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Use case

Build an IVR phone menu

A Voice Menu object, a few text-to-speech prompts and a queue per option. No recording studio and no technical configuration.

The problem

Without a menu, every caller lands in the same place, and someone has to ask each one what they need and pass the call on. With a badly built menu, callers sit through long options, press the wrong key or end up in a loop with no way out.

Recording professional prompts is another obstacle: every change to a menu option means booking a voice artist or re-recording audio.

How phone.systems™ handles it

In phone.systems™ an IVR is a Voice Menu object in the visual call flow editor.

  1. Write the prompts. In Audio Files, type the menu text and generate it with text-to-speech (up to 250 characters per prompt), or upload or record audio in the browser. A simple business menu might say: "For sales, press 1. For support, press 2. For billing, press 3."
  2. Add the Voice Menu. Select the prompt, set how long to wait for a key (1 second to 2 minutes) and how many times to repeat the prompt (1 to 11).
  3. Connect the options. Draw a cable from each key to the next object: a Queue, a Ring Group, a person's Internal Number, an Audio Playback with information, Voicemail, Forwarding, or another Voice Menu for a sub-menu.
  4. Handle no input. Connect the timeout output so callers who press nothing still reach someone, such as the reception queue.

Put a Time Router in front of the menu to use it only during working hours, and a short Audio Playback welcome before it. Changes apply in real time, so updating an option takes a minute.

A simple business IVR

  1. Time routerOffice Hours

    The menu is used during business hours.

  2. Audio playbackWelcome

    Text-to-speech welcome message.

  3. Voice menuMain Menu
    • Press 1Sales queue
    • Press 2Support queue
    • Press 3Billing queue
  4. Call queuing
    • Timeout reachedVoicemail

The Voice Menu in the call flow editor

Each keypress option is a cable from the Voice Menu to a queue.

phone.systems™ call flow editor with a Main Menu voice menu whose options 1, 2 and 3 connect to Sales, Support and Billing queues, which fall through to Team Voicemail

Menu prompts from text

Text-to-speech in Audio Files: type the prompt, choose a voice and preview the generated audio.

phone.systems™ Audio Files text-to-speech form with the menu prompt typed as text, a voice selected and a generated audio preview

Voice Menu options

  • Three ways to create prompts

    Upload an audio file (up to 14 MB), record in the browser, or generate with text-to-speech.

  • Timeout and repeats

    Wait 1 second to 2 minutes for a key and repeat the prompt 1–11 times.

  • Any destination per key

    Queue, Ring Group, Internal Number, Audio Playback, Voicemail, Forwarding, Conference or another Voice Menu.

  • Hold playlists

    Playlists in Audio Files provide music or messages while callers wait in a queue.

  • Blocklist

    Put a Blocklist object before the menu to reject known unwanted callers.

  • Routing attempts

    Call History and Routing Attempts in Call Analytics help you check how calls were routed.

How to set it up in phone.systems™

  1. Create prompts in Audio Files

    Generate the welcome and menu prompts with text-to-speech, keeping each option short.

  2. Create the destinations

    In Call Flows, add the Queues or Ring Groups each option will reach, and a Voicemail fallback.

  3. Add a Voice Menu

    Select the menu prompt, set the timeout and number of repeats.

  4. Cable each key

    Connect keys 1, 2, 3 and so on to their destinations, and the timeout output to a default destination.

  5. Assign the number

    In Numbers, point the phone number at the call flow, then place a test call.

Capabilities used

The phone.systems™ features this relies on. Each page explains how the capability works.

Frequently asked questions

What is an IVR?

An IVR (interactive voice response) menu plays a recorded or generated prompt and routes the call based on the key the caller presses. In phone.systems™ this is the Voice Menu object.

Do I need to record the menu prompts myself?

No. Prompts can be generated from text with text-to-speech (up to 250 characters per prompt). You can also upload professional recordings or record in the browser.

Can I build sub-menus?

Yes. Connect a key to another Voice Menu to create a second level, for example product lines within Support.

How many options should an IVR have?

Keep the first level to three or four options and put the most common reason for calling first. Always connect the timeout output so callers who press nothing still reach someone.

Set up a phone system that fits how you work

Configure numbers, users and call routing in one place, and change them whenever your business changes.

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