AI receptionist for contractors: what to teach it before it talks to customers
An AI receptionist on your website can answer a homeowner at 9pm, ask the questions you would ask, and email you a written-up job. What it can't do is know your business on its own. Everything it says comes from what you give it.
This guide is a checklist for contractors setting one up. It is written around Formala, an AI website receptionist that answers your website chat 24/7. Formala does not answer phone calls or send text messages; it works in the chat on your website and alerts you by email. If you need phones covered, that is a separate tool. See website chat vs phone answering for the difference.
Why the setup matters more than the software
A good AI receptionist is built to say "I don't know" rather than guess. That is the behavior you want, but it means a thin setup produces a lot of "I'll pass that to the team." A complete setup lets it answer the common questions itself and save your time for the jobs worth a call.
Plan on an hour to write the first version. You can keep adding to it as real questions come in.
1. Who you are and whether you can do the job
These are the first questions most visitors ask, and the easiest to answer in writing.
- Trades and services you offer, in the words customers use. "Panel upgrades" and "my breaker keeps tripping" are both worth listing.
- What you don't do. Saying no clearly is better than collecting a lead you'll turn down.
- License and insurance. Your license type and number if you're comfortable sharing it, and whether you're insured and bonded.
- Residential, commercial, or both.
- How long you've been in business, if you want it mentioned.
2. Service area
"Do you come out to my area?" decides whether the rest of the conversation happens.
- Cities, towns or zip codes you cover. A list is clearer than "the greater metro area."
- Edges of your area. Whether you'll travel farther for larger jobs, and whether there's a trip charge.
- What to do outside the area. For example, "take their details anyway" or "politely say we don't cover it."
3. How you price
This is where most contractors hesitate, and where a vague setup causes the most trouble. Formala only mentions a price if you've given it one, and it won't commit to a firm quote on your behalf. If you haven't given it a price, it says it doesn't have one and takes the details instead.
Decide which of these you're comfortable stating:
- Service call or diagnostic fee, and whether it's credited toward the work.
- Free estimates or paid estimates, and for which jobs.
- Rough ranges for common jobs, only if you're happy to stand behind them.
- Payment and financing. What you accept, and whether financing is offered.
If you'd rather not discuss price in chat at all, say so in its information: "We price every job after a visit. Offer to book an estimate."
4. Scheduling and urgency
- Hours you work and whether you take after-hours or emergency jobs.
- Typical lead time for a normal job and for an estimate.
- What counts as urgent for your trade, so those leads arrive marked high priority in your email.
- Emergency instructions. If you want it to tell people to shut off water at the main or call the utility for a gas smell, write that in. Otherwise it collects the details and emails them to you.
If you connect your calendar, Formala can book the appointment in the chat, offering only the times that are actually free. Booking is on every plan, the free one included.
5. The questions you'd ask before calling back
Write down what you need to price or schedule a job. The receptionist uses this to ask follow-up questions, so a vague "do you do repairs?" turns into a lead you can act on.
A starting point for most trades:
- What's going on, in their words
- Address or zip code
- How urgent it is
- Best phone number and email
- A short description of what they can see, if your trade benefits from it (ask for photos when you call back)
Then add trade-specific questions. A few examples:
- Plumbing: where the leak or clog is, whether water is shut off, age of the water heater.
- Electrical: what stopped working, whether a breaker has tripped, age of the panel.
- HVAC: heating or cooling, system age, whether it's running at all.
- Roofing: roof type, active leak or not, whether it's an insurance claim.
- Hardscape and landscaping: rough size of the area, material they have in mind, current surface, HOA approval, timing.
See how this looks for a specific trade on our pages for electricians and plumbers.
6. Your policies
- Warranty on labor and parts
- Permits: whether you pull them
- Cancellation and rescheduling
- Whether customers need to be home
7. Decide when you want to step in
Most chats you'll want the receptionist to handle. Some you'll want to answer yourself: a large job, a commercial inquiry, or a question it would be wrong to guess at. With Formala you can take over a live chat while the visitor is still on your site, on every plan.
After it goes live
- Read the first week of chats. You'll spot questions you didn't think to cover.
- Fill the gaps it reports. From the Starter plan up, Formala tracks the questions it couldn't answer and drafts a reply for you to approve, so the next person who asks gets a real answer.
- Keep it current. Update it when your service area, prices or hours change.
Quick checklist
- Services offered, and what you don't do
- License, insurance, residential or commercial
- Service area by city or zip, and what to do outside it
- Pricing you're willing to state, or "book an estimate"
- Hours, lead times, emergency rules
- Questions to ask before you call back, by job type
- Warranty, permits, cancellation policy
- Calendar connected for booking (optional)
FAQ
- Does an AI receptionist for contractors answer my phone?
- Formala does not. It answers the chat on your website, 24/7, and emails you each lead. If you need phone calls answered, that is a separate tool.
- Can it text my customers?
- No. Formala works in your website chat. When a customer books, the confirmation and reminders go out by email.
- Do I need a new website?
- No. Formala installs with one line of script on the site you already have.
Try it on your own site
Formala has a Free plan, no card required. Add one line of script to the site you already have, give it the information above, and it starts answering your website chat. See how it works for contractors and home services.