Own-Line Receptionist Kit

• You run a trade business on your own or with a small team, and you miss calls while you work.
• Your mobile can forward the calls you don't answer.
• You are comfortable signing up for an online account and pasting text into a settings page.

• Open your own Vapi and Twilio accounts and pay their costs.
• Fill in the script with your business details.
• Run all 12 test calls before you forward real calls.

• You rarely miss calls, or voicemail already works for you.
• Your callers need health, legal or financial advice on the call. The receptionist gives no advice.
• You need jobs booked into a calendar or payments taken on the call.
• You don't want calls recorded. The first message tells every caller the call is recorded.
• You want someone to set it up for you. This kit is files you work through yourself.
• You can't give Twilio ID and an Australian street address. Its number check needs both.

Time. Four to six hours to set up, plus up to five business days for Twilio's ID check, then one to two hours for the 12 test calls and fixes. Once live, about ten minutes a week in the first month, then a monthly bill check. These are estimates for someone new to voice platforms.

Running costs. You pay Vapi for call minutes, and Twilio for your Australian number and the calls it receives. Your phone plan may charge for forwarded calls. Summaries come by email through Make's free plan, or by text through Twilio at a cost for each text. The running-cost worksheet shows how to work out your monthly cost before you pay for anything.