Everything you need to know about BelBuddy

BelBuddy answers every call in fluent Dutch — day and night, even when you're busy working.

What is BelBuddy?

BelBuddy is an AI telephone receptionist that handles inbound calls for small Dutch businesses. The buddy answers in fluent, natural Dutch, recognises urgency, books appointments in your calendar, and sends a confirmation by SMS or WhatsApp — seven days a week, 24 hours a day. You never have to pick up the phone yourself.

What is BelBuddy?

BelBuddy is an AI telephone receptionist for the Dutch market. The service automatically answers inbound calls in fluent Dutch, identifies the reason for the call, books appointments, and sends confirmations — without you needing to pick up.

Is BelBuddy a real company?

Yes. BelBuddy is a service of Crafty Cast (KvK 87872641), based in the Netherlands. The service runs entirely on Dutch servers and is fully GDPR (AVG) compliant.

What types of businesses is BelBuddy suitable for?

BelBuddy is suitable for virtually any small business that receives inbound calls: plumbers, electricians, hairdressers, dentists, estate agents, garages, restaurants, and more. The buddy is configured for your specific industry and its terminology.

How does BelBuddy work?

Your existing phone number is forwarded to BelBuddy — or you receive a new Dutch number. When a customer calls, the AI buddy answers within 2 seconds in your own name and industry context. The buddy conducts the conversation, captures the caller's enquiry, and handles the appointment. You receive a summary immediately in your dashboard.

1. Customer calls your phone number
2. BelBuddy answers within 2 seconds in fluent Dutch
3. The buddy identifies the enquiry and any urgency
4. Appointment is booked; caller receives a confirmation by SMS or WhatsApp
5. You see the call summary immediately in your dashboard

How does BelBuddy work exactly?

Your phone number is forwarded to BelBuddy. The AI buddy answers, conducts the call in Dutch, identifies urgency, books appointments via your Calendly calendar, and sends the caller a confirmation by SMS or WhatsApp. You receive a summary of every call in your dashboard.

Does BelBuddy really speak Dutch?

Yes. BelBuddy speaks fluent, natural Dutch. The voice synthesis is optimised for the Dutch language, including regional accents and industry-specific terminology.

Does BelBuddy answer calls at night and on weekends?

Yes, BelBuddy is always available — including outside office hours, in the evening, at weekends, and on public holidays. You decide which calls are escalated as urgent to your own phone.

How quickly does BelBuddy answer?

BelBuddy typically answers within 2 seconds. There is no hold time or hold music for the caller.

How much does BelBuddy cost?

BelBuddy offers three fixed monthly subscriptions plus a bespoke option, with no hidden costs. Every plan includes a monthly minute allowance; there are no per-call charges.

No setup fee and cancellable monthly.

How much does BelBuddy cost per month?

BelBuddy costs €199 per month (Solo), €399 per month (Pro) or €699 per month (Business). Schaal is priced bespoke. There is no setup fee and no per-call charge.

Are there charges per call or per minute?

There are no charges per call or per appointment. Every plan includes a monthly minute allowance (1,000 on Solo, 2,500 on Pro, 6,000 on Business). If you use more than your allowance, those extra minutes are billed at your plan's per-minute rate (€0.15 to €0.20 per minute). You are notified once you reach 80% of your allowance.

Is there a free trial?

The live call demo is currently being upgraded to our own voice engine. In the meantime you can build and hear your own buddy at belbuddy.com/demo, or schedule a personal live demo via the website. For a trial subscription, please contact us via the website.

Privacy and GDPR

Is BelBuddy GDPR compliant?

Yes. Callers are informed at the start of every call that they are speaking to an AI and that the call may be recorded (in accordance with GDPR Art. 13 and EU AI Act Art. 50). Data is stored on EU servers and deleted after the statutory retention period.

Who has access to call recordings?

Only you as the customer have access to call summaries in your dashboard. Recordings are automatically deleted after a short period; transcripts are retained for longer in accordance with GDPR.

Try BelBuddy for yourself

Listen to how your buddy sounds and see how a missed call becomes a booked appointment.