Beside lets you customize your Receptionist so it sounds like you or matches your business's tone of voice.
You can fully personalize your Receptionist's:
Voice: Clone your own voice or choose from a range of pre‑recorded options in our Voice Library.
Language: Choose from American English voices or bilingual voices in Spanish (Mexico), French (Canada), Portuguese (Brazil), and Russian.
Finally, you can test your Receptionist as a preview caller to hear its voice, tone, and bilingual capabilities before using it with real callers.
Customize your AI Receptionist's voice & language
From the web app
Go to app.beside.com and click AI Receptionist in the sidebar.
If you have multiple lines, select the line you want to update from the dropdown at the top.
Under Voice, click Tone of Voice.
Pick your Voice Clone (if you've created one from the mobile app) or click any voice from the Voice Library to select it. Language tags next to each name (e.g. EN-US, ES-MX, FR-CA, PT-BR, RU-RU) show which languages each voice supports.
From the mobile app
Open the Beside mobile app → AI Receptionist tab → under the 📞 Phone tab → go to Preferences: Tone of voice.
From there, you can either:
Create a Voice Clone, or
Choose a pre‑recorded voice from the library
ℹ️ If you're on a Business plan and have multiple lines, each line has its own Receptionist with unique, customizable voice settings.
Option 1 - Clone your voice
Voice cloning is only available from the mobile app. Once cloned, your voice clone appears under Voice Clone on both the mobile app and the web app.
➡️ Once on the Choose Voice screen, tap Clone Voice. Then:
Tap the red Record button.
Read the on‑screen script naturally (≈30 seconds).
Your voice clone is generated in under 10 seconds.
Preview, redo, or save your clone.
📌 Only one voice clone can be active at a time. Saving a new clone overwrites the current one.
🗣️ Voice Clones currently support English only. If you need your Receptionist to speak multiple languages, choose a pre-recorded bilingual voice instead.
Option 2 - Choose a pre-recorded voice
Browse our library of 20 professional voices.
Each voice has a different personality (supportive, helpful, enthusiastic).
All voices speak American English, and many offer bilingual options in Spanish (Mexico), French (Canada), Portuguese (Brazil), and Russian. On the web app, the supported languages appear as tags next to each voice name.
Tap or click any voice to preview it.
📌 Only one voice can be active at a time. Selecting a new one replaces the previous voice.
ℹ️ Voice previews are in English only. If your selected voice supports a second language, you will be able to hear it when testing your Receptionist.
⚠️ Voice library update (iOS 2.8.0):
The voice library was updated with 20 new voices replacing the previous selection.
If you were using a previous voice, it will continue to work for your calls, but it will no longer appear in the voice picker.
To explore the new voices, go to AI Receptionist → Voice → Tone of Voice on the web app, or AI Receptionist → 📞 Phone → Preferences → Tone of voice on mobile.
📌 Multilingual voices on Android:
Multilingual voices are currently available on iOS and the web app.
On Android, all voices operate in English for now. Additional languages are coming soon.
📌 Default call language:
Your AI Receptionist currently starts every call in English by default.
Callers can still ask it to switch to the additional language supported by the voice you selected.
The ability to start calls directly in the alternate language of the selected voice is coming soon.
Adjusting voice speed
A direct speed slider is not currently available. Each voice in the library has its own natural pace built into how it speaks - so the way to change how fast your AI Receptionist sounds is to switch to a different voice.
If your current voice feels too slow, the voices below have a naturally faster or more energetic tempo than the rest of the library:
Bella
Joseph
Mac
Nate
Sienna
Carlos
Jessica
Ivy
Eve
Finn
Open Tone of Voice (see steps above), tap or click any of these voices to preview it, then save the one you like best. Pace varies subtly from voice to voice, so it's worth previewing 2-3 before settling.
💡 Tip: Use Test Receptionist in the mobile app (AI Receptionist tab → scroll down → Test Receptionist) to make a real demo call with the new voice before going live with it. The preview in the picker is shorter than a real call, so testing gives you a better sense of the actual pace.
Pronunciation
If your AI Receptionist mispronounces a name, company, or specific word, you can teach it the correct pronunciation. Add the word as it is normally written, then type how it should be said out loud. Your AI Receptionist will use that pronunciation on every call going forward.
Pronunciation hints are managed per line and apply to every call your AI Receptionist handles on that line.
✅ Platform availability:
Available on the Beside mobile app (iPhone and Android) and on Beside on the web.
Pronunciation hints are synced across platforms - add a word once, and it applies everywhere.
Add a pronunciation - from the web app
Go to app.beside.com and click AI Receptionist in the sidebar.
If you have multiple lines, select the line you want to update from the dropdown at the top.
Under Voice, click Pronunciation.
Click + Add at the top right.
Enter the Word as it is normally written (e.g. Acme), then type how it should be said in Pronounce as (e.g. Ak-mee).
Save.
Add a pronunciation - from the mobile app
Open the Beside mobile app and go to the AI Receptionist.
If you're on the 👥 Business plan with multiple lines, select the line you want to update from the dropdown at the top left.
Go to 📞 Phone → Preferences → Pronunciation.
Tap New Word.
In Word, enter the word as it is normally written (e.g. Acme).
In Pronounce as, type how it should be said. Spell it phonetically using regular letters and dashes (e.g. Ak-mee).
Tap Save.
💡 Tip:
Write the pronunciation the way you would tell a friend to say it. Break it into syllables with dashes and use letters that match the sound.
Examples: support → Su-pawt, Beside → Bee-side.
For email addresses or other read-aloud rules (e.g. "Please always spell our email address when telling it: Support at Beside dot com"), use Additional Knowledge instead. Go to AI Receptionist → Knowledge → Additional Knowledge.
Manage your pronunciations
All saved entries appear under Words (mobile) or under the Pronunciation screen (web), formatted as word → pronunciation.
Add another: tap New Word (mobile) or click + Add (web).
Delete: tap the 🗑️ icon next to the word, then confirm Delete.
Changes apply to new calls immediately.
Call and test your AI Receptionist
Open the Beside mobile app → AI Receptionist → scroll down and tap Test Receptionist. When the demo screen opens:
Tap the green Call button.
Interact with your Receptionist to hear its greeting, tone of voice and pronunciation.
If you selected a bilingual voice, you can speak in any of its supported languages.
When finished, tap Done.
You can return to the settings anytime to fine‑tune the voice until it sounds just right.
Troubleshooting
My AI Receptionist's voice sounds different - what happened?
My AI Receptionist's voice sounds different - what happened?
We recently updated our voice library with 20 new, higher-quality voices. If you were using a previous voice, it will continue to work for your calls, but it no longer appears in the voice picker. If you'd like to try a different voice, go to AI Receptionist → Voice → Tone of Voice on the web app, or AI Receptionist → 📞 Phone → Preferences → Tone of voice on mobile, to browse the updated voice library.
I was using a voice that's no longer in the list - what happened?
I was using a voice that's no longer in the list - what happened?
The previous voice library (including voices like Jack, Mia, Luna, Jordan, Taylor, and others) has been replaced with 20 new voices. Your current voice will continue working for your calls, but it won't appear in the picker anymore. If you'd like to switch, browse the new voice library - you may find a voice with a similar personality and tone.