Describe the products and services your business provides so your Cognivox receptionist can accurately answer customer enquiries about what you offer.

Adding Your Products and Services

The Services stage is the seventh step in Receptionist Setup.

This stage tells Cognivox about the products and services your business provides.

Accurate product and service information allows your AI receptionist to answer customer enquiries about what your business offers and helps it determine the appropriate next step when a caller is interested in a particular service.

What should I include?

Describe the products and services that your business currently provides.

For each important product or service, consider including:

The name of the product or service
What it provides
Who it is intended for
Important features
Important conditions or limitations
Whether an appointment is required
Whether availability needs to be checked
Whether the service depends on a particular configuration
What the caller should do if they are interested

You do not necessarily need to include every minor detail.

Focus on information that would be useful when answering customer enquiries.

Describe services clearly

Use straightforward descriptions that explain what each service actually provides.

For example:

Initial Consultation

An initial consultation allows a prospective customer to discuss their requirements with a member of our team. An appointment is required and availability must be checked before a time is confirmed.

This gives the receptionist useful information without requiring unnecessary technical or marketing language.

Products

If your business sells products, provide useful information that customers commonly ask about.

This might include:

Product name
Product type
Main purpose
Available options
Important restrictions
How customers can enquire or order
Whether availability must be confirmed

Avoid providing stock availability as a permanent fact if it changes regularly.

If Cognivox does not have access to current stock information, the receptionist should not assume that a product is available.

Services

For services, consider explaining:

What the service involves
Who can use it
Whether an appointment is required
Whether a consultation is required
Whether the service is available remotely or in person
Any important prerequisites
What happens when a customer expresses interest

This can help Cognivox distinguish between different customer enquiries.

Appointment-based services

If a product or service requires an appointment, make this clear.

For example:

This service requires an appointment. Cognivox should check the appropriate employee's availability before offering or confirming a time.

Do not place fixed availability into your Products and Services information when availability is determined dynamically.

Cognivox should use the configured calendar or appointment system to determine actual availability.

Configuration-dependent services

Some services or capabilities may only be available when they have been configured for a particular customer.

Make this clear in the information you provide.

For example:

Google Calendar integration is available where it has been connected and configured for the business.

This prevents the receptionist from assuming that a supported feature or integration is active simply because your organisation offers it.

Pricing information

Only include prices if you want your AI receptionist to provide those prices to customers and the information can be kept accurate.

If prices vary, explain this rather than providing a potentially misleading fixed amount.

For example:

Pricing depends on the customer's requirements. Please contact us to discuss your requirements.

Do not instruct Cognivox to calculate, estimate or invent a price unless the required pricing information and rules have been explicitly configured.

Avoid unsupported promises

Products and Services information should describe what your business actually provides.

Avoid statements that create promises or guarantees unless they are genuinely part of your service.

Be particularly careful with claims relating to:

Guaranteed availability
Delivery times
Response times
Resolution times
Service levels
Refunds
Results or outcomes
Unlimited services
Technical capabilities

If a condition applies, state the condition clearly.

Current services versus future services

Only describe a product or service as available if your business currently provides it.

Planned or future services should not be presented as existing services.

This is important because the AI receptionist may use this information when answering a customer directly.

If you choose to include information about a future service, it must be clearly identified as planned or not currently available.

Your Information

Enter information about your products and services into the Your Information area.

You can provide:

Existing product descriptions
Existing service descriptions
Notes about your services
Features and capabilities
Important restrictions
Appointment requirements
Information about how customers can enquire

You do not need to create the final formatted content yourself.

Provide accurate source information and Cognivox can structure it for you.

Generate with AI

When you have provided the relevant information, select Generate with AI.

Cognivox will use your source information to create structured Products and Services content.

The result will appear in Generated Content.

Generated Content

The Generated Content is the final Products and Services information that will be saved as part of your company knowledge.

Review the generated information carefully.

Check that:

Every listed product or service actually exists.
Descriptions are accurate.
Appointment requirements are correct.
Configuration-dependent services are properly qualified.
No unsupported prices have been introduced.
No guarantees have been invented.
No future services are described as currently available.
The information is appropriate for customers.

You can edit the Generated Content directly before continuing.

Your Information versus Generated Content

The two areas have different purposes.

Your Information

This contains the source information you provide about your products and services.

It is used by Generate with AI to create structured content.

Generated Content

This contains the final Products and Services knowledge.

The Generated Content is the information saved for use by your Cognivox receptionist.

Always review the Generated Content before continuing.

How Cognivox uses Products and Services

The Products and Services information becomes part of the company knowledge available to your AI receptionist.

It can help Cognivox answer questions such as:

What services do you provide?
Do you offer this particular service?
What does this service include?
Can I make an appointment for this service?
Do you sell this product?
Who is this service suitable for?
How do I get started?
Can someone contact me about this service?

Where appropriate, Cognivox can combine this knowledge with configured functionality such as appointment availability or message taking.

Avoid duplicating FAQs

Products and Services should primarily describe what your business provides.

Common customer questions about those services can be added separately to Frequently Asked Questions.

For example:

Products and Services

Annual boiler servicing is available by appointment.

FAQ

How do I arrange a boiler service?

An appointment can be arranged subject to engineer availability.

Keeping these areas separate makes your company knowledge easier to maintain.

Keep your information current

Review your Products and Services information whenever your business changes what it offers.

Update Cognivox when:

A new product or service is introduced
A service is discontinued
Product details change
Appointment requirements change
Service restrictions change
Pricing information changes
Integration-dependent functionality changes

This helps prevent the receptionist from giving customers outdated information.

Review your Products and Services

Before continuing, check:

Current products and services are represented accurately.
Discontinued services have not been included.
Future services are not presented as currently available.
Appointment requirements are correct.
Configuration-dependent features are properly qualified.
Prices are accurate if included.
Unsupported promises or guarantees have not been introduced.
The Generated Content contains exactly the information you want Cognivox to use.

Continue to the next stage

When you are satisfied with the Generated Content, select Continue.

Your Products and Services information will be saved and you can proceed to the Additional stage, where you can provide other important business information that does not naturally belong in the previous sections.