For locksmiths
An AI receptionist for locksmiths
When you're on a callout and can't answer, it picks up, spots the lockouts and texts you the details so you can ring back first.
Read the video transcript
- On screen
- Your phone's ringing, and you're up a ladder. A missed call.
- Voiceover
- Your phone's ringing, and you're up a ladder. That's a job gone. Unless your phone answers itself.
- On screen
- What your callers hear.
- AI receptionist
- Hi, you've reached Dave's Plumbing. I'm Dave's AI assistant, and this call is transcribed. How can I help?
- Caller
- My boiler's packed in. No hot water.
- AI receptionist
- Oh, sorry to hear that. What's the postcode there?
- Caller
- BS3.
- AI receptionist
- Got it. I've pencilled you in for Tuesday at ten. Dave will confirm by text.
- On screen
- A text arrives: New enquiry. Boiler not working, no hot water. BS3. Pencilled in for Tuesday at 10am. Tap to confirm.
- Voiceover
- You get the details. Straight away.
- Voiceover
- It asks your questions, books your calendar, handles emergencies, even asks for photos of the job.
- On screen
- And it's not just a voicemail. Asks your questions, one at a time, in plain English. Emergency? Safety advice first, and you get an instant alert. Says it's an AI, every call. Never pretends to be a person.
- Voiceover
- And every Monday, you see what it caught.
- On screen
- An example weekly summary: calls the AI answered, jobs pencilled in, photos received and emergencies flagged.
- Voiceover
- Try it free for 14 days.
- On screen
- Try it free for 14 days. Card required. Nothing to pay today. Cancel any time. Set up for you. Keep your own number. Plans from £24/month + VAT. arcscribe.co.uk/receptionist. Set up for you. Anywhere in the UK.
- Set up for you
- Keep your existing number: we forward the calls you miss
- Says it's an AI on every call
- Cancel any time
What your callers hear
Your phone rings first. If you can't get to it, the AI receptionist answers, says it's an AI, and asks what you'd ask. Here's an example call to Sam's Locksmiths.
Hear an example call
Dramatised example using synthetic voices. On a real call, the AI uses your business name and the questions you approve.
Read the transcript
Phone rings twice
AI: Hi, you've reached Dave's Plumbing. I'm Dave's AI assistant, and this call is transcribed. How can I help?
Caller: My boiler's packed in. No hot water.
AI: Oh, sorry to hear that. What's the postcode there?
Caller: BS3.
AI: Got it. I've pencilled you in for Tuesday at ten. Dave will confirm by text.
Pencilling in jobs is on Receptionist and Pro. On Catch, the AI takes a message and texts you.
AI receptionist
Hi, you've reached Sam's Locksmiths. Sam's out on a callout right now. I'm an AI assistant and this call is transcribed so I can pass on your message. How can I help?
Caller
Hi. We've just moved house and I'd like the locks changed on the front and back doors.
AI receptionist
Congratulations on the move. Are the doors wooden or UPVC?
Caller
The front's wooden and the back's UPVC.
AI receptionist
Thanks. Does your home insurance ask for a particular type of lock?
Caller
I think so. I'll need to check the policy.
AI receptionist
No problem, Sam can go through that with you. Can I take your name?
Caller
It's Aisha.
AI receptionist
Thanks, Aisha. What's the postcode area?
Caller
B13.
AI receptionist
Let me read that back: B 13. Is that right?
Caller
Yes.
AI receptionist
I'll text you a link so you can send photos of both locks. Sam has Saturday morning free. Would 11am suit you?
Caller
Perfect.
AI receptionist
Lovely. You're pencilled in for Saturday at 11am to change the front and back door locks, and Sam will confirm by text.
Built around how locksmiths work
Lockouts go to the top
Lockouts, lost keys, snapped keys and break-ins: it flags the call as urgent and alerts you straight away with the details, so you can ring back first. If a caller says a break-in is happening or anyone's in danger, it tells them to ring 999. It never replaces 999.
The questions you'd ask
Which door, wooden or UPVC, what's happened to the key, and whether anyone is stuck outside. You ring back knowing what to bring.
A photo of the lock
It texts the caller a link to send a photo of the lock and the edge of the door, so you turn up with the right cylinder.
Ownership checks stay with you
It can't verify who owns a property, and it doesn't try. It takes the caller's details and passes them on, so you can make your own checks before you go.
How calls go for a locksmith
Lockouts, lost keys and snapped keys
A lot of your calls are urgent. Someone is stood on the doorstep with the shopping, a key has snapped in the lock, or the keys have gone missing on a night out. If you don't answer, they ring the next locksmith on the list.
The AI picks up, says it's an AI and finds out what's happened. Lockouts, lost keys, snapped keys and break-ins are flagged as urgent, and it alerts you straight away. You get a text with the name, number, postcode area, which door and what's wrong, so you can ring back first and decide whether to go.
Break-ins and safety
Some callers ring you after a break-in, before they've thought about anything else. If a caller says a break-in is happening, or that anyone is in danger, the AI tells them to ring 999. It isn't an emergency service and never replaces 999. Once the police have been, it takes the details for boarding up or new locks and asks for photos of the damage to the door and frame.
Planned work
Not every call is a rush. People move house and want the locks changed. Insurers ask for a particular standard of lock. UPVC doors stop locking properly when the mechanism wears.
For these, the AI asks your questions: which doors, wooden, UPVC or composite, and whether an insurer has asked for anything. It texts a link so the caller can send photos of the lock and the edge of the door, so you bring the right cylinder or gearbox. Then it offers times from your calendar and pencils in the job for you to confirm by text.
Planned jobs are where your diary has room to move, so the AI keeps them apart from the urgent calls. A lock change next week never gets flagged ahead of someone stuck outside tonight. You see at a glance which calls need you now and which can wait.
Who owns the door
The AI can't verify who owns or lives at a property, and it doesn't try. It takes the caller's details and passes them on. Checking ID or proof of address stays with you, the way you do it now.
If you add common answers to your approved list, like your callout charge or the areas you cover, it can tell callers. Anything else, it says you'll get back to them.
Questions it can ask
You choose and approve the questions. A few that work well for locksmiths:
- Are you locked out right now?
- Is it the front door, the back door or something else?
- Is the door wooden, UPVC or composite?
- Has the key been lost, snapped in the lock, or has there been a break-in?
- Is this urgent, or planned work like a lock change?
- For planned work, when would suit you?
Photos it asks for
Callers get a text with a link to send pictures, and they land in Keystone with the call.
The lock
The cylinder or keyhole, close up.
The edge of the door
The faceplate on the door edge, so you can see the mechanism.
The whole door
Wooden, UPVC or composite, with the handle.
Any damage
After a break-in: the frame, the lock and the door.
Questions from locksmiths
It flags the call as urgent and alerts you straight away, with the caller's name, number, postcode area and what's happened. You ring back first and decide whether to go.
It tells the caller to ring 999, and to ring 999 if anyone's in danger. It isn't an emergency service and never replaces 999. It still alerts you, so you can follow up once it's safe.
No. It can't verify who owns or lives at a property. It takes the caller's details and passes them on, and you make your own checks before you open a door.
Only prices you've approved. If you set a standard callout charge, it can tell callers. Anything else, it says you'll let them know when you ring back.
Yes. It asks which doors, what type they are and whether the caller's insurer asks for a particular lock, then texts a link for photos. It doesn't give advice on what a policy needs. You talk that through with the caller.
A person at Arcscribe sets it up for you: we get your new number, register it with the phone regulator and test it. While you wait, you can set up your greeting, your services and your calendar in Keystone.
Yes. Keep your existing number: we forward the calls you miss. You turn on call forwarding on your phone, so missed calls go to your Arcscribe number, and we give you a simple guide for it. Moving your number over to us completely (porting) isn't offered yet.
It depends on the plan: the pricing page has the current prices. We'll email you 3 days before your trial ends. If you don't cancel, we'll charge your first month + VAT when the trial ends.
Yes, any time, in Keystone. Cancel during the trial and you won't pay anything. On a paid plan, your plan runs to the end of the month you've paid for.