Auto-Attendant

Save time routing calls and filter out spam with an auto-attendant phone system designed for small businesses.

A phone menu with options to change the call through.
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What is an auto- attendant?

Auto-attendants are telephony tools used to help callers reach an intended destination. They are also known as IVR systems, virtual receptionists, and audio phone menus. Auto-attendants work by announcing phone menu options in a playback recording  — such as ‘press 1 for accounting, press 2 for sales.’

Auto-attendant phone system

An auto attendant phone system, like OpenPhone's, is an advanced feature that automates the answering and routing of inbound calls to the appropriate person or department. It's like having a virtual receptionist that operates 24/7, ensuring that no call goes unanswered and every caller is directed accurately.

Simplify your call management process at any call volume — no live receptionist required. OpenPhone’s auto-attendant is available on any plan.

Key benefits of an auto-attendant

Help your business make a good first impression with professional phone service tools. Create a customized auto-attendant greeting that provides information about your business and its current phone menu options.

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Set expectations

Set expectations for inbound callers from the very beginning. Use playback recordings to address frequently asked questions and save your team time on repetitive questions.

Route customers

Use your virtual receptionist to create automated answering systems that route calls without needing to have employees or bulky desk phones involved. Auto-attendants use call forwarding software to send customers right where they need to go.

Maximize efficiency

Save time for your company and customers alike with phone menu call routing. An auto-attendant also automatically filters out most robocalls.

Automatically route calls

Keep your company relevant with phone menu options that can be customized to changing business needs. Automatically route calls to Spanish support, regional teams, sales, or any other skillsets that reflect how your business operates.

Route to any device

Route to nearly any device — VoIP auto-attendants can send calls to even non-virtual numbers. Forward calls to team members using mobile apps, PBX systems, tablets, and more.

Phone menu destinations

Easily update the phone menu destinations when teammates are on vacation or as your team grows.

How to set up an auto-attendant with OpenPhone

OpenPhone makes it easy to enable an auto-attendant in just four simple steps:

  1. Navigate to your phone number settings.

  2. Choose any owned phone number to equip a phone menu or auto-attendant function.

  3.  If you haven’t already, set your business hours associated with that phone number.

  4. Add your menu options accordingly, including audio recordings, call destinations, and voice commands.

A phone call is displayed on a screen.A conversation between two people on a messaging app.

How an auto-attendant works in OpenPhone

Here are other key reasons thousands of businesses use OpenPhone to communicate more efficiently to the rest of the world.

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Customization to meet the needs of your business

Auto-attendant functions on OpenPhone can be easily customized to meet the needs of your business. Allow customers to dial menu options or use interactive voice responses to reach specific teams or departments.

You have the option to forward to another OpenPhone virtual number, a phone number outside of OpenPhone, or let the call go through as different menu destinations. The latter option will ring anyone on your team who is available and has access to your number. 

More advanced features

On the Business plan, you can send calls to individual members of shared phone numbers. You can also upload playback recordings that share basic information like directions to your business or your office hours. Send callers directly to voicemail to set expectations on when a caller can expect to hear back from your team. If a caller doesn’t choose an option, you can also repeat the greeting or specify any of the other destinations mentioned above.

Numbers that contain a phone menu can even be texted by any customer and accessed by any member with shared access. Multiple team members can collaborate on message responses to ensure that all callers find what they’re looking for.

Why choose OpenPhone

Save time on routine tasks, provide a better experience to your customers and streamline communications using OpenPhone.

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Simplify business communications

OpenPhone simplifies business communications in more ways than one. Purchase an unlimited amount of numbers (local US, Canadian, or North American toll-free numbers) for your team and enable auto-attendants across any of your team’s numbers. You can give all team members individual numbers or create shared numbers for each department. Control access from a single dashboard while managing your auto-attendant/virtual receptionist from any device.

Make unlimited calls and texts

You can use your IVR numbers for more than just inbound calls. Make an unlimited amount of outbound phone calls and texts (SMS and MMS) to anyone in US or Canada — even if you have a North  American toll-free number. Never pay for hidden fees and avoid costly bills from incoming toll-free calls.

Collaborate with shared inboxes

Equip teams to work together in any capacity with shared number inboxes. Anyone with access to a number can browse texts, calls, and voicemail transcriptions from their device of choice. Shared inboxes allow teams to collaborate in threads and mentions to provide the best experience possible. Work together and respond in a business phone system that was built for team-based functionality.

Set work-life boundaries with shift-based routing

You can apply business hours to individual numbers and team members. Teammates can mute notifications when they’re off the clock. This way, you can maintain communication quality without overloading your teams — and enjoy peace of mind while setting up shift-based routing.

Integrate with tools you love

Plus, OpenPhone allows users to integrate with more than 3,000+ apps. Plug into CRMs and form fields and stop wasting time on repetitive manual tasks. You can even use auto-replies or texting shortcuts like snippets to respond to messages and answer frequently asked questions even faster.

Appear more professional

Virtual receptionists help your business appear professional and responsive to customer communications. Sign up for a seven-day free trial to test drive OpenPhone’s VoIP auto-attendant features and more.

No hidden fees

Find out how much you’re investing in your business phone solution upfront on our pricing page.

Frequently asked questions

Can’t find the answer here? Check out our Help Center.

What phone menu options are available with OpenPhone's auto-attendant feature?
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OpenPhone offers six destination options:

Forward to an OpenPhone number — Forward calls to another OpenPhone number in your organization; it can be either a direct number of one of your colleagues or a shared phone number belonging to a group of people.

  • Forward to an outside phone number — Forward calls to any US or Canadian phone number.

  • Let the call through — Calls will come through to all members of the phone number. If you're the only person with access to the number, you'll receive calls. If you have a team sharing access to the number, everyone will receive calls.

  • Send to a member of the phone number*  — Have calls go directly to a colleague even if they don't have a dedicated OpenPhone number.

  • Send to voicemail* — The callers will be able to listen to your voicemail and leave a message for you.

  • Play an audio* — Let callers know your business hours, business address/directions, or any other information in a played-back recording.

*OpenPhone Business plan required

What exactly is an auto-attendant in VoIP phone systems?
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An auto-attendant in VoIP is a virtual receptionist that routes callers to contacts or teams around the business. Direct callers to team members on computers, mobile phones, and other devices without the help of a live person. Auto-attendant from OpenPhone can also route callers to voicemail and informational recordings.

Why should I use the auto-attendant system available with an OpenPhone number?
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OpenPhone’s auto-attendant phone system was built for businesses that want to streamline their communication. Boost your professional image and manage call flows more effectively with a simple tool available on any plan. You can easily get up and running in minutes with IVR phone menus and built-in call routing.

What options do I have for setting the auto-attendant greeting?
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OpenPhone provides several options for customizing auto-attendant greetings. You can upload files or capture a recording in-app.

Who can call out of the phone number that includes an auto-attendant?
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Any member of your team who has access to a multi-level auto-attendant number can also make and receive calls from that number. Your team member’s access status can be updated at any time using the OpenPhone admin dashboard. Up to 10 users can call and text from a single number on the Starter Plan, and up to 100 on the Business plan.

Ready to improve your team's communication?

Join thousands of businesses already using OpenPhone to communicate better with their customers.