AI Receptionist for Contractors
An AI receptionist for contractors answers your business line while you’re on the job site, takes the caller’s details and what the job is, records a callback request and emails you a summary — with a tested fallback to you or voicemail. AI Phone Receptionist launch pricing: $750 CAD fixed setup, then $179 CAD/month, month-to-month. Includes 300 AI-handled minutes a month; extra minutes are $0.25 each. Taxes extra. Built by Handbuilt in Surrey BC.
The problem
You’re on a roof, under a sink, or inside a panel box when your phone rings. You can’t answer. The caller hangs up, Googles the next contractor, and books with them instead. Voicemail doesn’t help — most callers won’t leave one. Every missed call is a lost job, and you’re losing them every day you’re out doing the actual work.
What this looks like in practice
Imagine a fencing contractor running a 4-person crew in the Fraser Valley. Between April and October, the phone rings 15–20 times a day. Half those calls come in while the crew is on site. The contractor’s wife handles calls when she can, but she has her own job. They’re losing an estimated 5–8 leads a week to missed calls and slow callbacks.
In this hypothetical scenario, Handbuilt would set up an AI receptionist on the contractor’s line that answers when the crew can’t, asks what the caller needs and where the job is, records a callback request and emails the contractor a summary. Anything it can’t handle goes to the agreed fallback. The contractor calls back with the details already in hand instead of playing voicemail tag.
How it works
- 1
Setup review — Pavneet learns your trade, your services, your service area and how calls come in today.
- 2
Fixed setup — $750 setup + $179/month CAD launch pricing, for one number, one routing flow and one language, with the approved answers written down before anything is built.
- 3
Build & test — the receptionist is configured with your approved FAQs, services and greeting, and test calls cover normal requests, unclear callers and the fallback to a person.
- 4
Handover — it goes on your line only after the test calls pass. The monthly fee covers operation, maintenance, the included minutes and small changes.
Why Contractors Lose Jobs to Missed Calls
Speed matters in trades. When a homeowner’s pipe bursts or their fence blows down, they often call several contractors. If nobody picks up, many callers move on rather than leave a voicemail. An AI receptionist gives the caller a real answer and gets their details to you, so the callback starts from a recorded request instead of a missed call.
- Many callers won’t leave a voicemail
- A late callback with no notes means starting from scratch
- A shared answering service doesn’t know your trade or your service area
What the AI Receptionist Actually Does
It’s not a phone tree. It’s not “press 1 for service.” The receptionist follows an agreed call flow using information you approve:
- Answers calls with your business name and greeting
- Asks what the caller needs — new install, repair, quote, or emergency
- Answers approved questions about your services and service area
- Records the caller’s name, contact details, reason and callback request
- Emails you a summary so you know what’s coming before you call back
- Hands off to the tested fallback when a caller needs a person
What it does not do
It uses your approved information and does not quote unapproved prices. Calendar booking, CRM, text messaging, dashboards, extra numbers or languages and other features beyond this scope are not included and are quoted separately.
What you get
- Your line answered when you can’t pick up, with your business name and greeting
- Caller name, contact details, reason for calling and callback request captured
- An emailed summary of each handled call
- Approved answers about your services and service area
- A configured and tested fallback to you or voicemail
- Month-to-month: $750 setup + $179/month CAD, 300 minutes included
Launch pricing
AI Phone Receptionist
then $179 CAD/month, month-to-month. Taxes extra.
No separate phone or AI usage charge for the first 300 AI-handled minutes each month; beyond that, $0.25 CAD per minute.
Calendar booking, CRM, text messaging, dashboards, extra numbers or languages and other features beyond this scope are not included and are quoted separately.
Request a receptionist reviewCommon questions
How much does an AI receptionist for contractors cost?
AI Phone Receptionist launch pricing: $750 CAD fixed setup, then $179 CAD/month, month-to-month. Includes 300 AI-handled minutes a month; extra minutes are $0.25 each. Taxes extra. The monthly fee covers operation and maintenance, 300 AI-handled minutes and up to 30 minutes of small changes a month (no rollover). Faults in the agreed setup are corrected at no charge.
Will my customers know they’re talking to AI?
We recommend the greeting says so. The receptionist follows an agreed call flow and offers the caller a way to reach a person.
Can it put jobs straight into my calendar?
Not in the standard receptionist. It records a callback request and emails you the details so you can confirm the time. Calendar booking can be quoted separately.
What happens if a caller has a question it can’t answer?
It records the question, tells the caller you’ll follow up, and includes it in the emailed summary — or hands off to the agreed fallback. It only answers from the information you approved.
Does it work after hours and on weekends?
It can answer outside your business hours if that is the routing you choose. The fallback for calls it cannot handle is configured and tested before go-live.
How long does setup take?
The timeline is confirmed in the setup review and depends on your phone provider and call forwarding. It goes live only after the test calls pass.
I already use an answering service. Why switch?
You may not need to. A human service is better when most calls need judgement. The AI receptionist suits predictable calls: it answers from approved information, records the details and emails you a summary, at a fixed monthly price with included minutes.
Which trades does this work for?
Any trade that books jobs by phone: plumbing, electrical, HVAC, roofing, fencing, landscaping, painting, general contracting. The receptionist is trained on your specific services, not a generic script.
Want this built for your business?
Tell us about your setup and we'll send a plan and a fixed quote within one business day.