Virtual receptionist: human, AI or voicemail?
A virtual receptionist is a person, working remotely, who answers your business calls in your company name and passes on messages, usually for a monthly fee. An AI receptionist does a similar job with software; voicemail just records the caller. Here is how each works and which fits whom.
Our AI receptionist for website enquiriesWhat is an AI receptionist?What an AI receptionist costs in the UK
What a virtual receptionist actually does.
A virtual receptionist answers your business phone without sitting in your office. You divert your calls to an answering service; a receptionist there picks up in your business name, deals with the caller the way you have asked (take a message, screen the call, put an important caller through to you) and sends you the details, usually by email or text.
You pay the service, not a salary. UK services charge a monthly fee, a charge per call or per minute, or both, and many cover office hours on their entry plan, with longer hours or 24/7 cover on higher plans. It sits between hiring a receptionist and letting calls go to voicemail.
An AI receptionist is the software version: it answers the phone in a spoken voice, follows the script you give it and works around the clock, usually for a lower monthly fee plus a charge per call. Voicemail is the fallback built into most phone plans: it records the caller and leaves the call-back to you.
Human, AI or voicemail: side by side.
How the three options compare for a small business phone line.
| Area | Human virtual receptionist | AI phone receptionist | Voicemail |
|---|---|---|---|
| Who answers | A trained person, working remotely, in your business name | Software that speaks, following the script you set | Nobody: a recorded greeting, then a beep |
| Hours | Often office hours on entry plans; longer hours or 24/7 cost more | Usually 24/7 | Always on |
| How you pay | A monthly fee, a charge per call or per minute, or both | A monthly fee plus a charge per call or per minute | Usually inside your phone plan |
| An unusual or upset caller | The strongest of the three: a person can judge, reassure and escalate | Fine for routine questions; it follows the rules it is given | No help: a caller who will not leave a message is lost |
| Urgent calls | Can put an important caller through to you, sometimes for a fee | Depends on the service and how it is set up | Wait until you listen and call back |
| What you get after the call | A message with the caller's details, by email or text | A message or summary, by email or text | A recording you have to dial in to hear |
| Setting it up | Divert your line and brief the team | Divert your line and set the script | Already on most phones |
Which option fits whom.
| A human virtual receptionist | Trades, clinics, law and property firms, where callers ring with something urgent or sensitive and a badly handled call can lose the job. It costs the most of the three, and you get a person's judgement. |
|---|---|
| An AI phone receptionist | Busy lines with routine questions (opening hours, prices, booking a slot), where 24/7 cover matters more than a human touch and the per-call charge stays low at your volume. |
| Voicemail | Low call volume, callers who already know you and will leave a message, and a working day that lets you call back within hours. |
| Buzzozo | Businesses whose customers also get in touch through their website. Our AI receptionist answers website visitors in writing, day and night, as part of the Website plan. It does not take phone calls. |
| A mix | You can combine them: an answering service or voicemail for the phone, and a website assistant for written enquiries, so neither waits until morning. |
Where Buzzozo fits: website enquiries, not calls.
We answer your website, not your phone line. Here is what that covers.
Buzzozo builds and looks after websites for UK small businesses. Our AI receptionist answers questions from visitors on your website, day and night, in writing, and captures their enquiry for you. It does not answer phone calls, so it does not replace a human virtual receptionist or voicemail on your business line.
If missed calls are the problem, the Website + CRM plan, from £599 a month, includes missed-call text-back, which texts a caller you could not answer. The Website plan with AI chat assistant, from £149 a month, includes the assistant with a monthly usage allowance, and everything listed below.
| Premium custom design, written and built | Designed for your business and written for your customers. Zero upfront fee: free for 14 days, then the monthly plan. Bigger or more complex sites are quoted. |
|---|---|
| Fast green UK hosting | Cloud hosting on 100% renewable power, with a free CDN so pages load fast. |
| SSL certificate | The padlock in the address bar, kept renewed for you. |
| Security | Firewall and malware protection, with monitoring around the clock. |
| Daily backups | Automatic, and restorable if anything ever goes wrong. |
| Speed optimisation | Images, code and caching tuned so your site stays fast. |
| Regular updates and upgrades | Software, plugins and security patches kept current. |
| Small changes on request | Website includes a set number of small changes. Anything beyond the allowance is quoted before work starts. |
| On-page SEO | Titles, descriptions, structure and schema set up so you appear in Google. |
| AI-search-ready build | Clear service pages, FAQs and schema, so AI answers and Google's AI Overviews can read and understand you. |
| Contact forms, click-to-call and WhatsApp | Enquiries go straight to your inbox and phone. |
| AI chat assistant, included | Answers visitors' questions 24/7 and captures enquiries, with a monthly usage allowance. |
| Your domain in your name | Registered to you, never held hostage. |
| UK support | Real people by phone, WhatsApp and email. |
Website is from £149 a month: the founding price for the first 100 businesses, locked for life. From £299 a month after the first 100. Website + CRM is from £599 a month. Monthly, no contract, cancel any time. Our prices exclude VAT where applicable. Specialised work, such as SEO campaigns, ads, online stores and booking systems, is planned and priced separately. See all plans or the AI chat assistant, or start a free 14-day trial, no card needed.
Plans from £149 a month.
Free for 14 days, AI assistant included. The first 100 businesses on the Website plan keep £149 a month for life. No card needed, no contract.
| Plan Monthly. No contract. Cancel any time. | Websitefrom£149/moFounding price for the first 100 businesses, locked for life. From £299 a month after the first 100. | Website + CRMfrom£599/moEverything in Website, plus BuzzozoHub CRM built for your business. | CustomTailoredBuilt around your goals. Tell us what you need and we'll plan it with you. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Website designed, written and built for you | Included | Included | Included |
| Free green UK hosting | Included | Included | Included |
| Free SSL certificate | Included | Included | Included |
| Security, monitoring and daily backups | Included | Included | Included |
| Speed optimisation | Included | Included | Included |
| Regular updates and upgrades | Included | Included | Included |
| On-page SEO so you appear in Google | Included | Included | Included |
| AI-search-ready build (AI answers and Google's AI Overviews) | Included | Included | Included |
| Contact forms, click-to-call and WhatsApp | Included | Included | Included |
| AI chat assistant during your free trial | Included | Included | Not included |
| Your domain in your name | Included | Included | Included |
| UK support by phone, WhatsApp and email | Included | Included | Included |
| BuzzozoHub CRM built and set up for your business | Not included | Included | Included |
| Customers, enquiries and follow-ups in one place | Not included | Included | Included |
| Tailored tools and automations | Not included | Included | Included |
| Missed-call text-back | Not included | Included | Included |
| Review requests, where they fit | Not included | Included | Included |
| Start free | Start free | Plan it with us |
- Website designed, written and built for you
- Free green UK hosting
- Free SSL certificate
- Security, monitoring and daily backups
- Speed optimisation
- Regular updates and upgrades
- On-page SEO so you appear in Google
- AI-search-ready build (AI answers and Google's AI Overviews)
- Contact forms, click-to-call and WhatsApp
- AI chat assistant during your free trial
- Your domain in your name
- UK support by phone, WhatsApp and email
- Everything in Website
- BuzzozoHub CRM built and set up for your business
- Customers, enquiries and follow-ups in one place
- Tailored tools and automations
- Missed-call text-back
- Review requests, where they fit
- SEO and local SEO, priced per job
- AI search campaigns
- Articles and blog content
- Google and Meta ads
- Social media marketing
- Shopify and online stores
- Booking systems and bespoke tools
- Email marketing
- Works on its own, or alongside Website or Website + CRM
Cancel any time.
Registered to you, not to us.
No card needed to start.
One simple monthly price. Ask about paying yearly.
Virtual receptionist questions, answered.
What is a virtual receptionist?
A virtual receptionist is a receptionist who works remotely, usually for an answering service. Your calls divert to them, they answer in your business name, take a message or follow your instructions, and send you the details, often by email or text.
How much does a virtual receptionist cost in the UK?
UK answering services usually charge a monthly fee, a charge per call or per minute, or both. Longer hours and more calls cost more, and call charges, activation fees and VAT can take the real bill well past the headline price.
What is the difference between a virtual receptionist and an AI receptionist?
A virtual receptionist is a person. An AI receptionist is software that answers in a spoken voice, follows a script and works around the clock. A person handles unusual or sensitive calls better; software usually costs less per call.
Is voicemail enough for a small business?
Only if you get few calls and your callers already know you. Voicemail is usually included in your phone plan, but a caller who will not leave a message is lost, and you still have to call everyone back.
Do virtual receptionists work 24/7?
Some do. Many cover office hours on their entry plan and charge more for evenings, weekends or 24/7 cover, so check the hours before you compare.
Does Buzzozo answer phone calls?
No. Buzzozo's AI receptionist answers enquiries on your website, in writing, day and night. It does not answer phone calls. The Website + CRM plan, from £599 a month, includes missed-call text-back for callers you could not answer.
Can I try Buzzozo for free?
Yes. The Website plan, with the AI chat assistant, is free for 14 days and no card is needed. After that it is from £149 a month, monthly, with no contract. Our prices exclude VAT where applicable.
Want website enquiries answered while you work? Start with the free trial.
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