The search starts after something goes wrong
Elder law inquiries rarely begin on a calm Tuesday morning. They begin after a fall, a new diagnosis, a letter from a care facility or a conversation at the kitchen table that nobody wanted to have. The person searching is usually an adult child, tired and worried, looking at their phone after the day is over.
They want to know a few things quickly: does this firm handle what we are dealing with, do they work where my parent lives, and how do we talk to someone. If they cannot find out, they call the next firm on the list.
An AI chatbot on your website and an AI receptionist on your phone line do not replace your attorneys. They cover the gap between "someone called" and "someone on your team called back."
What the chatbot can handle on your website
Anchor Co AI trains a chatbot on your own website. It answers from what you have published, so it only says what you have already said. For an elder law practice that usually means:
- Practice areas. Whether you handle Medicaid planning, powers of attorney, trusts, guardianship or probate, if your site lists them.
- Where you work. The counties and courts you serve, so an out-of-state adult child can tell whether you cover the parent's location.
- How a first consultation works. What to expect, what to bring and how to request one, in your own words.
- How to reach your team. A clear callback request, even at 10pm.
When a question goes beyond what your site says, the chat says so and takes a message instead of guessing.
What the AI receptionist does on the phone
The Front Office plan adds an AI phone receptionist. When your intake line is busy, or a call comes in after hours, the receptionist answers, says it is an AI, tells the caller that someone from the firm will follow up, and collects the caller's name, number and a short reason for calling. A summary is emailed to you.
It does not evaluate a family's situation, discuss eligibility for benefits, or suggest what anyone should do. Those conversations stay with your attorneys.
Objections we hear
"Our callers are vulnerable and need a person." They do, and they get one. The receptionist's job is to answer promptly, be clear that it is an AI, and get the facts to your team so the callback is faster and better informed.
"This is a regulated profession." It is. Attorney advertising, intake and confidentiality rules vary by state, so check them against how you use a chatbot and a phone receptionist. The chatbot can only repeat what you have published, so the wording on your site is the thing to review. Tell visitors not to share private details in chat.
"We already have an answering service." Many firms do. An AI receptionist is month to month, with no per-minute overage fees, and the details arrive as an email your team can act on.
What a good first reply looks like
A caller who reaches the AI hears that it is an AI, that someone from the firm will call back, and what would help: their name, number and a short reason for calling. That is all it is set up to ask for.
On your side, the email that arrives is short and complete. An intake coordinator can read it on a phone, call back and begin the conversation with the basics in hand rather than opening with "who is this about and what happened?" That small difference is what the setup is for. It makes the callback faster and keeps a voicemail box from being the first thing a worried family meets.
If your site lists the counties you serve, the chat can also tell a visitor quickly whether you work where their parent lives. If your site does not say, the chat says it is unsure and takes a message.
Getting your website ready
The chatbot is only as useful as the pages behind it. Before you set it up, check that your site states:
- The practice areas you handle, in plain language
- The counties and courts you serve
- What happens on a first consultation and how to request one
- Your office hours and how quickly your team usually returns calls
If any of those are missing, add them first. They are the most useful things the chatbot can repeat to a family at 10pm.
What it costs
Anchor Co AI is free to start (1 bot, 20 messages a month). Paid chatbot plans start at $29 a month. The Front Office bundle, which adds a website and the AI phone receptionist, is $249 a month plus a one-time $297 setup, month to month, with 300 answered phone minutes included. There is no contract.
Setting it up
You give us your website. The chatbot reads it, and we set it up to collect the details you want. Within 5 business days of your completed intake form you have a preview to test.