How does voicemail work?
When a call isn't answered, the caller hears a greeting and leaves a message. The message lands in your calls list and in the conversation with that contact, with a written transcript so you can read it without pressing play.
There are three places a greeting can come from, and which one a caller hears depends on how they reached you.
Greeting | Belongs to | When the caller hears it |
Phone number voicemail | Each phone number | Someone calls that number and nobody answers |
Dial plan voicemail | A voicemail step in a dial plan | The number uses a dial plan and the call reaches that step |
Personal voicemail | You | A teammate transfers a call to you and you don't answer |
Most firms only need the first one. Start there.
How do I set the greeting for a phone number?
Each phone number has its own greetings, so your main line and your direct line can sound different. Greetings are set up in the web app on a computer.
Step 1. Open the phone number
Go to Settings, then Inboxes and click the number you want to change.
Step 2. Go to the Calls tab
Click Calls and find Voicemail Settings.
Step 3. Add your greeting
Under During Business Hours, click Change Audio, then choose how to add it:
Record audio to record with your computer's microphone
Upload file to use an .mp3 you already have, up to 5 MB
Choose from library to reuse a file from your audio library
Listen back, then click Use this voicemail.
Step 4. Add an after hours greeting
Do the same under Outside Business Hours if you want callers to hear something different when you're closed.
Step 5. Save
Save your changes. The new greeting applies to all future calls to that number.
Note: The Outside Business Hours greeting only plays if business hours are turned on for that number. You'll find them on the number's General tab. See inbox settings.
Tip: Uploads need to be real .mp3 files. If you recorded in another format, convert it first. Renaming the file extension won't work.
What if my number uses a dial plan?
A dial plan takes over call handling for the number, including voicemail. When a dial plan is active you'll see this message on the voicemail settings: "Your inbox is using a dial plan, so these voicemails will not be used."
In that case the greeting lives inside the dial plan. Open the plan, click its Voicemail step, and use Change voicemail to record or upload the greeting. The same step has a Transcribe switch and a Filter Profanity switch for the transcript. See call flow for how dial plans are built, and ring groups for ringing several people before voicemail picks up.
How do I set my personal voicemail?
Your personal greeting only plays when a teammate transfers a call to you and you don't pick up. Callers who dial one of your numbers directly hear that number's greeting instead.
Step 1. Open your voicemail settings
Go to Settings, then Voicemail under the Personal section.
Step 2. Add a greeting
Click Add voicemail, then record, upload, or pick from your library.
Step 3. Confirm
Click Use this voicemail. You'll see "Voicemail saved".
If you don't set a personal greeting, transferred callers hear the phone number's greeting. Use Change Audio to replace yours, or Remove to go back to that default.
How long does a call ring before voicemail?
That depends on how the number handles incoming calls. Open the number, go to the Calls tab, and look at Inbound Call Handling.
Ring Order. Set Ring duration from 15 to 45 seconds. That's how long each teammate's phone rings before the call moves on. The default is 20 seconds.
Call Forwarding. You choose which voicemail catches a missed call under Unanswered call voicemail. Keep in CurrentClient uses a short ring, 7 to 12 seconds, so our voicemail answers before your cell phone's does. Capture on forwarded phone uses a longer ring, 30 to 45 seconds, so your cell phone's own voicemail gets the chance to answer first. See call forwarding.
Dial Plan. Each ring step has its own ring duration, and the plan decides what happens next.
Tip: If you forward calls to your cell and want every message in one place with a transcript, choose Keep in CurrentClient. Otherwise some messages end up in your cell phone's voicemail, outside CurrentClient.
Where do I find my voicemails?
On the web
Open your calls list and click the Voicemails filter to see only calls where someone left a message.
Click For you to see voicemails from callers a teammate transferred to you, across every phone number.
Click a call to open its details. The Voicemail card shows the transcript, a copy button, and a player for the audio.
Voicemails also appear in the conversation with that contact, so the message sits next to your texts and calls with them.
On the mobile app
Open the Calls tab and tap Voicemails.
Tap a call to read the transcript and play the recording.
In a conversation, press and hold a voicemail and tap Copy voicemail to copy the transcript.
You can turn a voicemail into a note or a task from the conversation, and the transcript is included for you.
How do transcripts work?
Transcription is on by default. Each phone number has a Transcribe voicemail to text switch under Voicemail Settings, and each dial plan voicemail step has its own Transcribe switch.
Leave it on. The transcript is what lets you skim a message and copy it into your notes or CRM. Transcripts are generated automatically, so names and numbers are worth a second listen before you act on them.
How do I get notified about a new voicemail?
Email. Go to Settings, then Notifications and turn on New voicemail.
Computer pop ups. On the same page, turn on browser or desktop notifications to see alerts for new messages, calls, and voicemails.
Mobile push. New voicemail alerts are on by default in the mobile app. To change them, open Settings, then Notifications, and use the New Voicemail switch.
Slack and Microsoft Teams. If you've connected either one, you can send new voicemails to a channel. See Slack.
Is this the same as the call recording announcement?
No. A voicemail greeting plays when nobody answers. The recording announcement is the "this call may be recorded" message that plays before a call connects. It's managed separately by an admin under Call announcements in settings. See call recording.