Built for auto repair shops
Meet the AI hire for your shop
You’re under the car. Prentice answers the phone.
Answers customers at any hour. Books cars in. Drafts repair quotes and invoices for your OK.
Talk to Prenticestart free
Prentice
Prentice
Your AI hire
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Demo: A new customer texts late about a check engine light. See how I get the car on your schedule.
Working with Prentice is like working with a person.
Prentice can be reached by phone, text or email.
Prentice talks with everyone your business works with: customers, your team, even suppliers.
You’re Frank, and you run Bramwell Auto Repair.
It’s late, and you’re done for the day.
Alicia finds you online. Her check engine light just came on.
- Alicia: Hi! My check engine light just came on. Can you look at it?
- Prentice: Hi, I’m Prentice, the AI assistant at Bramwell Auto Repair. Yes! If it’s flashing, don’t drive it. If it’s steady, bring it in. Frank can look at it tomorrow at 8 AM. Does that work?
- Alicia: It’s steady, thank goodness. That works.
- Prentice: You’re booked for tomorrow at 8 AM. You can leave the keys in the drop box tonight.
- Prentice: I booked Alicia’s car in for a check engine light, tomorrow at 8 AM. She’s a new customer, and the light is steady, not flashing.
Prentice booked a new customer after hours.
Demo: Your mechanic finds worn brakes during an oil change. See how I get it approved while it’s on the lift.
You’re Frank, and you run Bramwell Auto Repair.
Deshawn is one of your mechanics.
Wendy’s car is on his lift for an oil change.
You’ve given Prentice your brake prices.
- Deshawn: Wendy’s car. Front pads down to 2 mm, rotors scored, brake fluid is dirty. Needs pads, rotors and a flush.
- Prentice: Deshawn says Wendy’s front brakes are almost gone. Here’s the quote for your OK: $580.
- Prentice: Quote for Wendy · $580
- (Approved)
- Prentice: Hi Wendy, I’m Prentice, the AI assistant at Bramwell Auto Repair. Deshawn found your front brakes almost gone during the oil change. Here’s the quote: $580.
- Prentice: Quote 1042 · Bramwell Auto Repair · $580
- Wendy: Wow ok, go ahead. Can I still get the car today?
- Prentice: Yes. We can start today at 1 PM. It takes about two hours, so you’ll have it back today. Does that work?
- Wendy: Yes, that works.
- Prentice: You’re booked for today at 1 PM.
- Prentice: Wendy said yes to the $580 brake job. Deshawn starts today at 1 PM.
Prentice turned one text from Deshawn into a $580 brake job.
Demo: The first hot week sends everyone in with a weak A/C. See how I book your A/C checks before the heat.
You’re Frank, and you run Bramwell Auto Repair.
It’s early May. Last spring you checked the A/C on 24 cars, and the heat is coming.
Roger is one of those customers.
- You: Text everyone I did an A/C check for last spring. Offer this year’s for $89.
- Prentice: Hi Roger, I’m Prentice, the AI assistant at Bramwell Auto Repair. Frank checked your A/C last spring, and it’s about time again before it gets hot. It’s $89, and Frank has Thursday at 9 AM or Friday at 2 PM.
- Roger: Yes, good timing. Mine’s been blowing warm. Thursday at 9 AM.
- Prentice: Booked: your A/C check is Thursday at 9 AM. I’ll send a reminder the day before.
- Prentice: 17 of the 24 customers I texted have booked their A/C check. That’s $1,513.
Prentice booked $1,513 of A/C checks before the first hot week.
Answering the call is the easy part
Prentice keeps working after the call.
See how I look after a new customer
- I answer a customer’s call or textTuesday, 9:40pm
- Most answering services stop hereI keep going
- I tell them what you’d tell themRight then
- I book the car inBefore we hang up
- I send a reminderThe night before
- I send the quoteWhen your mechanic finds more
- I get their answerWhile the car’s on the lift
- I send the invoiceWhen the work’s done
- I follow up on a late paymentA week later
- I text them when their A/C check is due, on your say-soNext year
I will draft quotes and invoices, and you approve each one.
Revenue you didn’t have to chase
A repair approved, a car booked, an invoice paid. Prentice keeps your bays full.
- PrenticenowWendy said yes to the $580 brake job while her car was on the lift.
- Prentice1h ago17 of 24 customers booked A/C checks. $1,513
- Prentice2h agoAlicia’s check engine light is booked in. $120
- Prentice3h agoGary’s $640 invoice was paid after my reminder.
Prentice will earn your trust
My word to you
- I’ll tell every customer I’m an AI.
- I’ll double-check my work.
- I’ll ask you when I’m not sure.
- I’ll work within the boundaries you set.
We know trusting an AI with your customers is a big ask.
So Prentice never works alone. Prentice asks you when unsure, and calls on us for backup.
The Prentice team
Meet the people behind Prentice
We’re small business owners ourselves. We know what it’s like to lose evenings to admin work, and to wish for someone dependable to hand it to. So we built Prentice on three principles.
- Honesty.
- A straight “I’m not sure” beats a confident guess.
- Integrity.
- Treat every customer the way you would.
- Reliability.
- Show up, every time. For 15 years our team has built software thousands of people count on every day.
And when Prentice needs backup, we answer.
Dan & Jonathan
Prentice goes in your contacts
Just save the number, and your whole shop can start talking to Prentice.
Call Text Email
- You
- Your office staff
- Your techs
- Your customers
Your parts suppliers can text or email Prentice too.
Prentice speaks
- English
- Español
- Français
- Português
Getting started
Your part is small. Prentice does the rest.
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Can you answer a few questions about your business?
Then Prentice can learn it. Prentice writes the job description and shows you a demo for no cost.
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Can you share your schedule and your price list?
Then Prentice can run your office. Visits and reminders by your rules. Quotes and invoices go out only with your OK.
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When Prentice has earned your trust
Then Prentice can talk to your customers. Forward your calls, or ask Prentice to text or email your customers.
Then you get your evenings back.
Made for auto repair shops
Prentice learns your services, your prices and your hours, then works in your words.
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Late texts
Answered right away, with your advice and your first open slot.
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Drop-offs
Booked into your open times, with the car and the problem written down.
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Repairs found on the lift
Your mechanic texts Prentice. The quote goes to the customer with your OK.
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A/C checks
Past customers due for a check, texted once on your say-so.
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Invoices
Drafted when the job’s done, sent with your OK, and followed up by your rule.
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In their language
Customers texted in English, Spanish, French or Portuguese.
Get closer to your customers
With Prentice, your customers will be able to:
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Ask the small questions they’d hesitate to call you about
“Is it safe to drive with that light on?”
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Get an answer at any hour, by call, text or email
“Sorry it’s late, my check engine light just came on…”
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Talk with you in their own language
“¿Pueden revisar mis frenos esta semana?”
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Book a visit on the spot
“Tomorrow at 8 works.”
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Move a visit without phone tag
“Can we push it to Friday?”
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Hear your prices up front
“About how much for front brakes?”
When you’re easy to reach, you’re easy to do business with.
Costs less than a person
Prentice does the office work, so compare the cost with hiring office help, not with an answering service.
| Hiring a Person | Prentice Solo | Prentice Team | Prentice Crew | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Works with | Anyone | Just you | 2-3 people | 4-6 people |
| Counts you and everyone on your team who works with Prentice. Customers never count. | ||||
| Monthly cost | $500 5 hours a week at $25 an hour | $99 | $199 | $399 |
50% off the first month while Prentice learns your business |
||||
| Messages included | As many as they can handle in 5 hours a week | 200 | 500 | 1,200 |
| A message is any text or email, sent or received. Each minute of a call counts as one. | ||||
| Communication methods | Phone, text, email, in person | Phone, text, email | ||
| Customers | As many as they can keep up with | No limit | ||
| Availability | 5 hours a week | Any hour, every day | ||
| Overtime | $25 an hour | $25 for every extra 50 messages | ||
| Offseason | You negotiate fewer hours with them | $39 a month when in Standby modePrentice stays active and will respond to customers. Max 50 messages per month. | ||
| Payroll and taxes | Your responsibility | None | ||
| Commitment | You hire them, and give notice to let them go | NoneCancel anytime. | ||
|
Talk to Prenticestart free
More than 6 people? Register, and Prentice will help you set up a plan. |
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Works with
Anyone
SoloJust you
Team2-3 people
Crew4-6 people
Counts you and everyone on your team who works with Prentice. Customers never count.
Monthly cost
$500 5 hours a week at $25 an hour
Solo$99
Team$199
Crew$399
50% off the first month while Prentice learns your business
Messages included
As many as they can handle in 5 hours a week
Solo200
Team500
Crew1,200
A message is any text or email, sent or received. Each minute of a call counts as one.
Communication methods
Phone, text, email, in person
Phone, text, email
Customers
As many as they can keep up with
No limit
Availability
5 hours a week
Any hour, every day
Overtime
$25 an hour
$25 for every extra 50 messages
Offseason
You negotiate fewer hours with them
$39 a month when in Standby modePrentice stays active and will respond to customers. Max 50 messages per month.
Payroll and taxes
Your responsibility
None
Commitment
You hire them, and give notice to let them go
NoneCancel anytime.
More than 6 people? Register, and Prentice will help you set up a plan.
Questions auto repair shops ask
Will customers know they’re talking to an AI?
Yes. On the first call or text, every customer hears that Prentice is your AI assistant. Prentice never pretends to be you.
What happens when someone texts about a warning light at night?
Prentice answers, gives them your advice, and books the car in by your rules. You decide once what can wait for morning and what you hear about right away.
Will Prentice give prices over the phone?
Prentice can tell a caller what a job usually runs, from the prices you gave, but never promises a price. You approve every quote before it goes out.
Can a customer approve a repair by text?
Yes. You approve the quote, Prentice sends it, and the customer answers by text, so the car stays on the lift and the work keeps moving.
Can my mechanics use Prentice?
Yes. Add your mechanics, and they can text Prentice from the bay. Prentice drafts a quote from your prices and what they found, for your OK.
Do I need a new phone number?
You don’t have to change yours. Your business gets a Prentice number of its own. Give that number to customers, or forward your business line to Prentice when you can’t pick up.
More answers on the FAQ.
Let Prentice show you
Chat or call. Prentice will ask about your services, your prices and your hours.
Talk to Prenticestart free