The phone rings while you're with a customer. You let it go.
Riley takes the phone, 24/7, while you do everything else.
Riley is your front desk, your coworker doing the essential but boring jobs. She answers after a few rings, in your business's name, and texts you who called and what they need within a minute. You call back when you're free.
Get No Missed Calls — $199/monthPrepaid month. Cancel online any time. You keep your number.
Hi, I'm Riley.
I'm Groundwork's 24/7 voice receptionist. When you can't pick up, I answer after a few rings, in your business's name, and text you who called and what they need within a minute. You call back when you're free. Call (571) 554-5050 and hear me.
Sounds familiar?
- You're with a customer, the phone rings, and you let it go. You tell yourself they'll call back. Most don't.
- Voicemail is where new customers disappear: most callers hang up on it and dial the next listing.
- You never find out. There's no record of the job you didn't get, so the loss is invisible and it happens every week.
- After 5pm and on weekends the phone keeps ringing. That's when people finally have time to call, and nobody's there.
That's the boring work. It shouldn't be yours.
What Riley takes. What you keep.
Riley takes
- the call that comes while you're with a customer
- "Are you open? Where are you? Do you do X?"
- the 6pm call, the Saturday call, the holiday call
- the booking: name, number, what they need, when
- the message nobody would have left on voicemail
You keep
- the patient in the chair, the quote on site, the job that pays
- one text per call; nothing to log in to, nothing to check
- your number, your listing, your signs, your hours
Riley vs an answering service vs voicemail
An answering service puts a stranger on your line, reading a script. Voicemail puts nobody on it. Riley puts a coworker on it: the same voice every time, trained on your business, and a text to you within a minute.
| What matters | Riley | Answering service |
|---|---|---|
| Who answers | Your front desk, same voice every time, trained on your business | Whoever is on shift, reading a script, often for dozens of businesses |
| Hours | Any hour, every day | Business hours standard; nights and weekends cost extra |
| What you pay | $199/month + $49 one-time setup, flat, no per-minute charges | A base fee plus per-minute or per-call charges; busy months cost more |
| What you get after a call | A text summary within a minute: name, number, what they need | A message in a portal or an email, often hours later |
| Setup | Keep your number; standard *71 forwarding | Account setup, script writing, staff briefing |
| Leaving | Prepaid month, cancel online any time | Often a contract with a notice period |
If your callers need a person to take a payment or handle a long, unusual conversation, an answering service is the better fit. For the everyday calls, booking, questions, callbacks, Riley is faster and costs less. Voicemail is free, and most callers don't leave a message.
Or hire a receptionist?
It's the obvious question, and for some businesses it's the right answer. Here's the plain comparison.
A receptionist
$41,240 a year in wages
before payroll taxes and benefits
- In the office about 40 of the week's 168 hours
- Lunch, sick days and vacation leave the phone unanswered
- The right choice when someone must greet people at your desk
Riley
$199 a month
+ $49 one-time setup, flat, no per-minute charges
- Answers any hour, every day, in your business's name
- Never out sick, never at lunch, never on vacation
- Texts you who called and what they need within a minute
About $3,400 a monthfor a receptionist, wages alone
$199 a monthfor Riley, every hour of the week
- Answers any hour, every day, in your business's name
- Never out sick, never at lunch, never on vacation
- Texts you who called and what they need within a minute
About $3,400 a month in wages covers one person. Some weeks look like this:
- Tuesday, 12:30Your receptionist is at lunch. Riley answers.
- Thursday, 7:45 a.m.She's home with the flu. Riley answers.
- Saturday, 9:10 p.m.Nobody is in the office. Riley answers.
- The week of July 4She's on vacation. Riley answers.
Get No Missed Calls — $199/month$199 a month + $49 one-time setup. Cancel online any time.
Median pay for receptionists in the Washington, DC area, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2025. Wages only, before payroll taxes and benefits.
If your customers need someone to greet them in the room, hire the person. For the phone, Riley covers the hours a person can't.
How it works
Nothing changes on your signs, cards or Google listing. Most businesses are live the same day they sign up.
- Calls you don't pick up forward to RileyStandard *71 call forwarding sends the calls you can't take to your front desk. You keep your number.
- Riley answers after a few rings, in your business's nameAny hour, every day. She books the appointment, answers the three questions every caller asks (are you open, where are you, do you do X), and takes a message when that's all they need.
- You get the note within a minuteAs Riley sends it:
sampleHi Andy, Mark called from (571) 555-0142. New patient, wants a crown consult, Tuesday afternoons work for him. I told him you'd call back today. — Riley
- You call back when you're freeBetween customers, after the job, next morning. The caller has already been answered, so they wait for you instead of calling the next listing.
What you need to start
- Your business phone number (you keep it).
- About ten minutes to tell Riley about your business: hours, what you do, what to say to the usual questions.
- A mobile number for the text summaries.
- Standard *71 call forwarding, which we walk you through.
What Riley doesn't do
Riley is your front desk, your coworker doing the essential but boring jobs.
- She does not take payments over the phone.
- She does not give medical, legal or financial advice; she takes the question and passes it to you.
- She does not replace a person for long, unusual conversations; she takes a message and you call back.
- She does not change your number, your listing or your signs.
What it costs, against what one new customer brings in
| No Missed Calls, one month (every call, day or night, weekends and holidays) | $199 |
One new customer a month who would otherwise have reached voicemail usually covers it. You know what one customer is worth to you; we don't claim a number.
- Prepaid month, cancel online any time.
- No contract.
- You keep your number.
Questions owners ask before they start
Does it replace my phone number?
No. Riley joins your business; she doesn't replace your number. Calls you don't pick up forward to her with standard *71 call forwarding; your signs, cards and Google listing stay exactly as they are.
How fast does she answer?
After a few rings, any hour, every day.
What does the caller hear?
Riley, answering in your business's name: "Thanks for calling [your business], how can I help?" Call (571) 554-5050 and you'll hear it.
What do I get after a call?
A text summary within a minute: the caller's name, number and what they need. Urgent calls go straight to you.
Can she book appointments?
Yes. She takes the booking details and texts them to you. Calendar links are set up during onboarding.
What does it cost?
No Missed Calls is $199/month + $49 one-time setup. Flat monthly price, no per-minute charges.
Is there a contract or a trial?
Neither. Prepaid month, cancel online any time, no refunds.
How long does setup take?
Most businesses are live the same day they sign up.
Get No Missed Calls — $199/month
Hear her before you decide
Call (571) 554-5050. That's Riley, answering in a sample business's name. Ten seconds on the phone tells you more than this page can.