An AI receptionist answers enquiries, books appointments, and handles routine customer questions around the clock - so a missed call or an after-hours email stops being a lost customer. This is a step-by-step guide to creating one (or a customer support agent, which is the same build with a different job) on [cto AI Business](/content/agent-teams/index.html): from capturing enquiries in the Inbox, to booking and escalation, to the approvals that keep it safe. Free to pilot. **TL;DR.** Build it as a small AI team: a Team Lead that owns the conversation, a Member that handles bookings and lookups, a knowledge base of your business info, and approvals on the high-stakes actions. cto gives you the team, the Inbox to receive written enquiries, and MCP connections to your calendar and (for phone) a call gateway. Start on the free tier with approvals on everything, then loosen. ## Receptionist vs support agent - same build Both are the same shape - an agent that fields inbound messages, answers from your information, does a few actions (book, look up, route), and escalates what it can't handle. The difference is the job: - **AI receptionist** \- answers enquiries, qualifies, and books appointments. See the [AI receptionist use case](/content/use-cases/ai-receptionist/index.html). - **AI customer support agent** \- answers product/service questions and resolves routine issues. See the [AI customer support agent use case](/content/use-cases/ai-customer-support-agent/index.html). This guide is the how-to; those pages are the worked examples. ## What you'll need - **A place for enquiries to land.** cto gives each team a dedicated Inbox (email address) for written enquiries. For **phone**, connect a call gateway (Twilio, Vonage, or similar) via MCP so the team can hear and answer calls. - **Your business info** \- hours, services, pricing, policies, FAQs - so the agent answers correctly. - **Your calendar or booking tool** connected as an integration, if it books. ## Step by step Agent team topology: lead agent coordinating four specialistsLeadagentResearcherread-onlyDrafterwritesReviewercriticSpecialistwrite-scopedPublisheroutputLead delegates subtasks → specialists return results → lead synthesizesA small agent team: one lead coordinating four to six role-specialized agents, each with scoped tool access. 1. **Create the AI business.** Write a Plan: "Answer inbound enquiries 24/7, answer common questions from our info, book appointments, and route anything urgent or unusual to a human." 2. **Give it your knowledge.** Add your hours, services, pricing, and FAQs so replies are accurate - this is what separates a helpful agent from a generic one. 3. **Connect the channels.** Point your enquiry email at the Inbox; for phone, wire a call gateway via MCP. 4. **Hire the Member(s).** Capability for booking (calendar write), customer/order lookup, knowledge-base Q&A, and escalation. One well-scoped Member can cover several; split them if you want strict separation. 5. **Set approvals.** In week one, have bookings and outbound replies wait for your sign-off, and set anything unusual to escalate. Loosen once the drafts are reliable. 6. **Pilot free, then scale.** The free tier covers low volume; premium handles production. ## What it does live A question arrives - by email or call - "Are you open Saturday and can you fit a boiler service?" The agent answers from your info, checks the calendar, offers two slots, books the pick, and sends a confirmation. A question it can't answer, or an angry customer, gets routed to you with the context attached. Routine work handled; judgment calls escalated. ## Keep the guardrails on - **Escalate the hard stuff** \- complaints, refunds, anything off-script - to a human with context. - **Approve bookings and outbound messages** until the drafts have earned your trust. - **Give it accurate info** \- a receptionist confidently quoting the wrong price is worse than a missed call. Keep the knowledge base current. ## Build vs buy If you'd rather not build, packaged AI receptionist services (Smith.ai, Goodcall, Rosie) exist and are covered in the [AI receptionist use case](/content/use-cases/ai-receptionist/index.html). Building on cto AI Business gives you more control - your own team, models, tools, and approval rules - and a free tier to pilot on. Packaged services are faster to switch on but less flexible. ## FAQ ### How do I create an AI receptionist? Build it as a small AI team on cto AI Business: write a Plan, add your business info, connect your enquiry channels (email Inbox, or a phone gateway via MCP) and calendar, hire a Member to handle bookings and Q&A, and set approvals on bookings and outbound messages. Free to pilot. ### Can an AI receptionist answer phone calls? Yes - connect a call gateway (Twilio, Vonage, or similar) via MCP and the team can answer calls. For written enquiries, cto's built-in Inbox catches email without any extra setup. ### What's the difference between an AI receptionist and a support agent? Same build, different job: a receptionist answers enquiries and books appointments; a support agent answers questions and resolves routine issues. Both field inbound messages, act, and escalate what they can't handle. ### Is an AI receptionist reliable enough to trust with customers? With guardrails, yes: keep approvals on bookings and outbound replies, escalate anything unusual to a human, and keep its knowledge base accurate. Start with approvals on everything and loosen as it proves out. ### How much does an AI receptionist cost to build? On cto AI Business, free to pilot (ad-supported, with rolling limits) - enough to run a small business's volume. Premium handles production volume. Cheaper than a packaged answering service or a hire. ## Next steps - [AI receptionist use case →](/content/use-cases/ai-receptionist/index.html) - [AI customer support agent use case →](/content/use-cases/ai-customer-support-agent/index.html) - [Automate bookings and client enquiries →](/content/guides/automate-bookings-and-enquiries/index.html) - [How to grow a local service business →](/content/guides/grow-a-local-service-business/index.html)