Functional AI Receptionist System Setup

AI Receptionist / Virtual Office – Phone + WhatsApp STRICT FIXED BUDGET: £500 GBP I run WDI Group, a UK plumbing, heating, boiler, air-conditioning, electrical, drainage and building services company. I want an experienced AI developer to fully set up an AI receptionist/virtual office assistant. I understand £500 is a limited budget. I am completely happy to use existing or white-label AI receptionist software such as Twilio, Retell AI, Vapi, OpenAI, Make, n8n or similar. I do NOT need everything custom-built. My priority is getting the maximum reliable functionality possible for £500. PHONE RECEPTIONIST I want a natural UK-English AI receptionist capable of: * Answering incoming calls * Natural conversation and interruptions * Collecting name, phone, address/postcode and job details * Understanding the service required * Asking relevant follow-up questions * Qualifying leads * Recognising emergencies * Recognising quote requests * Handling existing customer enquiries * Human transfer/escalation * Call summaries * Transcripts/recordings where available It must not invent prices, information or unsafe technical advice. PHONE MODES I need simple controls that I can operate myself: OFF – AI does not answer. OVERFLOW – our normal phone rings first; AI answers if unanswered. AI ON – AI answers immediately. OUT OF HOURS – separate out-of-hours/emergency workflow. I MUST be shown how to change these modes myself. WHATSAPP I also want AI handling WhatsApp if achievable. It should: * Respond naturally * Collect customer/job information * Qualify leads * Ask service-specific questions * Recognise emergencies * Answer approved company questions * Request/receive customer photos * Escalate to a human where required * Summarise conversations I need the ability to turn WhatsApp AI ON/OFF. DIFFERENT SERVICE WORKFLOWS The AI should recognise and handle different enquiries appropriately: * Plumbing * Heating * Boiler repairs * Boiler servicing * New boilers * Gas safety certificates * Air-conditioning installation * Air-conditioning service/repair * Electrical * Drainage * Building/property works For example, an emergency water leak should follow a different workflow from an air-conditioning installation quote. I will provide company information and help define the required questions. EMERGENCIES The AI should recognise potentially urgent situations including major water leaks, gas concerns, serious drainage issues and electrical emergencies. It should collect information, clearly flag the enquiry as urgent and escalate appropriately without giving unsafe technical advice. HUMAN TRANSFER If someone asks to speak to Bradley/a human, the AI should ideally attempt a transfer. If unanswered, it should return to the customer, collect details and create a HIGH PRIORITY CALLBACK. EMAIL EVERY LEAD I will create a dedicated email address. Every genuine lead should automatically generate an email containing: * Customer name/contact details * Address/postcode * Service required * Job/problem description * Urgency * Preferred callback/appointment * Phone or WhatsApp source * AI summary * Transcript/recording link where available * Required action Urgent leads should be clearly identified. DAILY SUMMARY I want ONE automatic daily email showing ideally: * Calls handled * WhatsApp conversations * Genuine leads * Quote requests * Emergencies * Transfers * Callback requests * Appointments * Missed/abandoned conversations * Leads requiring action APPOINTMENT BOOKING – IF ACHIEVABLE I would like controlled appointment booking. AI must NOT freely fill my diary. I want to specify permitted appointment periods. For example, quotation/survey appointments could only be offered on selected afternoons. Anything urgent/unusual should be passed to a human. SERVICEM8 – OPTIONAL We use ServiceM8. If achievable, I would like integration to create customers/jobs, add conversation summaries/details, photos and appointments. However, this is NOT essential for version one. Structured lead emails are acceptable. FOLLOW-UP – OPTIONAL If achievable, AI could send one controlled follow-up when a customer starts an enquiry but does not provide required information/photos. No repeated chasing/spam. KNOWLEDGE BASE I will provide: * Services * Areas covered * Opening hours * Call-out/basic pricing information * FAQs * Policies * Approved responses * Booking/escalation rules I MUST be shown how to update this information myself. WHITE-LABEL SOFTWARE WELCOME I am completely happy to use an existing/white-label AI receptionist platform if it gives better functionality and reliability for my budget. I am happy using an existing app/dashboard for: * Phone/WhatsApp conversations * Leads * Recordings/transcripts * ON/OFF controls * Overflow/out-of-hours * Knowledge base * Reporting You MUST disclose the underlying software/platform and all ongoing costs including: * Subscription * Phone/minute charges * WhatsApp charges * AI/API costs * Hosting/licensing * Developer/reseller fees I will NOT accept hidden monthly developer markups. If your existing white-label platform can provide most of this functionality, I am very interested in seeing a demonstration. FULL SETUP REQUIRED I do NOT want someone to simply give me code. You must help fully configure and connect the required services, including where applicable: * AI/API * UK telephone/call forwarding * WhatsApp Business/API * Email * Automation/hosting * Knowledge base * Workflows * Calendar * ServiceM8 if included I will create accounts, complete verification and enter my own payment details where necessary, but you must guide me and complete the technical setup. OWNERSHIP Important accounts/numbers/data should remain under my/company control. I do not want the entire system dependent on a developer’s personal accounts. Where applicable I require access to phone numbers, WhatsApp, AI/API, automation, hosting, prompts/workflows, knowledge base and source code. If your white-label system requires an ongoi