Call forwarding to mobile: setup and carrier voicemail

Call forwarding to mobile helps when a manager is on the road: at a site, with a client or driving. A call to the company number goes straight to their cell phone, and the lead is created in the CRM just like in the office. But there's a trap: if voicemail is on, the client talks to the carrier's answering machine instead of you.

Voicemail is a mobile carrier service that answers for you when you don't pick up or your phone is off. To the call scheme, such an answer looks like an employee's answer, so turn it off before you switch reception to mobile.

Watch the two-minute video, and below you'll find step-by-step setup, prices and a test.

Why businesses need it

• Field technicians and repairs: a technician on a job takes new clients' calls on a cell phone, and the request doesn't wait until they're back at the office.
• Real estate: an agent at a viewing answers buyers from ads, and the lead with its source lands in the CRM right away.
• Small business without an office: the owner picks up personally, and missed calls are visible in the CRM, so it's easy to call back.
• Mixed teams: the office takes calls on SIP and field staff on mobile, all in one incoming call scheme.

How call forwarding to mobile works

The “Mobile” reception type means the account calls the employee on the number from the “Mobile phone” field. The client waits on the line until the employee answers. If nobody picks up within the “Waiting for the answer” time, the scheme moves on: to a backup employee, a voice bot or an SMS to the client. How the queue works is explained in the article automatic call distribution.

In the scheme's “Employees” block, such an employee is labeled “mob” with the phone number. A call to a client from the CRM also takes two steps: first the employee's cell phone rings, and after they answer, the account connects them with the client.

How to set up taking calls on mobile

1. 1
   Open the employee

   “Users” → ⚙ in the employee's row.
2. 2
   Check the number

   The “Mobile phone” field on the “Profile” tab. The mask adapts to the country, and the field is required for everyone.
3. 3
   Choose the reception type

   In the “Call reception” block, click “Mobile”.
4. 4
   Save

   The “Save” button at the bottom of the card.
5. 5
   Check the scheme

   In “Incoming settings”, the employee must be in the “Employees” block. In the “If the employee has not answered” branch, set “Waiting for the answer” and what happens next.
6. 6
   Make a test call

   Call the company number and decline the call on the mobile. The call should go to the next branch, not to voicemail.

Why you need to turn off voicemail and the answering service

To the call scheme, an answering machine's answer is no different from a person's. The call counts as answered, the queue doesn't move to the next manager, and the client hears “leave a message after the tone”. The lead may even be assigned to an employee who didn't talk to anyone.

On the phone of every employee with mobile reception, turn off:

• voicemail and the answering service;
• the carrier's voice assistant or “secretary”, if it's connected;
• forwarding to another number when busy or unreachable.

You turn them off in the carrier's app or customer account, or with a short code — the carrier's support will tell you which one. It also helps to turn off call waiting: then during a conversation a new call immediately gets “busy” and goes to the next employee instead of waiting the full wait time.

How much does call forwarding to mobile cost

Forwarding to mobile costs $0.0165 per minute within Russia, while taking the same call on SIP is free. A partial minute is rounded up. Outgoing call rates are listed in the article virtual phone number for business.

Mobile or SIP: which to choose

Mobile is for people who are out of the office all day. If an employee sits at a computer, switch them to SIP: incoming calls are free, and the connection doesn't depend on the cellular network. How to connect the app is covered in the article SIP phone setup. If calls to an employee's cell phone don't get through at all, switch them to SIP too: then the call goes over the internet.

For lunch, weekends and vacations, there's no need to change the reception type. Turn off the “In calls” toggle in the “Users” list: it works immediately, without “Save”, and the scheme will skip this employee.

Read also: Automatic call distribution between managers: queue and bot, SIP phone setup: Zoiper, MicroSIP and IP desk phones, Sales call recordings and missed calls: where to find them