Some of your callers aren't people anymore.
Google has started phoning local businesses for its users, asking what a job costs and when there's an opening. More AI assistants will do the same. When they call, someone should pick up with the right answer.
What's happening
Since early 2025, Google has been testing a feature called "Ask for me" in the US. A person searches for, say, a tire change or a manicure. Instead of calling around, they let Google do it. Google's AI phones nearby businesses, asks about price and availability, and sends the person a summary by text or email.
It started with nail salons and auto repair shops: oil changes, tires, brakes and similar jobs. Businesses can opt out of these calls. Other companies are building assistants that make calls on people's behalf too.
The result is simple. If nobody picks up, or the answer is "I'm not sure, call back later", your business isn't in the summary. The customer never hears your name.
How AlloPlace handles these calls
AlloPlace answers an AI caller the same way it answers a person.
It gives your real prices. If you've told it a tire change is $80 and an oil change starts at $65, that's what it says. If the price depends on something, like wheel size, it says that too and gives the range you've set.
It gives real openings. It checks your Google Calendar and offers times that are actually free.
It doesn't make things up. If you haven't given it a price, it says so, instead of guessing a number that ends up in someone's comparison.
You see the call. It lands in your inbox with a transcript, like any other call, so you know what was asked and what was said.
Why this matters more than it sounds
When a person calls three shops and only one answers, the other two lose that customer. When an AI calls ten shops for someone and writes up the results, the shops that answered clearly are the ones on the list. Being easy to reach has always been part of winning local work. With AI callers it becomes the whole first round.
What we don't know yet
This is early. We don't know how many AI calls a typical business gets, how often the agents book rather than just ask, or how the rules for AI callers will settle. We'll update this page as we learn more. TBD: add what we see from real customer calls, with permission.
Get your answers ready
The best thing you can do is the same thing that helps with human callers: write down your common prices, your hours and what affects the price. AlloPlace will use them on every call, whoever's calling.