If you'd like to customize the flow your callers go through in order to reach you, an IVR (or auto-attendant) is very helpful.
This guide will outline the key differences between the Standard and Advanced IVR.
What's possible with the Advanced IVR
With the Advanced IVR, you can route callers to the following 6 destinations:
1. Forward to an OpenPhone number — Forward calls to another OpenPhone number in your organization; it can be either a direct number of one of your colleagues or a shared phone number belonging to a group of people
2. Forward to an outside phone number — Forward calls to any US or Canadian phone number
3. Let the call through — Calls will come through to all members of the phone number. If you're the only person with access to the number, you'll receive calls. If you have a team sharing access to the number, everyone will receive calls
4. Send to a member of the phone number — If your colleague Ann is responsible for all billing questions, you can have the call go directly to her even if she doesn't have a dedicated OpenPhone number.
5. Send to voicemail — The callers will be able to listen to your voicemail and leave a message for you.
6. Play an audio — This is great if you want to have a dedicated option for letting callers know your business hours or business address/directions. You need to share information and that's it!
The other option you get with the Advanced IVR is you can decide what happens when the caller stays on the line without selecting any option.
You've got 7 options here:
1. Repeat the menu options
2. Forward to an OpenPhone number
3. Forward to an outside phone number
4. Let the call through
5. Send to a member of the phone number
6. Send to voicemail
7. Play an audio
What's possible with Basic IVR
With the Basic IVR, you can route callers to the following 3 destinations:
1. Forward to an OpenPhone number — Forward calls to another OpenPhone number in your organization; it can be either a direct number of one of your colleagues or a shared phone number belonging to a group of people
2. Forward to an outside phone number — Forward calls to any US or Canadian phone number
3. Let the call through — Calls will come through to all members of the phone number. If you're the only person with access to the number, you'll receive calls. If you have a team sharing access to the number, everyone will receive calls
With the standard IVR, if callers stay on the line without selecting any option, the menu options will be repeated. There are no other options to pick from.
What's the difference in pricing
Advanced IVR is a part of the Premium plan and is priced at $25/mo per user (when billed monthly)
Basic IVR is a part of the Standard plan and is priced at $17/mo per user (when billed monthly)
