AI answering service for funeral directors: every family is received, at any hour.
Sayelo, the AI voice agent and AI receptionist for funeral directors, answers 24/7. Families received with dignity at any hour, put straight through to the on-call team, essential information gathered, practical questions and sales calls handled. From €39/month excl. VAT, 14-day free trial, no set-up fees.
A death can happen at any hour, and the family calling needs a calm voice and an immediate answer. Sayelo answers by night as by day, offers its condolences simply, and puts the family straight through to your on-call funeral director, by direct transfer to the duty line. It also answers practical questions and screens out sales calls. The AI announces itself in its very first sentence.
from €39 excl. VAT/month afterwards · no commitment · the AI announces itself on every call
A funeral director receives calls unlike any others. They come at any hour, they're driven by shock, and they expect just one thing: a calm voice, straight away, then a person. Voicemail, at that moment, is a closed door.
Sayelo's AI answering service opens that door within seconds, by night as by day. It introduces itself as an AI assistant, offers condolences in the words you've chosen, and puts the family straight through to your on-call funeral director, by direct transfer. The family's name, and if you wish their number and the place of death, appear in the call summary, even if the funeral director doesn't pick up. During the day, it answers the practical questions you've written up, handles partners and admin according to your instructions and keeps sales callers at bay. It gives no prices, describes no packages and never replaces human contact: it lets it begin sooner.
Day to day
What funeral directors deal with on the phone.
Death doesn't keep office hours
A death at home at two in the morning, a call from the hospital on a Sunday, a family searching for a number in a hurry. The on-call team is there, but it can't be on the phone all the time, and voicemail, at that moment, is unbearable.
Dignified listening, from the very first word
The family calling is in shock. They don't need to choose a service or hear an offer. They need someone to answer, to receive them and to put them in touch with a person, straight away.
The on-call team must be reached without fail
When the duty funeral director is already on a call or on the road, the call mustn't be lost. The family must find a clear voicemail message on the duty line, and the funeral director must know, when calling back, who they're speaking to and where the death occurred.
The day's other calls
A florist, a stonemason, a local council, a supplier, a quote request for a funeral plan, a sales caller. They come in on the same number as the families, and must never take priority over them.
How much are your missed calls costing you? Work it out in one minute with the calculator.
What the agent does
What your AI receptionist does for a funeral director.
Puts the family through without delay
As soon as a death is announced, the agent offers its condolences and transfers the call to the on-call funeral director, according to the hours you've set. By default, nothing is asked beyond the name, so that the funeral director can greet the family by name.
Prepares the callback if the on-call line doesn't answer
The transfer is direct: if the funeral director doesn't pick up, the family reaches the duty line's voicemail, which you keep up to date. If you wish, the agent collects the callback number and the place of death (home, hospital or care home) before the transfer. These appear in the summary sent by email, and the funeral director calls back without having to ask again.
Keeps a sober tone
No sales talk, no choices to make, no unnecessary questions. You write its sentences, and it sticks to them. It lets people speak, doesn't interrupt, and doesn't repeat itself mechanically.
Answers practical questions
The funeral home's opening hours, the address of the chapel of rest, documents to gather, usual timescales, as you've written them. For everything else, it takes a message for the funeral director, without ever improvising.
Handles partners and admin
Councils, hospitals, stonemasons, florists, cemeteries, suppliers. The agent recognises these contacts and applies your instructions, a transfer to the office during the day or a precise message, without ever putting them ahead of a family.
Screens out sales calls
Mailing list sellers, platforms, cold callers. It answers politely and doesn't disturb you. Quote requests for a funeral plan, on the other hand, become an appointment with a funeral director.
Emergencies
Emergencies: what gets transferred, and when.
- Death announced, wherever it happened: condolences, immediate transfer to the on-call funeral director, 24/7
- On-call line not answering: duty line voicemail, plus name, number and place of death in the call summary
- Hospital, care home, council, police: specific instructions for each contact, priority transfer if you provide for it
- Family of someone already in your care, question about a ceremony: transfer to the funeral director in charge, or a message
- Funeral plan, advance quote, partner, supplier: appointment or message during the day
You set the on-call number for each time slot: one transfer number from Solo, several from Pro, for example one funeral director during the week and another at weekends. The transfer is direct, with no announcement: if nobody picks up, the family reaches the funeral director's voicemail. The agent gives no prices for services and describes no packages: those conversations remain between the funeral director and the family.
Each transfer number can be offered only at certain times, in your country's time zone: an on-call line in the evening and at weekends then takes priority over the usual number. Outside these times, the agent takes a message and sends it to you. The transfer is direct: if nobody answers, the caller reaches the voicemail of the transfer number.
Step by step
A typical call, from the first ring to the summary.
The ring
The agent answers at any hour, calmly, and introduces itself as the company's AI assistant.
The welcome
If a death is announced, it offers its condolences and asks only one question: the name.
Putting the family through
Immediate, direct transfer to the on-call funeral director. If they don't pick up, the family reaches their voicemail.
The callback
The call and the family's number are waiting for you in the summary and in the app. The callback can be made from Sayelo, with your agent's number, once outbound calls are activated (in France for now).
The other calls
Practical questions, partners, admin, sales calls. Each follows your instructions, always after the families.
The summary
After the call, an email with the summary, the actions taken and the full transcript, so that the family is never asked the same thing twice.
Calendar and tools
Your appointments in your calendar, your calls in your tools.
Arrangement and signing appointments go into your calendar (Google Calendar, Microsoft 365 or Cal.com), in the slots you open. Each call can be sent to your funeral management software by webhook, and if your partners, councils and facilities are in Sellsy or monday.com, the agent recognises them as soon as it answers.
- Your calendar read live, in Google Calendar, Microsoft 365 or Cal.com: real slots, double-booking lock, confirmation and SMS reminder the day before
- SMS sent during the call, with the caller's consent: address, booking link, instructions you've prepared
- Email summary after every call, full transcript, and webhooks to your business software
Sellsy and monday.com connected natively, all your other tools via outbound webhooks. All integrations →
Number and setup
Your number, your setup.
You keep your current number by forwarding it to your agent's number. Your agent also receives a number according to your country's rules: see Sayelo in your country.
Ready in 5 minutes: your agent guides you in writing, on WhatsApp or with a form, reads your website, and you listen to its voice before choosing it. Our team then fine-tunes the settings with you. Numbers and telephony are provided by a partner operator registered with ARCEP (the French telecoms regulator). How it works →
Comparison
Voicemail, call answering service or Sayelo?
| Voicemail | Call answering service | Sayelo | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Available 24/7 | Passive | Extended hours | Round the clock |
| Immediate answer | — | Queue | Yes |
| Family put straight through at 2 am | No | Depends on the contract | Yes, 24/7 |
| Sober tone, no sales talk | Not applicable | Depends on the operator | Yes, your words |
| Family's details passed on if the on-call line doesn't answer | Depends on the message left | Sometimes | Yes, in the summary |
| Summary & transcript | No | Varies | Yes |
| Cost | Low, ineffective | High | Fixed, from €39/month excl. VAT |
Pricing
Clear pricing, from €39/month excl. VAT.
14-day free trial. No fixed-term commitment: cancel at any time, with 30 days' notice. Minutes, SMS and the number of agents depend on the plan: see pricing and plan details →
Frequently asked questions
Questions from funeral directors.
Does the agent transfer to the on-call line immediately?
Yes. As soon as a death is announced, it offers its condolences, asks only for the name and transfers the call to the on-call funeral director, during the hours you've set. The transfer is direct: if the funeral director doesn't pick up, the family reaches their voicemail. Keep it up to date, with a simple sentence promising a quick callback.
What tone does it take?
The one you give it. You write its welcome and condolence phrases, you choose its voice, and it sticks to them, with no sales talk, no unnecessary questions, no rushing. It lets people speak and never interrupts.
What information does it collect?
The bare minimum, and you decide what that is: the name before the transfer and, if you wish, the callback number and the place of death, as well as whether a doctor has been, if the family mentions it unprompted. Nothing else is asked. Everything appears in the call summary, so that the family doesn't have to repeat themselves.
Can it answer practical questions?
Yes, with the answers you've written: the funeral home's opening hours, the address of the chapel of rest, documents to gather, usual timescales. For anything to do with a ceremony, a price or a package, it takes a message for the funeral director and never improvises.
Does the AI replace human contact?
No, and it doesn't claim to. Its role is to open the door within seconds, at any hour, and to hand over to a person. Supporting the family, the choices, the words that matter: all that remains with your funeral director.
Will families know they're talking to an AI?
Yes, the agent says so in its very first sentence, calmly. A family calling at night wants an immediate answer and a human voice very quickly. They get the first within a second, and the second a few moments later.
Can I keep my number?
Yes. You keep your current number, as you prefer: by forwarding it to your agent or, in France, by porting it, on all plans. A new number is also included from the start of the trial, if you would rather start from scratch. Either way, the number families find on your shopfront, in directories and at hospitals and care homes always gets answered.
Updated on 25 October 2026.
Other industries
Sayelo for other industries.
- handling calls for a notary's office: File and clerk identified, complete messages, appointments booked, calls from estate agents and signings handled: the agent runs the office's switchboard.
- phone answering for florists: Celebration and funeral orders taken with tact, venue, date and ribbon message noted, delivery area checked, passed on to the florist for approval.
- the AI voice agent for GP practices: Same-day and scheduled appointments booked, repeat prescriptions noted, warning signs referred to the emergency services: the agent holds the line.
Hear it answer
before you decide.
The agent calls you back on your mobile and plays the receptionist for a funeral director. Three minutes, free, no bank card needed.