Why it matters
Without a menu, every call lands on the same desk.
In a company with sales, service and parts, one front desk ends up answering everything, transferring most calls and putting people on hold while they find out who can help.
A short call menu lets callers choose where they need to go, so departments get the calls meant for them and the front desk handles the rest.
How IVR & call menus work
A clearer way to work.
- 1Play greetingBusiness-hours or after-hours greeting, set by your schedule.
- 2Accept keypad or speech choiceCallers press a key, or say a department where speech input is enabled.
- 3Route destinationThe choice goes to a team queue, a person or a voicemail box.
- 4FallbackNo input or a wrong key replays the menu once, then reaches the front desk.
- 5HistoryEach call shows the path taken through the menu.
Interface and key controls
See the details that keep work moving.
Switch between business hours and after hours, then press keys on the keypad to hear where each choice goes. Try a key that isn’t on the menu.
Welcome Message
“Thanks for calling Northgate Appliance & Repair. For sales, press 1. For service and support, press 2. For parts, press 3. To reach the front desk, press 0.”
Menu Options
- 1Press 1 · SalesSales team · Andrea Simmons and 2 others
- 2Press 2 · Service & supportService desk queue
- 3Press 3 · PartsParts counter · Luis Ortega
- 0Press 0 · Front deskFront desk · Carla Jensen
Business scenarios and exceptions
Designed for real-world exceptions.
Wrong keys, silence and after-hours calls each have a defined path. You can preview the greeting and edit the call tree before anything goes live.
| Caller does | Business hours | After hours |
|---|---|---|
| Presses a valid key | Routed to that department | Routed to its after-hours destination |
| Presses nothing for 8 sec | Menu replays once | Menu replays once |
| Presses a wrong key once | “Sorry, that’s not an option.” Menu replays | Same, then replays |
| Presses a wrong key twice | Sent to the front desk | Sent to general voicemail |
Business scenario
A practical day in the business.
Northgate Appliance & Repair in Milwaukee, WI sells, services and stocks parts for home appliances. Operations manager Andrea Simmons set up a four-option menu.
- 8:05 AM — Patrick Doyle calls about a dryer that won’t heat.
- 8:05 AM — He hears the business-hours greeting and presses 2 for service and support.
- 8:06 AM — He reaches the service desk queue without a transfer from the front desk.
- 8:40 AM — Andrea reviews the call history: menu path, wait time and who answered.
Can the menu change after business hours?
Yes. You set business hours, and the after-hours menu and greeting take over automatically, with different destinations for each option.
Can callers speak instead of pressing keys?
Where speech input is enabled, callers can say a department name. Keypad choices always work as well.
What happens if a caller presses the wrong key?
They hear “Sorry, that’s not an option” and the menu replays. After a second wrong key, the call goes to the front desk or general voicemail.
Can I preview the greeting before it goes live?
Yes. You can play the greeting and test each option in a draft menu before publishing it.
Who should use IVR and call menus?
Growing businesses with more than one department, such as sales, service, parts or billing, that share one phone number.
Send every caller the right way.
Start a 14-day free trial or book a demo to build your call menu.