The receptionist that runs the enquiry line while you run the site
A builder's phone carries three businesses at once: new enquiries, live projects, and the supply chain. An AI receptionist on your Line number takes the extension and loft enquiries properly, books the site visit into the estimator's diary, sends the merchant and the subbie to the person who owns the job, and keeps chasing the quote over the weeks a client takes to decide. Start with Molly, the pre-built receptionist, or build your own agent for the way you work.
- Incoming call while you're pouring a slabTue 09:35
Fenwick Building, how can I help?
Molly, AI receptionistWe're thinking about a single-storey rear extension. Kitchen-diner, roughly five metres out. Do you do that sort of thing?
Yes, that's most of our work. Do you have drawings or planning yet, and what's the postcode?
Molly, AI receptionistNo drawings yet. We're in OX2 7HL. Hoping to start in spring.
Thanks. The first step is a site visit with Mark, our estimator. He can do Thursday at 17:30 or Saturday at 10:00. There's no charge for the visit. Which suits?
Molly, AI receptionistSaturday, please.
Site visit booked · Extension · Mark · Sat 10:00
Rear extension, approx 5m, no drawings, spring start. Lead created in the CRM, customer texted the confirmation and a link to recent extensions.
Everything a building firm's receptionist does, done by the agent
The best receptionist in a building firm knows a client from a subbie in one sentence. Each row below is a task the agent does on the call, or straight after it.
| What a receptionist does | How the agent does it |
|---|---|
| Answers in your company name, office or site | Picks up on the first ring with your greeting, 24/7, out of hours only, or only when nobody in the office answers. |
| Qualifies extension and loft enquiries | Asks the project type, the postcode, whether there are drawings or planning, the budget band, and when they want to start. Follows your question list. |
| Books the site visit | Finds the next gap in the estimator's Google Calendar or Microsoft 365, offers two slots, and books it. Adds a one-tap approval if you want to check first. |
| Sends suppliers and subbies to the right person | Recognises known numbers and routes the merchant to site and the subcontractor to the project lead. Keeps both off the enquiry line. |
| Answers project questions from the record | Tells a known client when the scaffold comes down or when the electrician is due, from the notes you keep in the CRM. |
| Texts the confirmation and the prep list | Sends the visit time, who is coming, and what to have ready: drawings, photos, the survey, by SMS or WhatsApp. |
| Creates the lead and the project in the CRM | Adds the client, the address, the scope, the drawings they send, and the visit, to Line's CRM or your project software. |
| Chases the quote over the weeks | Follows up at the intervals you set. Answers questions from the quote. Records a yes, a no, or a reason to wait. |
| Collects the deposit | Sends the deposit invoice and the terms by email once a client accepts, and confirms when it's paid. |
Workflows a building firm builds in an afternoon
Each one is a trigger, a few conditions, and actions in the workflow builder. No code. Change a step and it's live.
- 1The agent asks your qualifying questions: project, postcode, drawings, budget band, start date
- 2Checks the postcode is inside your working area
- 3Offers the next two site-visit slots from the estimator's diary
- 4Books the slot, texts the confirmation, and asks for photos or drawings by WhatsApp
- 5Creates the lead in the CRM with every answer attached
Every serious enquiry ends as a site visit in the diary, with the brief already written.
- 1Look up the caller in the CRM
- 2If it's a merchant, ring the site phone for that project
- 3If it's a subcontractor, ring the project lead
- 4If nobody picks up, the agent takes the message and posts it to the project thread
The enquiry line stays open for clients. Site calls reach site.
- 1After 7 days, the agent texts to ask if they have questions
- 2After 14 days, calls, answers questions from the quote, and offers a second visit if the scope has changed
- 3After 30 days, emails a note that the price holds until the date you set
- 4Records the decision or the reason in the CRM, and stops when you tell it to
A quote stays alive for as long as the client takes to decide, without you remembering to call.
Built in the workflow builder: a trigger, conditions, and actions. The agent is one of the actions.
Tools and integrations the agent works with
A receptionist is only useful if they can get into the diary and the CRM. Connect the tools and the agent uses them on the call.
A Tuesday with the agent on the phones
What actually happens when the phone is covered all day.
A merchant calls about a delivery. The agent recognises the number, routes it to the site phone at Elm Road, and logs it to the project.
A homeowner calls about a loft conversion. The agent asks about the roof type, head height, and drawings, and books Mark for Thursday evening.
A plasterer rings to confirm Friday. The agent routes him to Tom, the project lead, with the thread attached.
The quote-chase workflow calls a client from three weeks ago. They accept. The deposit invoice goes out by email within the minute.
A client on a live job asks when the windows arrive. The agent reads the date from the project record and texts it back.
Out-of-hours rule switches on. Calls now go to the agent first. A planning question waits in the inbox for the morning.
- A structural or safety question on a live site: a crack, a leak into a neighbour's property, a scaffold concern. The agent flags the project lead at once with the details.
- A price, a start date, or a scope change. The agent does not commit you. It says the estimator will confirm and books the call.
- A complaint, a dispute over a stage payment, or a neighbour raising a party-wall issue. The agent takes the details and passes them to you. It never makes a promise you have not authorised.
Questions building contractors ask
Straight answers on setup, limits, and cost.
Related
Line for builders
The whole phone system for your trade: numbers, routing, texts, and the inbox.
AI receptionist
What the receptionist does on every call, and what it costs.
Workflow builder
Triggers, conditions, and actions for calls and messages.
Integrations
Zapier, Make, n8n, and the REST API.
Last reviewed .
Put a receptionist on your number today
Pick a UK number or bring yours, switch the receptionist on, and tell it about the business. Included with Pro and Business, an add-on on Starter. No setup fee.