Conditional call forwarding, explained for contractors
Every carrier has a feature that most contractors have never touched: conditional call forwarding. It sends a call somewhere else only if you don't answer it, or if your phone is busy or off. If you pick up, nothing happens. Your number doesn't change, and the caller has no idea it exists.
It's the piece that makes a receptionist service work without giving out a new number.
The two kinds of forwarding
Unconditional forwarding sends every call somewhere else. Your phone never rings. That's what you'd use if you wanted a receptionist to take every call.
Conditional forwarding sends a call only when you don't answer within a few rings, when you're already on a call, or when your phone is off or has no signal. That's what most contractors want: you answer when you can, and the calls you can't get to still get answered.
How to turn it on
You dial a short code on your phone, once. The exact code depends on your carrier; the number you're forwarding to goes where it says NUMBER.
- Verizon: dial
71followed by the number to forward on no answer or busy. Dial73to turn it off. - AT&T and T-Mobile: dial
61NUMBER#to forward on no answer, and##61#to turn it off.67NUMBER#forwards when you're busy;**62*NUMBER#when you're unreachable.
If you're on a different carrier or a reseller, their support page will have the equivalent. When you set up with us, we walk you through it on the phone — it takes about a minute.
What it costs
Carriers typically don't charge extra for conditional forwarding on a standard plan, but check your plan. The forwarded leg of the call is treated like an outgoing call from your phone, which matters if you're on a plan with limited minutes.
What the caller experiences
They hear your phone ring two or three times, then the receptionist picks up and greets them in your company's name. There's no click, no "please hold," no transfer. From their side, your office answered.
Turning it off
The same way you turned it on — one code. There's nothing to uninstall. If you ever want to test whether forwarding is active, call your own number from another phone and let it ring.
If you'd like to hear what's on the other end of that forwarding code, call our demo line and act like a customer.