In short
- It should say it is automated, and answer only from what you approved.
- It should take only the actions you switch on, and confirm only what your system confirmed.
- Start with one kind of call, and measure.
Does it say it is automated?
Callers should know they are talking to an assistant, at the start of the call and whenever they ask. Some places require automated systems to identify themselves; ask the provider what it does to comply where you operate.
What exactly can it answer?
Write down the questions it may answer, and the answers: hours, location, what a first lesson involves, how to book. Anything else should get "I don't know that, but I can have someone call you back." An assistant that improvises about prices, availability or a horse's health is a liability.
What can it do?
List the actions: record an inquiry, offer open times, book one after the caller confirms, ring a person, take a message. Each action should be one you switch on deliberately, and it should report success only when your system confirms it.
What happens when it should not handle the call?
Upset callers, emergencies, an existing client with a problem: the assistant should hand them to a person, or take a message with a promise of a call back, not keep them talking.
Is the call recorded, and who sees it?
Recording laws vary by state, and some require the consent of everyone on the call. Decide whether calls are recorded at all; many operations only need a short written summary. Ask where recordings, transcripts and summaries are kept, for how long, and who can see them.
What does it cost, and how do you switch it off?
Ask for the price per minute and per month, the cost of the phone number, and what happens when the service is down. There should be a switch that sends calls straight back to your phone.
Start with one kind of call
Pick the calls you miss most, often after-hours inquiries, and run the assistant on those first. After a few weeks, read the summaries: how many calls it handled, how many it passed to a person, and what callers asked that it could not answer. Then decide what to add.
Kavalo's own reception assistant follows these rules. See how it is kept in bounds and the sample calls.
