Call routing, menus and hours
Should I use a ring group or a call queue?
Use a ring group when a handful of people share calls and a caller who is not answered can go to voicemail. Use a call queue when callers may arrive faster than you can answer and you want them held in order, told their place, and offered a callback. Small offices usually start with ring groups; support and sales teams with steady volume usually need a queue.
How a ring group works
A ring group is a list of extensions that ring together (simultaneous) or one after another (sequential, sometimes called a hunt group). The first person to pick up takes the call. If nobody answers within the ring time, the call goes to a fallback: voicemail, another group, or a cell phone.
Ring groups are simple and predictable. They suit a front desk with two or three people, a small sales team, or an office where everyone helps answer the main line.
- No hold music or position announcements; callers just hear ringing.
- A second caller while all members are busy usually goes straight to the fallback.
- Little to report on beyond answered and missed calls.
How a call queue works
A call queue places callers in line, plays music or announcements, and connects each caller to the next available agent using a distribution rule such as longest idle or round robin. Agents log in and out, so the queue only offers calls to people who are actually available.
Queues add features that matter when volume is steady: estimated wait announcements, a callback option that keeps the caller's place, overflow to another group after a set time, and reporting on wait times, abandoned calls and agent activity.
Choosing between them
- Fewer than five people and callers rarely wait: ring group.
- Callers sometimes hear busy or land in voicemail during peaks: queue with overflow.
- You need to know how long people wait and who answered: queue.
- Staff need to step away and stop receiving calls without changing settings: queue (agents log out).
- Mixed office: a ring group for the main line and a queue for support is a common combination.
You do not have to choose once. Many customers start with ring groups and move a department to a queue when call volume grows. A 3CTel specialist can make this change for you.
Related questions.
Can a ring group ring my cell phone too?
Yes. A mobile app user or an external cell number can be a member of a ring group. Keep in mind that a cell phone's own voicemail can pick up before your system does, so ring times need to be set with that in mind.
What is a hunt group?
A hunt group is an older name for a sequential ring group: the call tries extension A, then B, then C. Modern systems treat it as one ring group setting, so the terms are often used interchangeably.
Do queues cost more than ring groups?
Queue features are part of the Contact Centre capability set and are scoped during planning. Your quote lists exactly what is included, and nothing is billed before activation, so you can compare both options before deciding.
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