How it works, in under 90 seconds
Your phone, answered by a real person.
Our own team in Cape Town answers in your business name, puts calls through, takes messages and books appointments.
Generated imagery and voices. The businesses and callers in it are fictional. Read it instead
Step by step
Follow the call sequence here:
Swipe along the line, or use the arrows to see how a Real Receptionist handles your company's calls.
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Step 01: Your phone rings
And you're with a patient, in court, or in the middle of service.
Step 02: Nobody answers
It rings and rings, so the caller simply calls the next business on the list.
Step 03: A real person answers
Not a bot, not a menu: a trained receptionist, answering in your business name.
That's Jami, one of our receptionists. The voice in the film and the businesses are placeholders.
Step 04: On the call
They answer the questions your callers ask most, put through the calls that need you, take messages, book appointments straight into your diary, and ask your questions on every new enquiry.
Step 05: The message
When we take a message, it lands in your inbox as soon as the call ends: who called, their number, what they need and what happens next.
Step 06: Who answers
Our own team in Cape Town, trained on your business before your first call. They're one or two hours ahead, so a normal day shift there covers 6am to 9pm on weekdays, UK time.
Step 07: What it costs
£70 a month for 100 minutes, billed by the second. A 70-second call costs about 82p, never rounded up to the minute.
Hear it for yourself
Hear one of our receptionists.
Our receptionist answers in the client's business name, offers to put the caller through and, when the person they asked for isn't free, takes a message.
A demonstration call recorded on our phone system by our own team. Edited only to remove a restart.
Read the call
- ReceptionistDirect Security Supplies, good day, how may I help you?
- CallerHi, can I please speak to Lara?
- ReceptionistSure, who may I say is calling?
- CallerIt's Fiona from ABC Fencing.
- ReceptionistOK, hold a moment please, I'll put you through.
- CallerThanks.
- ReceptionistHello, Fiona?
- CallerYes.
- ReceptionistLara's not available at the moment. Can I take a message for her?
- CallerYou can just ask her to call Fiona from ABC Fencing. She has my number.
- ReceptionistShe has your number. OK, no problem. Have a good day.
- CallerOK, you too. Thank you. Bye bye.
The small print, in large print
What's in the price, and how it's billed.
One bundle in pounds, an itemised log of every call, and no VAT on top.
Monthly bundle
£70a month
100 minutes of live answering. That works out at 70p a minute.
- Real receptionists, 6am to 9pm UK time on weekdays and 7am to 9pm at weekends
- Billed by the second, never rounded up to the minute
- Answered in your business name
- Messages by email as soon as the call ends
- Call transfers and appointment booking
- Keep your own number, or use a UK number from us
No VAT: we don't charge UK or South African VAT to UK clients.
One price in pounds
100 minutes for £70 a month. Extra minutes are 70p. We bill by the second, so you only pay for the time we actually spend on your calls.
See every call
You get an itemised call log showing each call and how long it lasted.
No long contract
Month to month, with 30 days' notice. You stay because it works.
Sized to your calls
When you start, we check that your monthly package suits the number of calls you expect. A higher volume may get a lower rate per minute.
Every answered call counts
Spam and wrong-number calls count towards your minutes, because a receptionist still has to pick them up. They show in your call log like any other call.
Where your data goes
What we keep, where we see it from, and what you still decide.
Plain answers, placed where they happen: on the line, at our desk, in your systems. Anything your compliance review will ask is here or in the policy.
What we keep
A call log for billing
Date, time, length and the caller's number, so we can bill by the second and show you every call.
Kept 1 year, then totals only
Recordings only if you switch them on
Optional, and you can switch recording on or off at any time.
Kept For the period you choose
Where it's handled
Seen from Cape Town
Our receptionists see your systems from South Africa, which UK law counts as a transfer.
We work in your systems
Each receptionist logs in to your booking system, CRM or helpdesk, and what they record stays there, under your rules.
Confidentiality agreements
Every receptionist signs one, and only sees what they need for your business.
Own logins, with multi-factor authentication
No shared logins. MFA on our systems, and on yours when you have it switched on. Access removed the day someone leaves.
What you decide
We're your data processor
When we answer for you, we act only on your written instructions.
Told within 48 hours
If anything goes wrong with your data, we tell you within 48 hours, so you can meet your own 72-hour duty.
The UK GDPR, the Data Protection Act 2018 and PECR apply to the calls we answer for you. Because our team is in South Africa, POPIA applies too.
Read the full privacy policyWhy not a bot?
Why not an AI receptionist?
“Ah, that was such a great chat with a bot,”
- People hear tone and pick up on hesitation, so they can escalate an unhappy caller straight away, without frustrating them first.
- Real empathy can't be replicated. A person knows when to slow down, and when to let someone speak.
- Giving your digital tools a voice doesn't make them any smarter. Most callers have already tried to solve the problem or find the answer online before they ring you.
- A human voice makes a business sound both established and personal.
- AI can confidently give the wrong information: made-up prices, opening hours or availability. This is called hallucinating. A person who isn't sure says, “Let me check and get back to you.”
The call you'd have missed
Built for small teams whose phone is their shop window.
Every sector has one call that pays for the month. These are the ones we answer.
“A new client, while you're in court.”
Law firms and solicitors
Clients reach a calm, professional voice while you're in court or with a client. Every enquiry is logged and passed on, and nothing sounds like a call centre.
We never give legal advice. We take the details and pass them to you.
“A table for six, in the middle of Saturday service.”
Independent hotels and restaurants
Reservation and enquiry calls answered at peak times and after your receptionist has gone home, so a busy service never costs you a booking.
“A client with a question, in the January rush.”
Financial advisers and accountants
A discreet extension of your practice that clients can always reach, including during the January to April rush.
We never give financial or tax advice.
“A patient, Monday, eight in the morning.”
Clinics and practices
Patients get through first time. We book, move and confirm appointments so your team can focus on the people in front of them.
We never give medical advice. Urgent clinical calls go straight to you, as you instruct.
“‘The system's down’, at half past six.”
IT and service businesses
We answer your service calls during and after business hours and put them through as you instruct. When a customer needs help, we get hold of one of your technical people, so nobody is left waiting and frustrated.
“Something isn't right, and they can't tell their manager.”
Whistleblowing hotlines
An independent, anonymous and confidential whistleblowing hotline, hosted and answered by us. Callers speak to a trained person outside your organisation, without having to give their name, and what they report is kept confidential.
“A complaint that has to be on record today.”
Complaints and incident reporting lines
For organisations that need to offer a telephone line for complaints, or for reporting incidents and events, whether a regulator requires it or you simply want one. We host the line remotely and a trained receptionist answers every call in your name.
People who checked
What clients say.
“Real Reception’s telephone answering service has been a real time-saver. They help us attend to our clients when we are unavailable or busy with our students. Our customers always tell us how great Real Reception’s services are and how professionally they handle their calls.”
“We are very happy with Real Reception’s telephone answering service. We know that all of our client’s calls are answered professionally and our clients feel looked after even when we are in court and can’t speak to them immediately. I would definitely recommend this service!”
“Great service! A real timesaver and it adds a professional aspect to my business at a very affordable price. I cannot imagine ever going without it!”
Already with us?
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Hear us answer, then decide.
Tell us a little about your calls and we'll arrange a short call at a time that suits you. No obligation, no hard sell.
We use these details only to reply to you. See our privacy policy.