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How to Set Up Your Custom GP Intro Message

What a custom GP intro message is, why it improves patient engagement, how to record one, and how to submit it to QuantumLoopAi.

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Category: Using the Product

Subcategory: Configuration

Suggested Tags: custom intro message, GP intro, patient engagement, call quality, recording, audio, configuration, EMMA greeting

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Purpose of This Article

This article explains what a custom GP intro message is, why it makes a difference to patient engagement, and how to record and submit one for your surgery.

What Is a Custom GP Intro Message?

A custom GP intro message is a short personalised recording from one of your GPs that plays to every caller before they are connected to EMMA. It is the first thing patients hear when they call your surgery.

Rather than being greeted immediately by a virtual receptionist, patients hear a familiar, trusted voice from their own surgery. This explains what EMMA does, why the surgery has chosen to use her, and how the process works. It removes patient anxiety, sets clear expectations, and significantly improves how patients engage with EMMA from the very first call.

Why It Matters

Surgeries that have introduced a custom GP intro message have reported measurable improvements in patient engagement. Patients who hear their own GP speak before EMMA answers are more likely to:

  • Engage clearly and at a natural pace
  • Complete their request without frustration
  • Understand that no clinical decisions are being made by a computer
  • Trust that their request will be reviewed by a real clinician

The message also reminds patients to speak clearly and avoid speakerphone, which reduces audio quality issues, and discourages duplicate submissions from patients who have already called that day.

Script Options

Three script options are available. Choose the one that best suits your surgery's tone and patient population. Replace [Surgery Name] with your practice name and [Doctor Name] with the name of the GP recording the message.

Option 1: The Standard (approximately 50 seconds) Best for most surgeries. Covers all key points clearly and confidently.

"Welcome to [Surgery Name], this is Doctor [Name]. Your call today will be answered by Emma, our virtual receptionist. Emma does exactly what our reception team would do — she takes your details, finds out the reason for your call, and passes everything to our clinical team, who will then review your request, book any appointments needed, and get you access to the right care as quickly as possible. Since we introduced Emma, our team have been able to get back to patients much faster and really focus on providing the right care. Please speak clearly and avoid using speakerphone. If you have already contacted us today, there is no need to call again. For emergencies, hang up and dial 999. I will hand you over to Emma now."

Option 2: With Patient Reassurance (approximately 60 seconds) Best for surgeries anticipating patient hesitancy, or with a higher proportion of elderly or less digitally confident patients.

"Welcome to [Surgery Name], this is Doctor [Name] speaking. Your call today will be answered by Emma, our virtual receptionist. I know speaking to a virtual receptionist might feel a bit different, but I would really ask you to give her a go. Emma does exactly what our reception team would do — she takes your details, asks about the reason for your call, and passes everything to our clinical team, who will review your request, book appointments, and make sure you get access to the right care as quickly as possible. To help Emma hear you clearly, please do not use speakerphone, and try to call from somewhere quiet if you can. If you have already submitted a request today, there is no need to call again. For medical emergencies, please hang up and dial 999. I will hand you over to Emma now."

Option 3 Contact your QuantumLoopAi account manager if you would like a third script option tailored more specifically to your surgery's circumstances.

How to Record Your Intro Message

What you will need:

  • A quiet room with no background noise
  • A smartphone with a built-in voice recording app (Voice Memos on iPhone, Recorder on Android)
  • A printed or on-screen copy of your chosen script
  • Approximately 10 minutes for the GP to do a few practice reads and record the final version

Step-by-step:

  1. Choose your script and fill in your surgery name and the GP's name.
  2. Find a quiet room. Close the door and windows. Turn off fans, air conditioning, or any equipment that creates background noise. Silence all phones in the room.
  3. Open the voice recording app. Place the phone on a desk or table approximately 15 to 20 centimetres from the GP's mouth. Do not hold the phone as this causes handling noise.
  4. Do a short test recording of 10 to 15 seconds. Play it back and listen for echo, background hum, or muffled sound. Adjust the phone position or move to a quieter room if needed.
  5. Record the full script. The GP should read at a natural, warm pace. It should sound like they are speaking to a patient in person, not reading from a page.
  6. Play the recording back in full. Listen for stumbles, long pauses, or unclear words. If needed, record again. Two or three takes is normal.
  7. Once satisfied, email the audio file to support@quantumloopai.com with your surgery name in the subject line, for example: "Custom Intro Message - [Surgery Name]".

Tips for the best result:

  • Speak at a natural, conversational pace, warm and reassuring rather than rushed
  • Smile while reading, it genuinely changes the tone of your voice
  • If you make a mistake, pause for two seconds and start the sentence again. The team can edit out errors.
  • The recording does not need to be perfect. What matters most is that it sounds like a real person your patients know and trust.

Audio File Specifications

Any standard smartphone recording will work. The QuantumLoopAi team can adjust the format if needed. For best results:

  • Format: WAV, M4A, or MP3
  • Maximum length: 90 seconds (recommended 40 to 60 seconds)
  • File size: typically under 5 MB

How to Submit Your Recording

Email the audio file to support@quantumloopai.com with your surgery name in the subject line. The QuantumLoopAi team will configure your message and confirm once it is live, typically within 24 to 48 working hours.

Updating Your Intro Message

If you need to update your intro message, for example for a bank holiday, seasonal change, or to refresh the greeting, contact support@quantumloopai.com with your new recording and we will update it promptly.

A dashboard feature allowing surgeries to manage and update their intro message directly without contacting support is currently in development. You will be notified when this becomes available.

Troubleshooting

The recording sounds echoey or has background noise. Re-record in a quieter room. Avoid rooms near reception areas, corridors, or open windows. Ensure all phones in the room are silenced and any fans or air conditioning are turned off.

The GP's voice sounds too quiet or too loud. Adjust the position of the phone. If the phone is too close it may distort. If too far away the voice will sound quiet. Approximately 15 to 20 centimetres is usually the right distance.

We submitted the recording but have not received confirmation. Contact support@quantumloopai.com if you have not received confirmation within two working days. Check that your subject line included your surgery name.

We want to use a different script to the options provided. You can adapt any of the provided scripts to suit your surgery's tone, or write your own. Contact your account manager if you would like guidance before recording.

FAQs

Does the intro message have to be recorded by a GP? No. A practice manager or other trusted staff member can also record the message if preferred. The key is that it sounds warm, personal, and reassuring to your patients.

Can we have different intro messages for different times of day? Contact the QuantumLoopAi team to discuss this. Per-number configuration is available and the team can advise on what is possible for your setup.

How long should the intro message be? We recommend between 40 and 60 seconds. The message should be long enough to set expectations clearly but short enough that patients are not waiting too long before being connected to EMMA.

Can we hear examples of intro messages from other surgeries? Yes. Contact your QuantumLoopAi account manager and examples can be shared on request.

What if we do not want a custom intro message? A custom intro message is optional. EMMA will still greet patients with a standard message if no custom recording is in place. However, surgeries that use a custom intro message consistently report better patient engagement, so it is strongly recommended.