HeyEthan.ai · Call Routing & Transfers
The right next step.
For the person calling.
Guide callers to an approved person or destination—with AI call routing configured around your team, availability, and business rules.
HeyEthan asks the relevant questions, identifies the appropriate route, and follows your approved transfer process. When a connection cannot be completed, a defined fallback gives the caller a clear next step.
Reason for calling + availability rules
If unavailable, follow the configured message or callback process.
Give each inquiry a useful direction
A professional handoff starts before the transfer.
Understanding why someone is calling helps determine where the conversation should go. Your assistant follows the routing criteria you approve, rather than sending every caller down the same path.
Understand the request
Ask approved questions to identify the service, department, or assistance the caller needs.
Use the permitted destination
Select from the people or numbers in your configuration, following the agreed routing and availability rules.
Plan for unavailable contacts
Define what should happen when a transfer is not permitted, no one answers, or the connection fails.
Your team. Your routing rules.
A destination is only useful when it fits the call.
A new customer may need sales. An existing customer may need service. An approved after-hours request may need an on-call contact. We define those paths with you.
Your configuration determines which transfers can be attempted, when they are permitted, and what should happen if the caller’s request does not match a defined route.
What we define together
- Approved transfer destinations and their phone numbers.
- The caller questions used to select a route.
- Business hours and permitted on-call conditions.
- Transfer method and supported handoff behavior.
- No-answer, busy, voicemail, and failure handling.
- Message capture and notification requirements.
- Fallbacks for unclear or unsupported requests.
Routing complexity and destination limits follow your selected plan. Specialized phone-system requirements may need separate scope.
Understand the handoff
Direct transfers and warm handoffs serve different needs.
We agree on the transfer method your business needs and confirm what the connected phone setup supports.
Direct transfer
Send the call to an approved destination. The receiving person may need to ask the caller for context, depending on the configured workflow.
Warm transfer
Where included and supported, provide an introduction or relevant context before connecting the caller. Exact behavior is confirmed and tested during setup.
Message or callback request
When a live connection is not appropriate or cannot be completed, follow the approved process for collecting details and requesting follow-up.
A transfer attempt is not a guaranteed conversation. Recipient availability, carrier behavior, voicemail, and the transfer method affect the outcome. We test the agreed call flow and fallback before launch.
The fallback is part of the experience
Decide what happens when no one picks up.
Busy lines, unanswered calls, and voicemail need explicit handling. We review those outcomes so your assistant has an approved next step rather than an assumed one.
Depending on the supported configuration, that may mean collecting a message before transferring, returning to message capture after an unsuccessful attempt, or using another agreed destination.
Confirm behavior before launch
- When a transfer can be attempted.
- What the caller hears while it is attempted.
- How the receiving person gets context, if included.
- What happens if voicemail answers.
- Whether the assistant can resume after a failed attempt.
- Which details are captured and where they are sent.
Automatic return to the assistant is not assumed for every transfer method. We confirm the supported behavior for your setup.
Start with the routes you need
Routing scope grows with your business plan.
Essential
One primary call-handling path and destination within the defined plan scope. The exact action and handoff behavior are confirmed during onboarding.
Growth
Up to three approved routing destinations, with warm-transfer and fallback configuration within the plan’s scope and supported setup.
Professional
Up to five approved routing destinations within the defined scope, supporting more varied customer and team workflows.
Additional scope is reviewed before commitment. Extra destinations, complex branching, multi-location routing, specialist AI agents, and custom integrations may require a separate proposal. Routing to a phone number does not automatically include a multi-agent deployment.
Common questions about call routing and transfers.
Can calls go to different people or departments?
Yes, within your selected plan’s destination limits and approved configuration. We define the destinations, selection questions, availability conditions, and fallback for each path.
Can it introduce the caller before connecting?
Where a warm-transfer workflow is included and supported, it can provide the agreed introduction or context. We confirm what the receiving person hears and how the caller is connected during implementation.
Will a failed transfer always return to the assistant?
Not necessarily. This depends on the transfer method, phone-system behavior, and configured failure handling. We confirm and test whether the assistant can resume or whether another fallback is required.
Can we prevent transfers after hours?
Yes, through approved availability rules in a supported configuration. We can define when a transfer is permitted and when the caller should instead be offered message capture or a callback request.
Can it handle urgent or on-call requests?
It can collect information using your approved questions and follow defined on-call routing rules where included. It does not diagnose emergencies or guarantee that an on-call person will answer. Emergency dispatch is not part of standard routing.
Can it transfer to our existing business number?
Potentially, but we must review the complete call flow. Transferring back to a number that forwards to the assistant can create a loop. We confirm an appropriate destination, such as a direct staff line or another supported route, before launch.
Is routing to a specialist AI agent included?
Not automatically. A specialist AI agent or multi-agent setup is a distinct workflow with its own configuration and scope. We review that separately from standard routing to your team’s phone numbers.
Build a call flow your team can rely on.
Tell us who should receive which calls and what should happen when they are unavailable. We’ll recommend an appropriate routing configuration, plan, and implementation scope.
