Vanessa for home-service pros
The front desk you never had to hire.
Keep your number. When you cannot pick up, Vanessa does. She asks what the caller needs and when they need it, then texts you the details so you call back with context instead of a blank voicemail.
$0 today · no annual contract · cancel during the trial and you will not be charged
Answering service, phone receptionist, or front desk?
Four ways to handle the call you cannot take.
An answering service, a phone receptionist and a virtual front desk all solve the same problem: the phone rings while your hands are busy. Vanessa is an AI receptionist that does that job at a fraction of the cost of a staffed receptionist or answering service.
| Option | What the caller gets | What it costs you |
|---|---|---|
| Voicemail | Callers hear a beep. Some leave a message, and some may call the next shop. | Free, and it costs you the call. |
| Live answering service | Usually a shared operator, often working from a script, takes a message for you. | Monthly fee plus per-minute or per-call charges. Read the contract for what a message costs after hours. |
| Hiring a receptionist | One person, one desk, covering the hours you pay them for. | A salary, plus whatever answers the phone outside those hours. |
| Vanessa | Answers the calls you forward to her from the business facts you reviewed, day or night, and texts you a summary of each one. | $49/month with 120 talk minutes included, then 49¢/minute. No annual contract. |
Answering-service and receptionist costs vary by provider and region. Check a current quote before comparing; this table describes the shape of each option, not a price survey.
Set up by talking to her
Live in about 10 minutes.
- 01
Say your business name
Vanessa finds your public business profile and drafts your hours, services and service area as facts you review.
- 02
Hear her take a practice call
Call the demo line, role-play a customer, and hear how she answers from the facts you approved. Fix anything before you go live.
- 03
Forward the calls you miss
Keep your number. Forward only unanswered or after-hours calls, or all of them. Setup takes about 10 minutes.
Built for phone-driven trades
See how she handles your kind of call.
Live now · 14-day free trial
$49/month.
Includes 120 talk minutes/month; additional time is 49¢/minute. Cancel anytime in the app.
Vanessa is an AI receptionist with a warm synthetic voice. She identifies herself truthfully, follows the knowledge and hand-off rules you provide, captures requested appointment times for your follow-up, and never replaces emergency services or licensed professional judgment.
Answering service questions, answered
- Is Vanessa an answering service?
- Yes, in the sense that matters: she answers the calls you forward to her at any hour and takes down what the caller needs. The difference from a traditional answering service is that no shared operator reads a script. Vanessa answers from business facts you reviewed, on your existing number, with no per-call fee: $49 a month including 120 talk minutes, then 49¢ a minute.
- Compare an AI receptionist with an answering service, voicemail, and hiring
- What is the difference between an AI receptionist and a live answering service?
- A live answering service puts a human operator between you and the caller, usually billed per minute or per message on top of a monthly fee. An AI receptionist like Vanessa answers the calls you forward to her from your approved business facts, captures the job and the caller's timing, and texts you a summary. She identifies herself as an AI, so callers are never misled.
- Can Vanessa work as the front desk for a home service business?
- Yes. For plumbers, HVAC companies, cleaners and other phone-driven trades, the front desk job is answering, finding out what happened and when help is needed, and getting that to you. Vanessa does exactly that on every missed or forwarded call. She captures requested appointment times for your follow-up rather than booking into a calendar.
- What an AI phone receptionist actually does for a small business
- Do I need a virtual receptionist or an answering service?
- Ask what happens to the call you miss today. If it goes to voicemail, either option is an improvement. Most virtual receptionist services staff the phone with people, so their coverage depends on the hours you buy. Vanessa answers forwarded calls at any hour from the same facts every time, at $49 a month plus 49¢ a minute beyond the 120 included, and you can hear her handle your own scenario on the demo line first.
- Will callers know they are talking to an AI?
- Yes. Vanessa has a warm synthetic voice and identifies herself truthfully as an AI receptionist when asked. She never claims to be a person. Callers get a real conversation about their job and a clear next step, which is what most people want from a first call.