Who it is for / Photographers

An AI receptionist for photographers.

On a shoot, you cannot pick up. While You Work answers the calls you miss in your business name, finds out what the caller wants photographed and when, gives your prices if you have set them, and sends you the details a minute later.

Get the founding offer, Pro for £49 a month Read an example call

The first 50 UK businesses get Pro for £49 a month plus VAT for their first 12 months, then £69. Plans start at £39. Your line switches on as soon as you finish the set-up form, with a 14-day money-back guarantee.

Photographer working with a camera in a studio
20s
calls you do not pick up in 20 seconds come through
1 min
after the call, the details reach you by email
24/7
enquiries taken evenings and weekends
£39
a month + VAT on Starter, no contract

On every call

What your receptionist asks

  • What they want photographed
  • Whether they are a new or an existing client
  • The date they need
  • The best number to ring back, read back to check it
  • Your prices, only if you have set them and they ask

Urgent jobs

This week’s bookings go to the top

  • A shoot this week
  • A caller who says it cannot wait

Everything else is sent to you as an enquiry within a minute.

An example week

A week of calls to a photographer

Photographers miss calls because they are on a shoot, and the calls they miss are bookings with a date. The receptionist takes the event, the date and the location first.

The maths

What a missed call costs photographers

Say you miss 2 calls a week and two in five of those callers would have booked a wedding or event booking worth about £1,500.

2 calls × 40% × £1,500 = £1,200 a week. × 52 weeks ÷ 12 = £5,200 a month of work going to someone else. An example: put your own numbers into the missed-call calculator.

Couples ring three photographers with the same date. The first one to answer gets the meeting, and the meeting gets the booking.

Timing

When a photographer's phone rings

January and February after Christmas engagements, and every Saturday you are shooting a wedding, which is when next year's couples ring. You cannot answer either.

What callers hear

An example call, word for word

The receptionist asks one thing at a time, checks the number back and never makes up a price. The details reach you by email a minute after the call, and by text straight away when it is urgent.

Emailed to you a minute later

Emma (new), 07700 900571. Wedding on 14 June next year, asking if Nina is free.

Receptionist: Hi, you’re through to Lens and Light Photography. Thanks for calling, I’m the automated assistant. Nina can’t get to the phone right now, but I can take your details so she can get back to you. Calls are recorded so nothing gets missed. What’s your name?

Caller: Hi, it’s Emma. We’re getting married on the 14th of June next year. Is Nina free?

Receptionist: Congratulations, Emma. Have you been in touch with Nina before?

Caller: No, we found her website.

Receptionist: And what’s the best number for Nina to ring you on?

Caller: 07700 900 571.

Receptionist: So that’s 07700 900 571. Is that right?

Caller: Yes, that’s right.

Receptionist: Thanks, Emma. Nina will get back to you about the 14th of June, and I’m sending you a text now to confirm.

Set up

Three steps, and you keep your number

  1. Tell us about your business

    A short form made for photographers:

    • Your business name and first name
    • Opening hours and where you are
    • What your business does, in plain words
    • Your prices, only if you want callers told
    • Your booking or cancellation policy
    • Whether customers ever need you urgently
    • Anything else callers should know
    • What you shoot: weddings, families, commercial, events
    • Whether you send packages by email before a call
    • How far you travel

  2. Switch on divert

    One code on your mobile sends calls you do not answer within 20 seconds to your While You Work line. Turn it off whenever you like.

  3. Get the details in a minute

    Every caller is greeted in your business name. You get the details a minute later, and the caller gets a text saying you will ring back.

Questions

Questions from photographers

Will it give out my prices?

Only if you add them in the set-up form. If you leave prices blank, callers are told you will confirm the price yourself. It never makes up a price.

Can it check whether I am free on a date?

On the Business plan it offers your real free times from your diary. On Starter and Pro it takes the date and tells the caller you will get back to them.

How much does it cost?

Starter is £39, Pro £69 and Business £129 a month + VAT, for 50, 150 or 400 calls a month. The first 50 UK businesses get Pro for £49 a month + VAT for their first 12 months. There is no contract, and if you cancel within 14 days of your line going live you get a full refund.

Can it take a wedding enquiry properly?

Yes. It asks the date, the venue or area, roughly how many hours of coverage and the best email, and marks the message as a wedding so you can check the date straight away.

Will it send my price list?

It takes the caller's email and tells them you will send packages when you ring back. It does not quote prices unless you have put them in the set-up form.

More detail: what a missed call costs, UK call answering prices and how we compare.

From £39 a month, priced per call, not per minute

Starter £39, Pro £69 and Business £129 a month, plus VAT. The first 50 UK businesses get Pro for £49 plus VAT for their first 12 months. No contract, and cancel within 14 days of your line going live for a full refund.

Get the founding offerSee full pricing

Also set up for caterers, hair and beauty salons, cleaners and cleaning companies, beauty therapists and nail technicians, barbers, dog groomers, and for every other kind of business.