What people mean by a virtual receptionist
The term covers two different things. Some services are people working remotely who answer calls for many businesses. Others are software that answers for you. RingMind is the second kind: an AI assistant that answers your RingMind number. If you're weighing the two, see AI receptionist vs a virtual receptionist service.
What RingMind's virtual receptionist does
- Answers every call on the number it's connected to, day and night, and can take several calls at once.
- Greets callers as your business and answers questions from your business details and approved Knowledge Base: hours, location, services, policies and any prices you list.
- Takes messages with the caller's name, best number, reason and urgency, and reads them back. Urgent messages are emailed to your team.
- Transfers callers to up to five people on its transfer list, telling the caller who they're being put through to. See AI call transfer.
- Books appointments when you connect Google Calendar, Calendly or Microsoft Outlook. Without a calendar, it takes a request your team confirms.
- Answers texts, WhatsApp and website chat if you turn them on, with every conversation in one inbox.
Start from an assistant for your industry
Instead of writing a script from scratch, you choose a ready-made assistant on the AI assistants page and fill in your details. Trade assistants include their own rules, such as emergency handling for plumbers or no clinical advice for dental offices. The general business receptionist fits everyone else. Each assistant passes automatic tests before it's offered. More on this in AI receptionist templates.
What it won't do
- It won't pretend to be a person. It says it's an AI when asked.
- It won't invent prices, availability or policies. If it doesn't know, it offers to take a message.
- It never takes card numbers, bank details, passwords or government ID numbers.
- It tells anyone describing a life-threatening emergency to call 911.
What you see afterwards
Every call is saved with a transcript in Calls & Messages. Messages can become tasks, contacts are created from calls and texts, and Conversations shows each customer's history in one timeline.
Limits to know
- The assistant answers a RingMind number, local or toll-free, in the US or Canada. Porting an existing number isn't available yet.
- There are no time-of-day rules, and calls can't be forwarded without the assistant answering first.
- It doesn't make outbound calls, and there are transcripts rather than recordings to play back.
- Integrations are in Beta. Plans and AI minutes are on the pricing page.