IVR (interactive voice response)
An IVR is an automated phone menu that plays a greeting and lets callers choose where their call goes, usually by pressing a number on their keypad.
How an IVR works
When a call arrives, the IVR plays a short message such as "Press 1 for sales, press 2 for support." The caller's choice sends the call to the matching team, a recorded message or another menu. If the caller presses nothing or an invalid key, a default option decides what happens next — for example, the menu repeats or the call goes to reception.
Common uses
- Sending callers to the right department without a receptionist.
- Offering self-service information, such as opening hours.
- Separating languages or regions on a single number.
IVR in phone.systems™
In phone.systems™ an IVR is the Voice Menu object in a call flow. You place it on the call flow canvas after the Phone Number object (usually behind a Time Router so it only plays during business hours) and connect each key to the next object — a Queue, a Ring Group, a user's Internal Number, an Audio Playback message, Voicemail or another Voice Menu.
Menu prompts can be uploaded as audio files, recorded in the browser or created with text-to-speech (up to 250 characters per prompt) in Audio Files.
Example: a main menu sends key 1 to the Sales queue, key 2 to Support and key 3 to Billing, with unanswered calls going to a team voicemail. See how to build an IVR and routing calls between departments.