Documentation

Everything you need to run your AI front desk

Reference guides for every part of Harborne AI. New here? Follow the step-by-step tutorial instead.

Getting started

Harborne AI is your 24/7 AI front desk. It answers inbound calls and texts, books appointments, and follows up with clients, all from one dashboard.

  • Create an account to start a 7-day free trial. You add a card to start, but aren't charged until the trial ends - cancel anytime.
  • Basic unlocks the Voice AI receptionist on Standard voices, plus a website chat widget, phone numbers, the client database, appointments and your team - one of each agent, number and widget.
  • Intermediate adds SMS AI, Advanced voices, the knowledge base, Workflow AI automation, SMS & email campaigns, live call transfer to a human, and emailing clients - with up to 3 agents, numbers and widgets.
  • Enterprise adds Premium voices, social channels (Facebook Messenger, Instagram DMs, WhatsApp), live monitoring with human takeover, outbound AI calling, building workflows with AI, and integrations - with elevated limits on agents, numbers and widgets.
  • Each plan includes a monthly pool of AI voice minutes: 300 (Basic), 1,500 (Intermediate) and an elevated allowance on Enterprise.
  • SMS is included monthly too: 1,000 texts on Intermediate and an elevated allowance on Enterprise (Basic has no SMS). The pool covers campaigns, inbox replies, AI auto-replies and reminders; inbound texts don't count.
  • Settings covers Profile, Email sender, Appointment messages, Team, Call & chat handling, Appearance (theme) and Security.
  • Everything is no-code: you configure each tool from the dashboard and it goes live immediately.

Voice & SMS AI

An AI agent answers your inbound calls in a natural voice and (on Intermediate+) replies to texts on the same number. Basic includes one agent; Intermediate allows up to 3 and Enterprise an elevated number. Each goes live the moment you save it.

  • Choose a voice and language, then write a greeting and a system prompt that describes how it should behave.
  • Speak your customers' language: set the agent to English, Spanish, French, German, Italian, Dutch or Portuguese - or choose Multilingual and it replies in whatever language each caller uses. Non-English speech sounds most natural on the Advanced and Premium voices (Intermediate and Enterprise).
  • Voices come in tiers: Standard (Basic), Advanced (Intermediate) and Premium (Enterprise) - Intermediate and Enterprise can also pick the lower tiers if they prefer.
  • Attach a knowledge base so answers are grounded in your own content.
  • Choose whether the AI should collect a caller's name, email and phone before helping them. Name and email are enabled by default on new agents.
  • Add an optional call script, lead-qualification questions and call-routing rules to control how it handles each call.
  • Turn on optional guardrails to keep the agent off sensitive topics: financial advice, medical advice, refund eligibility and competitor mentions. When a guardrail is on, the AI stays neutral and offers to pass the person to your team instead. They're off by default, and SMS AI has its own independent set.
  • On Intermediate and above, set a transfer-to-human number so the agent can hand a live call to a member of staff when asked.
  • Your AI answers several callers at once - up to 2 simultaneous calls on Basic, 5 on Intermediate and an elevated number on Enterprise.
  • If every line is busy, extra callers are invited to leave a voicemail. It's transcribed and appears in your Conversations inbox (threaded by the caller's number) and is emailed to you, so nothing is missed.
  • SMS AI is configured in its own section with its own fields-to-collect, booking and knowledge base - separate from the voice agent.
  • Test before sharing: place a real call to your phone, or talk to the agent right in your browser.

Phone numbers

Claim a UK mobile number that handles both voice and SMS, and powers your AI agents. Basic includes one number; Intermediate up to 3 and Enterprise an elevated number.

  • Search available numbers, add your details, and claim one in a few clicks.
  • Use Re-sync if a number ever looks out of step with the calling platform.
  • You can't release a number while it's connected to your agent. Detach it from the agent first.
  • Releasing a number removes it from the calling platform and frees it from your account.

Knowledge base

Knowledge bases ground your agents in your own information (services, pricing, policies, FAQs) so they answer accurately.

  • Create a knowledge base from your content, then attach it to a voice agent or chat widget.
  • Update it any time; agents use the latest version on their next conversation.

Chat widget

Embed a white-labeled chat widget on your website so visitors can get answers instantly from the same knowledge that powers your agent.

  • Create up to your plan's limit of widgets (Basic 1, Intermediate 3, Enterprise elevated). Edit a widget any time to change its look, knowledge base or wording.
  • Choose whether the widget should collect the visitor's name, email and phone before answering. Name and email are enabled by default on new widgets.
  • Optional guardrails let you stop the widget giving financial or medical advice, promising refunds or mentioning competitors - it stays neutral and offers a hand-off to your team instead.
  • Customize the widget, then copy the provided snippet and install it once in your site's footer or body-end code area.
  • The install guide includes steps for Shopify, WordPress, Wix, Squarespace, Webflow and custom websites.
  • Conversations from the widget land in your unified inbox alongside calls.

Conversations

A unified inbox brings every call, web chat, SMS, email and social message together, grouped into one thread per customer so nothing slips through the cracks.

  • Repeat contacts are threaded together - matched by phone or email and bridged through your CRM - so a customer's calls, chats, texts and emails all stay in one conversation.
  • Open any conversation to read the full back-and-forth in time order, with SMS and email interleaved by timestamp and each message labelled (the customer's name on the left, your Agent/Admin on the right).
  • Reply by email from any conversation on every paid plan; SMS replies are available on Intermediate and up.
  • Voicemails left when all your lines were busy appear here too, transcribed and threaded with that caller.
  • Enterprise adds a Live monitor: watch conversations as they happen, take over from the AI, reply yourself, and transfer a live phone call to your mobile.

Team members

Add the people customers can book with, so the AI can offer them by name and each booking is tied to the right person.

  • Manage your team in Settings > Team: add each member's name, an optional role, and an optional email address.
  • In each Voice AI agent and Chat Widget setup, tick which team members that agent may offer (under 'Team & services it offers'). The AI only ever names the ones you select - leave it empty and it won't offer any.
  • The AI offers your selected team members by name during calls and chats, and records who the customer chose on the booking.
  • Hide a team member to remove them from booking without losing their past appointments; remove them to delete them entirely.
  • When a team member has an email on file, they're notified automatically whenever an appointment is booked with them, whether by the AI or added by hand.

Products & services

Tell the AI what you sell so it can offer, quote and book the right things - and never invent a service or a price.

  • Manage your catalogue in Settings > Services: add each one's name, an optional price (free text, e.g. '£35' or 'from £20') and an optional description.
  • In each Voice AI agent and Chat Widget setup, tick which services that agent may offer. As with team members, the AI only offers the ones you select.
  • The AI quotes the prices you set and sticks to your list - if a customer asks for something you don't offer, it says so and suggests the closest option or takes a message.
  • Hide a service to stop it being offered without deleting it; remove it to delete it entirely.

Appointments

Book clients and let Harborne AI handle the reminders automatically.

  • Add the client's phone and optional email when creating an appointment. If you link an existing client, their saved email can be used too.
  • Assign a team member to the booking. If they have an email on file, they get an email notification straight away, and again if you reassign the booking to someone else.
  • SMS and email confirmations are sent to the client the moment a booking is made when those client details are available.
  • Clients receive 24-hour reminders, plus rebooking prompts afterwards, again by SMS and/or email where available.
  • In Settings > Appointment messages, edit separate SMS and Email templates for confirmations, reminders and rebooking prompts.
  • In Settings > Email sender, add and verify your sending domain so appointment emails can come from your own address.

Clients & campaigns

A built-in client database with segments, plus campaigns to reach them. (Clients are part of Basic; campaigns need Intermediate.)

  • Keep your contacts organized into segments (new, regular, VIP, lapsed), auto-updated as they interact.
  • Send SMS and email campaigns to everyone, a segment, or a hand-picked list of specific clients.
  • Outbound AI calling (Enterprise) places reminder and follow-up calls for you - voicemail-aware, within sensible calling hours, and respecting each client's do-not-call setting.

Workflow AI automation

Automate follow-ups and CRM housekeeping so the right thing happens whenever a customer's situation changes. (Part of Intermediate.)

  • Trigger workflows on customer behaviour, such as a new lead, a lead score reaching a threshold, a pipeline stage, or a lead going quiet.
  • Chain actions to run automatically: send an SMS or email, wait, move a pipeline stage, adjust a lead score, or set a segment.
  • Use workflows for lead routing, follow-up reminders, lead scoring and nurturing without lifting a finger.
  • Building workflows with AI is an Enterprise capability; on Intermediate you create them with the guided builder.

Social channels (Enterprise)

Extend your Conversation AI beyond calls, SMS and web chat to your social inboxes. (Part of Enterprise.)

  • Connect Facebook Messenger, Instagram DMs and WhatsApp from the Channels page using your own Meta or WhatsApp Business account.
  • Incoming messages land in your unified Conversations inbox alongside calls and chats.
  • Your AI replies automatically across these channels while keeping the context of the conversation.

Integrations (Enterprise)

Connect your calendar, email and invoicing tools so the AI can book, message and bill on your own accounts. (Part of Enterprise - rolling out now.)

  • Google Calendar: appointments the AI books are pushed to your calendar as events.
  • Coming soon: Microsoft 365 (Outlook), sending from your own mailbox, and invoicing with Stripe, QuickBooks or Xero.
  • Manage connections from the Integrations page in the sidebar.

Live monitor & takeover (Enterprise)

Watch conversations as they happen and step in whenever a customer needs a person.

  • The Live tab in Conversations shows active chats, texts, social messages and calls in real time.
  • Take over a conversation to pause the AI and reply yourself, then hand it back when you're done.
  • When a customer asks for a human, the thread is flagged and you're alerted by a nav badge, a bell, a toast and email.
  • For phone calls, transfer the live call to your mobile in one click.

Reports & insights

See how your AI assistant is performing over time.

  • Calls handled and bookings made over the last 30 days show how much work the assistant is taking off your desk.
  • Voice minutes used and SMS sent over the last 6 months help you track usage against your plan's monthly allowance.
  • Trends are drawn from your real call, booking and usage data - nothing to set up.

Account & billing

Manage your plan, trial and account details from Settings.

  • Use Account sections to jump between Profile, Email sender, Appointment messages, Team, Call & chat handling, Appearance and Security.
  • Email sender controls the address used for appointment emails and campaign emails.
  • Appointment messages lets you edit SMS and Email templates with placeholders like {name}, {service}, {date} and {time}.
  • Start on the free trial, then upgrade to Basic, Intermediate or Enterprise when you're ready.
  • Change or cancel your plan at any time from the Settings page. Upgrades are prorated - move up mid-cycle and you only pay the difference.
  • Security lets you change your password, turn on optional two-factor authentication (an authenticator-app code at sign-in) and review your recent account activity.
  • Privacy & data lets you download a copy of your data and request account deletion yourself (with a short grace period to cancel).

Ready to set it up?

Start a 7-day free trial and have your assistant live in minutes.