Voice AI agent: 24/7 phone answering

Missed calls are missed bookings. The Voice AI agent is a phone line that answers every inbound call, quotes availability, takes bookings, and hands off to a human whenever the situation calls for one. It runs around the clock, which means Saturday night inquiries become Sunday morning pickups instead of lost leads.

Advanced plan feature. The Voice AI agent is available on the Advanced plan and higher.

How it works

The agent sits on a dedicated Twilio phone number that TrailerBase provisions for you. You can:

• Publish the new number directly on your website and business listings, or
• Forward your existing business number to it, so you do not have to reprint anything.

When a call comes in, the AI greets the caller in your business voice, understands what they want, and takes action.

What the agent can do on a call

A typical call flow includes:

1. Greet the caller with your business name and ask how it can help.
2. Quote availability — the agent checks your live calendar for the dates and trailer type the caller mentions.
3. Quote pricing — daily rate, delivery fee if applicable, deposit amount. All pulled from your actual trailer setup.
4. Book the rental — capture renter name, phone, email, pickup and return dates, and send a secure text-to-pay link before ending the call.
5. Hand off to a human — if the caller asks a question the agent cannot confidently answer (damage dispute, complex custom job, anything sensitive), it says so plainly and transfers to the number you designated or takes a callback message.

The agent speaks naturally, handles interruptions, understands a wide range of accents, and will never pretend to be a human.

Setting it up

1. Go to Settings > Voice AI agent.
2. Click Provision number and pick an area code.
3. Record or type your greeting (the agent will read typed greetings in a natural voice).
4. Set the handoff number — the phone line that rings when the agent escalates a call.
5. Choose the business hours behavior. Most operators let the AI handle everything 24/7 and only escalate to a human between 8am and 8pm.
6. Pick the trailer categories you want the agent to book. If you keep specialty equipment manual-only, exclude it here.
7. Click Activate.

Your number is live within a minute.

Call recordings and transcripts

Every call is recorded and transcribed automatically. Open Voice AI > Calls to see:

• The caller's number (and linked renter profile if they exist).
• Outcome — quoted, booked, transferred, voicemail.
• The full audio recording with playback controls.
• A searchable transcript with timestamps.
• A one-paragraph AI summary of what was discussed.

Recordings are stored for 90 days by default. You can extend retention in Settings > Voice AI > Storage.

Keeping it sounding like you

Under Settings > Voice AI > Personality you can adjust:

• Voice — pick from a short list of natural voices.
• Tone — friendly, professional, casual.
• Scripts — add custom lines like deposit policies or delivery area limits the agent should mention proactively.

Upload a FAQ document and the agent will use it when callers ask questions outside the booking flow ("Do you deliver to the next county?", "Can I tow with a half-ton?").

Cost and usage

Voice minutes are billed at the standard Twilio rate and pass through to your TrailerBase invoice line-by-line. There is no separate per-call markup from TrailerBase on the Advanced plan.

When to keep a human in the loop

The agent is excellent at quotes and bookings, but you should still own:

• High-value commercial deals with custom terms.
• Damage and dispute conversations.
• VIP renters who expect to speak with you directly — tag their phone number as Human only and their calls will ring straight through.

Turn it on, listen to a few calls this week, and adjust the greeting until it sounds like you.