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Have AI write the script for an AI receptionist that asks about the leak, books the visit and texts you the details
Brian Hensley, owner of Rave Renovation, a small roofing and renovation company in the Greenville, South Carolina area, on Bots and Bosses: AI for the Trades (a show run by his wife Jessica Hensley's marketing agency, Business Buddy)
He built an AI receptionist he named Grace. He had AI write him a script, then set it up on a third-party site that builds receptionists (not named), on a Sunday afternoon: about two hours for the script and the basics, then a couple of days of test calls and a lot of tweaks. Grace gets the caller's name and address and what's going on, asks whether a leak is active, tries to judge how severe it is, and books an appointment from his calendar; he gets an email and a text so he can call back right away on an emergency.
ChatGPT Free $0; Go $8/mo; Plus $20/mo · Claude $17/mo billed annually ($20 monthly); free plan available for writing the script (his receptionist platform isn't named and its price isn't checked here)
Medium · or we do it from $149/mo
Varies
The problem
With no office manager, calls come in while he's on an estimate or a job, along with what he says are about 75 scam calls a day.
What happened
He says he no longer misses calls he wants, Grace screens out tire kickers and scam calls, and it saves him the cost of an office manager. He still calls every customer back after they talk to Grace. Self-reported; it's one tool among the others he uses, not where he started.
Quoted in the source: Brian Hensley, owner, Rave Renovation. Source: Bots and Bosses: AI for the Trades, Episode 1 (Brian Hensley, Rave Renovation) (2026-03-31) · Added 2026-10-19.
How to set it up yourself
- What Rave Renovation does: the owner had AI write the call script, loaded it into a third-party AI receptionist service, test-called it for a couple of days, and gets an email and text after every call.
- Use the prompt below to write the script: what to ask, in what order, what counts as an emergency, and what the receptionist must never say (prices, insurance promises).
- Call it yourself at least ten times as different customers (active leak, storm damage, price shopper, scam call) and fix the script after each round, as he did.
- Tell callers they can ask for a person, call back every real lead yourself, and if customers push back on the AI, turn it off; Red Dog's Roofing did after customers complained about its answering service's AI.
Copy-paste prompt
Write a phone script for an AI receptionist named {NAME} at {COMPANY NAME}, a roofing company in {AREA}. It should greet the caller, get their name, address and phone, ask what's going on, ask whether water is coming in right now, and ask about storm or insurance involvement. Active leaks: say the owner will call back within {MINUTES} minutes. Otherwise offer a visit from these open times: {CALENDAR RULES}. Never quote prices, promise insurance coverage or say it is a person. End by confirming the details back to the caller.The $39 Plumbing & HVAC AI Starter Kit has ready-to-use call scripts, missed-call texts, estimate follow-ups and review templates, built from 18 real, sourced setups. Instant download, 30-day refund.
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Rather not do it yourself?
We'll set this up in your tools, in your voice, tested. $149/mo with setup included (6-month minimum), or $497 pay-once. Satisfaction guarantee: we'll fix it until it works. Pay-once setups: or we refund your setup fee. $149/mo plan: cancel in the first 30 days and we refund your first month. Terms. We reply within 1 business day.
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