Get through your busy season without missing inquiries
Written by the Allinaa team · Updated
Every business has a few weeks when the phone doesn't stop and the same five questions arrive a hundred times. A website assistant can absorb the repeats and keep the rest organized, but only if you prepare it before the rush. This is a before, during and after playbook, including what happens when you reach the monthly AI reply allowance.
Peaks by industry
| Business | Typical peak | The repeat questions |
|---|---|---|
| Accounting and tax prep | January to April | Deadlines, which documents to bring, extensions, fees |
| Roofing and restoration | After storms | Do you inspect storm damage? How soon can you come? |
| Retail and online stores | Holiday season | Shipping cut-off dates, gift returns, store hours |
| Moving companies | Summer and month-end | Availability, packing, what affects the price |
| Tutoring and schools | Back to school, exam season | Schedules, subjects, enrollment steps |
| Landscaping | Spring | Service area, start dates, recurring service |
Tax firms and roofers have their own pages: AI chatbot for accounting firms and AI chatbot for roofing contractors.
Before the rush: update knowledge, hours and holiday notices
- Write down the season's repeat questions from last year's emails and phone notes, and add the answers to the knowledge.
- Add dates and limits: deadlines, shipping cut-offs, "booked until the 15th", seasonal hours. Always include the date. The assistant repeats what you wrote, even after it stops being true.
- Decide what to collect when you can't answer right away, for example storm damage location and photos (Premium), or the tax documents a client has ready.
- Book your updates early. On Standard, the Allinaa team makes up to 2 hours a month of knowledge updates. Ask before the peak, not in the middle of it.
- Test it: ask the assistant your top five seasonal questions as a customer would.
During: answer the repeats, capture the rest
In the busy weeks, the assistant should do two jobs. It answers the predictable questions from your knowledge, at any hour. Everything that needs a person becomes a complete request through the form: it asks up to three short questions, one at a time, and the visitor sends their details with consent. Your team works from the inquiry inbox instead of a pile of voicemails, using statuses to see who is handling what. On Premium, team members can also take over urgent chats live.
The reply allowance during a peak
Standard includes 2,000 AI replies a month; at the limit, the chat shows the request form, so you still receive every lead. Expecting more during your peak? Agree extra usage with us before it starts; nothing is added to your bill without your agreement. Premium has no monthly cap on AI replies (per-channel flood limits apply). The counting rules are in chatbot reply limits.
After: review what people asked
- Remove expired dates and seasonal notices from the knowledge straight away.
- Read the monthly report's list of unanswered questions. Those are next season's knowledge.
- Export the inquiries to CSV and note which requests turned into work.
- Write a short "next season" note while it's fresh.
The review method is described in Find out what your website visitors ask.
Illustrative example, not a real customer conversation. The dates come from the firm's own knowledge.
Visitor: Is it too late to get my taxes done before the deadline?
Assistant: We're taking new individual returns until April 1 this season. After that we can file an extension for you. Would you like to send your details so the team can confirm a slot?
Visitor: Yes. I have my W-2 and a 1099.
Assistant: Thanks, that helps. Please don't send tax documents in the chat. The team will tell you how to share them securely. You can send your request with the form now.
Questions and answers
Does starting a new conversation reset the reply count?
No. The allowance counts replies per monthly service period, regardless of how many conversations they are spread across.
What do visitors see when the allowance is used up?
A short message asking them to leave a request, plus the request form. Contact capture keeps working, so no lead is lost.
Can we get more replies for a busy month?
Talk to us before the peak. Additional usage is agreed with you in advance.
How far ahead should we prepare?
A few weeks is enough for most businesses: time to collect the repeat questions, update the knowledge and test the answers before the rush.