In short: The BT Cloud Voice Auto Attendant is an automated receptionist, added as a site feature. It plays a greeting, offers keypad options, and transfers callers to an extension, hunt group, call queue or voicemail box. Separate business-hours and after-hours menus switch automatically using time and holiday schedules set in the Business Portal.
What the Auto Attendant does
The Auto Attendant answers a number for you, plays a voice menu such as "Press 1 for sales, 2 for accounts", and transfers the caller straight to the right extension without anyone having to pick up first. It is a site feature: you add it to a site rather than to a user, from the Call routing groups panel of the BT Cloud Voice Business Portal.
You can run more than one Auto Attendant, for example one for your main number and one for a support line, and each can have its own greetings and schedules. If several published numbers should all reach the same menu, BT's alternate numbers guide says that needs the Auto Attendant plus feature on that Auto Attendant.
Business-hours and after-hours menus
Each Auto Attendant has a business hours menu and an after hours menu, each with its own greeting and its own dialling menu. In the dialling menu you choose where each key sends the caller:
| Destination | Typical use |
|---|---|
| A person's extension | Direct routes to named people or roles, such as the office manager |
| A hunt group | A team number, such as sales or accounts, that rings several phones |
| A call queue | A busy line, such as customer service, where callers may need to wait |
| A voicemail box | Out-of-hours messages; BT's guide sets this with *55 followed by the mailbox owner's extension |
Which menu plays is decided by the schedules described below. Keep the after-hours menu short: callers mostly want your opening hours, a way to leave a message and, if you offer one, an urgent route.
Greetings
Each menu can use BT's standard system messages or your own personal greeting. You can upload a pre-recorded file, or record the business-hours or after-hours greeting from any phone through the Voice Portal, which an administrator first sets up with its own number, extension and password. That is handy for a quick change, such as a snow day, when nobody can reach a computer.
Good greetings are short. State your business name, offer no more than four or five options, and put the most common choice first. If you record calls, say so in the greeting. BT's on-hold music and messaging service can also produce professionally voiced messages if you want a polished finish.
Time and holiday schedules
Schedules decide which menu callers hear:
- Time schedules set your opening hours, for example Monday to Friday, 08:00 to 17:00. When you are closed, callers get the after-hours menu
- Holiday schedules send calls to the after-hours menu for whole days, such as bank holidays and the Christmas closure. BT says each holiday schedule can hold up to 20 dates or date ranges, and although you can create several, only one applies to an Auto Attendant at a time
- For an early finish, such as Christmas Eve, BT suggests a time schedule alongside the holiday schedule so callers hear the closed message from your new closing time
Schedules are built at site level (Sites, then Features, then Schedules in the BT Cloud Voice Business Portal) and then chosen in the Auto Attendant's settings. Remember to add next year's bank holidays well before they arrive.
Planning checklist
Before we build your Auto Attendant, it helps to have answers to these questions:
- Which numbers should the Auto Attendant answer, and should any numbers bypass it?
- What are your opening hours, and do they differ by day?
- Which bank holidays and closure days should be in the holiday schedule?
- What options should callers hear, in what order? Keep it to four or five.
- Where does each option go: a person, a hunt group, a call queue or voicemail?
- Who should a caller reach if they need a person rather than a menu option?
- What should happen after hours: a message, a voicemail box or a mobile on call?
- Who will record or approve the greetings, and do you need a recording notice?
- Who is allowed to change greetings and schedules in the portal?
For voicemail destinations, the person receiving the messages needs a Connect or Collaborate pack (see voicemail to email).
How we set it up
Forever Communications Limited, a BT Business Partner, maps your call flow with you, builds the Auto Attendant, menus and schedules in the portal, and tests every option before your numbers move across on go-live day. Afterwards we can update greetings and holiday dates for you, or show your administrator how. Contact us to plan your menu.
Why buy BT Cloud Voice from Forever Communications Limited
Forever Communications Limited is part of Forever Group and a BT Business Partner. We supply, set up and support BT Cloud Voice for UK businesses, schools, charities and public sector organisations, from a handful of users to multi-site teams.
- A named partner who plans your numbers, call flows, user feature packs and handsets with you
- Number porting managed for you, timed to avoid downtime
- Connectivity checked first, so call quality is right from day one, with BT business broadband and BTnet available if you need it
- Help with the digital switchover, including alarms, lifts, card terminals and other analogue lines
- Training and ongoing support for the apps, Microsoft Teams integration, moves, adds, changes and faults
BT Cloud Voice is a business service. We do not sell consumer or home phone products.
Want a BT Cloud Voice quote for your business?
Tell Forever Communications what you need and we will come back to you by email with options, not a hard sell.
Contact usFrequently asked questions
Is the auto attendant included with BT Cloud Voice?
Auto Attendant is a site feature added to a site, rather than part of a user feature pack. Ask us for a quote that includes it.
Can I record my own auto attendant greeting on BT Cloud Voice?
Yes. You can use BT's standard messages, upload a pre-recorded greeting, or record new business-hours and after-hours greetings from any phone through the BT Cloud Voice Voice Portal, once an administrator has set it up.
How do I set bank holiday opening hours on BT Cloud Voice?
Add the dates to a holiday schedule, which sends calls to the after-hours menu for those days. For an early closing, add a time schedule as well. Both are built at site level in the Business Portal.
Can the auto attendant send callers to voicemail?
Yes. A menu option can transfer callers to a user's voicemail box, as long as that user has a Connect or Collaborate pack with voicemail switched on.
Can I have different menus for different numbers?
Yes. You can add more than one Auto Attendant, each with its own greetings and menus. If you want several numbers to reach the same Auto Attendant instead, BT says alternate numbers need Auto Attendant plus.