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Getting Started with NovaReps

Welcome to NovaReps! This guide walks you through setting up and deploying your first AI phone agent or web receptionist using Guided setup, the step-by-step wizard in your dashboard sidebar.

Updated Oct 29, 2026 · 4 min read

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Overview #

NovaReps allows you to deploy intelligent AI voice agents capable of answering inbound phone calls, placing outbound campaign calls, capturing lead information, booking appointments live on your calendar, and embedding a live voice widget on your website.

Step 1: Choose Agent Direction #

When you open Guided setup from your dashboard sidebar:

  1. Select your desired Agent Direction:
    • Inbound Agent: Answers incoming telephone calls, website voice and chat, and text messages.
    • Outbound Agent: Automatically dials contact lists for outbound sales or survey campaigns.
  2. Click Next Step.

Step 2: Select an Industry Template #

Choose a pre-configured template tailored to your business:

  1. Browse template categories (e.g., Front Desk Receptionist, Real Estate Assistant, Medical/Dental Clinic, Legal Intake, Customer Support) or select Start from Scratch.
  2. Choosing a template auto-populates optimal initial greetings, behavioral prompts, and FAQ structures.

Step 3: Configure Agent Identity & Knowledge #

Customize how your agent identifies itself and speaks with callers:

  1. Agent Name: Give your agent a friendly name (e.g., "Sarah - Front Desk").
  2. First Greeting: Enter the phrase your agent says immediately when answering (e.g., "Thank you for calling! How may I assist you today?").
  3. System Prompt (Personality & Rules): Define the agent's background, communication style, allowed topics, and boundary rules.
  4. Knowledge Base (Business Context): Provide your business details: working hours, services offered, pricing ranges, and common answers.

Step 4: Choose Communication Channels (Inbound Only) #

Select how customers reach your agent. Tick one or more channels; the same four channels appear on the Channels tab of every agent:

  • Phone calls: Callers dial a telephone number your agent answers.
  • Website voice: Visitors talk to your agent from a widget on your website, no phone number needed.
  • Website chat: Visitors type to your agent from the same widget.
  • SMS: People who text your number get written replies. Texts arrive on a phone number, so the wizard asks you to pick or buy one, and the agent answers calls on it too.

A channel your plan does not include is greyed out with a small gem icon (hover it to see why). For Website voice or Website chat, enter your website under Where will the widget live? (for example https://yourdomain.com).

Choosing only Website chat makes a text-only agent. It has no voice, so the wizard skips the voice and phone number steps and you can start it right away.

Step 5: Pick Voice & Language #

This step appears when the agent can talk: it has a phone number, SMS, or Website voice. Select how your agent sounds:

  1. Voice Provider: Choose high-quality voice models (Deepgram Aura, Cartesia, or ElevenLabs).
  2. Language: Select your target spoken language (English, Spanish, French, German, etc.).
  3. Preview sample audio clips and pick your favorite voice profile.

Step 6: Assign or Purchase a Phone Number #

This step appears when you chose Phone calls or SMS:

  1. Select Existing Number: Choose an active phone number already in your account. For SMS, the number must be able to receive texts.
  2. Buy New Number: Search and purchase a local or toll-free Twilio or Telnyx business number directly in the wizard. The number is bought only after everything else is checked, and if creating the agent then fails, the new number is kept in your account and selected for you, so pressing Finish again reuses it and does not buy a second one.
  3. Select line access mode: Exclusive Line (dedicated to this agent) or Shared Line (accessible via extension access codes).

Step 7: Live Test Drive & Activation #

Before going live:

  1. Test Drive: Use the interactive browser test box to speak directly to your agent through your microphone. A text-only agent is tried from the agent page instead: click Test, then Chat with your agent.
  2. Verify greeting phrasing, voice responsiveness, and calendar booking logic.
  3. Click Complete Setup on the last step to create and activate your agent!