AI Inquiry Handler & Appointment Setter for Customs & Freight Businesses

The AI asks targeted questions based on your ideal client profile: commodities being imported or exported, shipment volume and frequency, their current customs broker situation, and what’s prompting them to look for a new provider. High-quality leads are routed to your team immediately; lower-priority inquiries enter a nurture sequence.

An automated follow-up sequence activates — a reminder before the meeting, and a re-engagement message if they miss it. The system keeps working to get the meeting rebooked without requiring manual effort from your team.

An AI receptionist handles inbound phone calls — answering immediately, capturing caller details, and routing urgent matters to your team. An AI inquiry handler focuses on the new business acquisition layer: converting shipper and importer inquiries from any channel (website, phone, email, LinkedIn, contact forms) into booked discovery calls through immediate response, lead qualification, and automated follow-up sequences. The two work together as part of a connected system — your AI receptionist captures the call, your AI inquiry handler ensures the prospect moves toward becoming a client.

The most common reason is the speed and consistency gap. In the customs and freight industry, shippers and importers comparing multiple brokers or forwarders typically engage with whoever responds first and follows up most consistently. If your first response comes 24 hours after the inquiry, a competitor who responded in minutes may already have a discovery call booked. An AI inquiry handler eliminates this gap by responding immediately and following up automatically — so your firm is always first and always consistent, regardless of how busy your team is.

Shippers and importers find customs brokers and freight forwarders through multiple channels — your website, phone calls, LinkedIn, Google Business Profile, and referrals. EntryPoint AI’s inquiry handler works across these channels: website contact forms and chatbot inquiries, missed call text-back from phone inquiries, LinkedIn messages and direct message sequences, and email inquiry follow-up. The goal is consistent, immediate responsiveness across every channel so no inquiry goes cold regardless of how the prospect first contacted your business.

The AI inquiry handler qualifies prospects based on the criteria most important for your specific operation. Typical qualification questions for a customs brokerage or freight forwarding operation include: what commodities are being imported or exported, the origin country and port of entry, shipment volume and frequency, whether they currently have a customs broker and what’s prompting the change, and the urgency of their need. High-quality prospects — those with the right commodity type, volume, and decision-making readiness — are routed to your team immediately. Others enter a structured nurture sequence.

Once a prospect is qualified, the AI inquiry handler offers to book a discovery call directly into your calendar — with available time slots presented automatically. Confirmation messages are sent by text and email immediately after booking. Reminder sequences activate leading up to the call. If the prospect starts the booking process but doesn’t complete it, a re-engagement sequence activates automatically. The entire process happens without manual effort from your team — from initial inquiry response through to confirmed discovery call with reminders sent.

Not every shipper or importer who inquires about your customs brokerage or freight forwarding services is ready to make a decision immediately. Some are early in the evaluation process, some are comparing multiple options, and some have a specific trigger date in mind (an upcoming shipment, a contract renewal, a bad experience with their current broker). EntryPoint AI’s inquiry handler places these prospects into structured nurture sequences that keep your firm top-of-mind with relevant, professional follow-up at appropriate intervals — so when they’re ready to decide, your firm is the first one they think of.

Large freight companies and brokerages have dedicated business development staff whose sole job is responding to inquiries quickly and following up consistently. Independent customs brokers and small-to-mid-size freight forwarders are competing against this responsiveness advantage with a team that’s primarily focused on processing entries and managing active files. An AI inquiry handler delivers the same responsiveness — immediate response to every inquiry, consistent follow-up, and structured nurture sequences — without adding headcount. This levels the playing field significantly for the inquiry experience that shippers and importers have with your firm.

Yes. EntryPoint AI trains your inquiry handler on your specific commodity specializations, the trade lanes and ports of entry you work with, and the types of importers and shippers you serve. This means the AI can answer initial questions about whether your firm handles a specific commodity type, what the clearance process looks like for a particular origin country, and whether you have experience with the importer’s specific situation. This specificity builds immediate credibility with prospects who are evaluating whether your firm is the right fit.

Every prospect interaction — initial inquiry details, qualification responses, follow-up history, and booking status — is captured in your CRM so your team always has the full picture when engaging with a prospect. When a discovery call is booked, your team receives the complete inquiry details: the prospect’s company name, commodity type, origin country, shipment volume, current broker situation, and what prompted them to reach out. This means the discovery call can start with context rather than starting from scratch — improving conversion from discovery call to new client.

Realistic early results include: a higher inquiry-to-discovery-call conversion rate, more after-hours and weekend inquiries captured and converted, reduced time between initial inquiry and first meaningful contact, and a measurable reduction in the manual follow-up workload on your team. As the system matures with ongoing optimization, results expand to include higher discovery-call-to-client conversion, a more consistent and professional prospect experience, and a better understanding of which inquiry sources produce the highest-quality new clients.

EntryPoint AI’s AI inquiry handler is included as part of the all-inclusive $2,997 CAD per month per location engagement — which also includes the full system build, AI receptionist, AI chatbot, client communication automation, CRM setup, SOP documentation, staff training tools, monthly maintenance, and ongoing consulting support. There is no separate per-inquiry billing and no large upfront setup fee. For multi-location customs brokerages and freight forwarders, custom pricing is available.

The first step is a 15-minute discovery call. We’ll talk through how new business inquiries currently come into your operation, where prospects are falling through the cracks, what your ideal client profile looks like, and what an AI inquiry handler configured for your specific trade operation would deliver. From there, EntryPoint AI builds and configures the system — including qualification rules, follow-up sequences, and CRM integration — so it’s capturing and converting real inquiries from day one. Most clients have their inquiry handler live within two to three weeks of the initial discovery call.