Mark Olson

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AI Receptionist for HVAC, Plumbing & Electrical: How to Test It

Testing the AI receptionist in ServiceTitan, Jobber, Housecall Pro, Workiz, FieldPulse or Service Fusion? A 60-call test that shows whether it books your jobs right before a real customer calls.

If you run an HVAC, plumbing or electrical shop, your phone is where your jobs get booked. Before anything else answers it, make sure it books those jobs the way your best person at the desk would. Every fact below was checked against vendor pages on 2026-10-27; sources are at the bottom. "Not published" means I looked and the vendor doesn't say.

What's at stake on each call

ServiceTitan, Jobber, Housecall Pro, Workiz, FieldPulse and Service Fusion all now sell an AI that answers your phone. It's an add-on to software you already pay for, so turning it on is easy.

Checking it is not. You can't open it up and change how it works. You can only change its settings. And one test call proves nothing, because it won't answer the same way twice.

Your customer doesn't know it's a test. If it books the wrong job, sends a truck to the wrong address, or misses an emergency, they find out first.

ServiceTitan's own setup page says it plainly: "Any test calls you place with the voice agent will be included in your bill."

Here's how to check it books your jobs right, before it touches your customers, without a surprise bill.

The test, any vendor

  1. Write down 20 calls that cost you money when they go wrong. Not 20 easy ones. The ones where a wrong answer loses a job or sends a truck to the wrong place. A starter list is below.
  2. Ask your rep three questions, in writing, before you turn it on.
    • What do I pay per call, and do test calls count?
    • Can you credit my test calls? (ServiceTitan's FAQ says free calls are "applied manually to your bills," so ask.)
    • Can I limit what it books while I test?
  3. Run each of the 20 calls 3 times. That's 60 calls. Staff or family can read them off a sheet. If you want a robot to place them, see "Robot callers" below.
  4. Score each call against your sheet. Did it get the address right? Did it book the right job type? Did it send the emergency to a person? Read the transcript, don't trust the summary.
  5. Start small. Turn it on for after-hours or missed calls only, with booking limited. Widen it only after it passes.
  6. Keep testing after launch. Every real call is now a test. Pull the calls it didn't book once a week and read them.

Vendor by vendor

Test before go-live Test calls billed? Start small What you see after each call Price published?
ServiceTitan Voice Agent Set up a separate test line (tracking number) Yes, per their docs Route only overflow / after-hours in your phone system; turn Can Book / Can Reschedule / Can Cancel on or off per job type Recording, transcript, Booked / Unbooked label; unbooked tagged "Voice Agent Follow-Up Needed"; export to CSV No. "Billed according to your contract"
Jobber Receptionist Public demo line: (737) 388-0043. This is Jobber's demo, not your own setup Not published After hours, or after a set number of rings; calls and texts set separately Summary, full transcript, recording $29/mo add-on. Calls included and overage not published
Housecall Pro CSR AI "Test CSR AI" button in Settings, runs in your browser with your mic Not published After-hours handling is its own setting; booking can be turned off; choose which services are bookable Summary and urgency per call; text alert when it can't book; booking-rate dashboard No
Workiz Genius Answering ("Jessica") 7-day free trial on Workiz Not published. Any call 20+ seconds counts as a conversation After-hours only, or missed calls only Transcripts, summaries, call audio; usage on your Billing page No. A set number of conversations per month, number not published
FieldPulse Operator AI Not published Not published AI "steps in only if no one answers"; after-hours; phone trees Not published No
Service Fusion (powered by ZyraTalk) Sales demo only Not published After-hours and weekends Full transcript and recording No

FieldEdge: I found no AI phone answering product as of 2026-10-27.

12 calls to start your list

Change these to fit your shop. Run each one 3 times.

  1. Emergency at 9pm: no heat, no water, water on the floor.
  2. Address outside your service area.
  3. "What does it cost?" before they'll book.
  4. Existing customer wants to reschedule.
  5. Existing customer calling back angry about the last visit.
  6. Caller gives the address before the AI asks.
  7. Caller interrupts mid-sentence.
  8. Caller with a heavy accent, or speaking Spanish.
  9. Caller asks for a specific tech by name.
  10. Caller wants a job type you don't do.
  11. Caller asks for a person right away.
  12. Spam or sales call.

For each, write what a good answer is before you call. That sheet is your test.

Robot callers (if you want volume)

These services dial your number, play the customer from a plain-English description, and score the call. Prices from their pricing pages, 2026-10-27.

  • Bluejay: $25 free credit, pay as you go, no monthly fee. Per-minute rate not published. Caller ID must be verified.
  • Roark: $50 free credit, then $0.15 a minute plus phone costs.
  • Cekura: about 60 free minutes, then $0.25 a minute.

60 three-minute calls is 180 minutes: about $27 on Roark, about $30 on Cekura after its free minutes. Your software company still bills its side of each call. Point the robot at a test line, not your main number, so fake bookings don't hit your real schedule.

Sources (fetched 2026-10-27)

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When AI learns to do a job you're still doing by hand, I write it up: what's actually changing for you, and what to do first. For shop and trade owners. This list gets first seats at my "Get in Front of It" owner workshop.