar integration is coming soon. **Q: How does the action item extraction work?** A: After each call, our AI analyzes the conversation and extracts key action items: callbacks needed, quote requests, urgent matters, appointment requests, etc. Each item is flagged with urgency level so you know what to prioritize. **Q: Can I search through past calls?** A: Yes. Search by caller name, phone number, keywords in the transcript, date range, or action item type. Find any conversation in seconds. **Q: What languages does the receptionist speak?** A: Currently English only. We're working on Spanish support and plan to add more languages soon. **Q: Can I have multiple receptionists for different businesses?** A: Yes. The Pro plan includes 2 receptionists and Scale includes 5. Each receptionist can be configured for a different business with its own knowledge base, phone number, and settings. ### Technical & Setup **Q: How long does setup take?** A: About 2 minutes if you have a website. We scan your site and automatically extract your services, hours, FAQs, and pricing. You review and approve before going live. No website? We'll ask a few simple questions to set up your receptionist. **Q: Do I need any technical skills?** A: No. SimpleAnswering is built for business owners, not engineers. Everything is point-and-click. No coding, no API integrations, no consultants needed. **Q: Can I use my existing business phone number?** A: Yes. You can forward calls from your existing number to the SimpleAnswering number we provide. This way, you keep your current number and callers won't know the difference. **Q: What if my website changes?** A: You can re-scan your website anytime to update your receptionist's knowledge base. Or manually edit the information in your settings. Changes take effect immediately. **Q: How do I forward calls from my current phone?** A: We provide step-by-step instructions for all major carriers (AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile, etc.) and VoIP providers. Usually it's a simple code you dial or a setting in your carrier's app. Takes about 5 minutes. **Q: Can I test the receptionist before going live?** A: Yes. After setup, you can make test calls to verify everything works as expected. Adjust the knowledge base, greeting, or settings until you're satisfied. Only then do you go live. **Q: What's the audio quality like?** A: Crystal clear. We use enterprise-grade telephony infrastructure with HD audio. Callers will hear natural, professional-sounding responses with no robotic artifacts. **Q: Is there an app?** A: SimpleAnswering works on any device through your web browser. No app download required. The interface is fully responsive and works great on phones, tablets, and desktops. **Q: Can I integrate with my existing CRM?** A: We have a built-in CRM that captures all contacts and call history. API integrations with Salesforce, HubSpot, and other CRMs are on our roadmap. Contact us if you have a specific integration need. **Q: What's the uptime guarantee?** A: We maintain 99.99% uptime. Our infrastructure is built on enterprise-grade cloud providers with automatic failover. We've never missed a call due to system downtime. ### Security & Privacy **Q: Are my call recordings secure?** A: Yes. All recordings are encrypted at rest and in transit. Access is restricted to your account only. We never share, sell, or use your recordings for any purpose other than providing the service. **Q: Who can access my business data?** A: Only you and anyone you explicitly authorize. Our support team can access your account data only with your permission and only to help resolve issues you report. **Q: How long are recordings stored?** A: Recordings are stored for the duration of your subscription plus 30 days after cancellation. You can delete individual recordings at any time from your dashboard. **Q: Do you train AI on my calls?** A: No. Your call data is never used to train our AI models. Your business information stays private and is used only to serve your callers. **Q: What happens to my data if I cancel?** A: You can export all your contacts and call data before canceling. After cancellation, we retain your data for 30 days in case you change your mind, then permanently delete it. ### Comparisons **Q: How is this different from voicemail?** A: Voicemail just records messages. SimpleAnswering actually converses with callers, answers their questions, extracts key information, and notifies you with actionable summaries. Callers get instant help instead of leaving a message and hoping for a callback. **Q: How does this compare to a human answering service?** A: Human answering services cost $1-2 per minute, have limited hours, and can't learn your business as deeply. SimpleAnswering costs $0.35-0.55 per minute, works 24/7, and knows everything about your business. Plus, it never has a bad day or puts callers on hold. **Q: Why not just hire a receptionist?** A: A full-time receptionist costs $3,000-5,000/month including benefits, works limited hours, takes vacations, and can only handle one call at a time. SimpleAnswering costs under $200/month, works 24/7/365, never calls in sick, and can handle unlimited simultaneous calls. **Q: What about other AI phone services?** A: Most AI phone services require technical setup, API integrations, or coding. SimpleAnswering is the only service built specifically for non-technical business owners. Paste your website, approve the setup, and you're live in minutes. **Q: Can't I just use a chatbot on my website?** A: Chatbots only help visitors who reach your website. 60% of local business leads come from phone calls, especially urgent ones. SimpleAnswering captures the leads that chatbots miss entirely. ### Common Concerns **Q: Will callers know they're talking to an AI?** A: Most callers don't notice or don't mind. Our AI uses natural language with realistic pauses and conversational flow. It sounds professional and helpful, which is what callers care about most. **Q: What if the AI makes a mistake?** A: Our AI is highly accurate, but if it does make an error, you can easily correct it. Review transcripts to catch any issues and update your knowledge base to prevent them in the future. Mistakes become less frequent over time. **Q: Is this too impersonal for my business?** A: Many business owners worry about this, but feedback is overwhelmingly positive. Callers prefer getting immediate help and answers over leaving voicemail and waiting. The personal touch comes from your prompt follow-up, not from making them wait. **Q: What if I get a lot of calls? Will it scale?** A: Yes. Unlike human receptionists, SimpleAnswering can handle unlimited simultaneous calls. High call volume? No problem. Every caller gets answered immediately, every time. **Q: I'm not tech-savvy. Can I really set this up myself?** A: Absolutely. If you can copy and paste a website URL, you can set up SimpleAnswering. We designed it specifically for business owners who don't have time to learn complicated software. Most users are live within 5 minutes. **Q: What if my business is unique or complicated?** A: We support businesses across 30+ industries with widely varying needs. The AI learns from your specific information and adapts to your business. If you have truly unique requirements, our Enterprise plan includes custom configuration. --- ## Technical Specifications - **Uptime**: 99.99% guaranteed - **Audio Quality**: HD enterprise-grade telephony - **Concurrent Calls**: Unlimited - **Languages**: English (Spanish coming soon) - **AI Accuracy**: 95%+ intent recognition - **Recording Storage**: Duration of subscription + 30 days - **Encryption**: At rest and in transit - **Platform**: Web-based, works on any device - **Payment Processing**: Stripe (PCI-compliant) --- ## Use Cases ### Emergency Services (Plumbers, HVAC, Electricians) - Captures urgent after-hours calls - Flags emergencies for immediate callback - Explains emergency rates and availability ### Professional Services (Accountants, Consultants) - Handles initial intake questions - Captures project details - Schedules consultation requests ### Home Services (Contractors, Landscapers, Painters) - Captures quote requests with project details - Explains service areas and availability - Books estimate appointments --- ## Company Information - **Website**: https://simpleanswering.com - **Email**: hello@simpleanswering.com - **Sign Up**: https://simpleanswering.com/signup - **Pricing**: https://simpleanswering.com/pricing - **FAQ**: https://simpleanswering.com/faq - **Privacy Policy**: https://simpleanswering.com/privacy - **Terms of Service**: https://simpleanswering.com/terms - **Contact**: https://simpleanswering.com/contact --- ## Quick Links - [Home](https://simpleanswering.com/) - [Pricing](https://simpleanswering.com/pricing) - [Virtual Receptionist](https://simpleanswering.com/virtual-receptionist) - [After Hours Answering](https://simpleanswering.com/after-hours-answering-service) - [Small Business Answering](https://simpleanswering.com/small-business-answering-service) - [All Industries](https://simpleanswering.com/ai-receptionist) - [FAQ](https://simpleanswering.com/faq) - [Sign Up](https://simpleanswering.com/signup) - [Sign In](https://simpleanswering.com/signin) - [Missed Call Calculator](https://simpleanswering.com/tools/missed-call-calculator) - [Voicemail Script Generator](https://simpleanswering.com/tools/voicemail-script-generator) - [Blog & Guides](https://simpleanswering.com/guides)