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How to Set Up an Auto-Attendant for Your Business Phone System

A well-configured auto-attendant makes your business sound professional and routes callers efficiently. Here's how to set one up the right way.
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Hamed Mazrouei

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How to Set Up an Auto-Attendant for Your Business Phone System

An auto-attendant (also called a virtual receptionist or IVR) is the automated greeting and menu system that answers your calls and routes callers to the right department or person. Done well, it makes even a small business sound like a Fortune 500 company. Done poorly, it frustrates callers and costs you customers.

Best Practices for Auto-Attendant Scripts

  • Keep your greeting under 10 seconds — callers don’t want to wait
  • Offer no more than 5 menu options — more causes confusion
  • Put the most-used options first (typically “Sales” and “Support”)
  • Always include an option to reach a live person (even if after hours)
  • Update your greeting seasonally or for special hours
  • Test from a real phone — don’t just rely on the admin portal preview

Vivant includes professional auto-attendant setup as part of every business phone system deployment. Get started today.

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Hamed Mazrouei August 24, 2021
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