Call Flow Example: Ring Group with Queue Failover

Overview

This guide shows you how to build a call flow that routes incoming calls to a ring group first, then automatically falls over to a queue if no one in the ring group answers. This pattern is ideal for small teams where you want all phones to ring simultaneously, with a queue as a safety net during busy periods.

Scenario

A company's sales team has 5 members. The desired behavior is:

1. All 5 phones ring simultaneously (ring group) for 20 seconds.
2. If no one answers, the caller is placed in the sales queue with hold music.
3. If the queue times out (e.g., after 120 seconds), the caller is forwarded to voicemail.

Prerequisites

• A Ring Group configured with the sales team members under Call Control > Ring Group.
• A Queue configured for the sales team under Call Control > Queue.
• A voicemail box for the sales team (group voicemail or individual).

Step 1. Create the call flow

1. Go to Call Flow Designer and click Add.
2. Enter a name (e.g., "Sales — Ring Group + Queue Failover").
3. Select Start from Scratch as the creation method.
4. Click Save, then click the edit icon to open the visual flow editor.

Step 2. Configure the Initial Action

1. Click the Initial Action node on the canvas.
2. Under Incoming Call from, select the DID number for the sales line.
3. Optionally, add a short welcome prompt (e.g., "Thank you for calling our sales team").

Step 3. Add a Transfer to the Ring Group

1. Drag a Transfer node onto the canvas and connect it to the Initial Action.
2. Set the destination to your Ring Group (e.g., "Sales Ring Group").
3. Set the ring timeout to 20 seconds.

Step 4. Add a Condition for unanswered calls

1. Drag a Condition node onto the canvas.
2. Connect the Timeout / No Answer output of the Transfer node to the Condition node.
3. Configure the condition to check the transfer result. If the call was not answered, route to the next step (queue).

Alternatively, you can use the Transfer node's failover output directly — if the ring group doesn't answer within the timeout, the call flow continues to the next connected node.

Step 5. Add a Transfer to the Queue

1. Drag another Transfer node onto the canvas.
2. Connect it to the failover output from Step 4.
3. Set the destination to your Queue (e.g., "Sales Queue").

Step 6. Add Voicemail as final failover

1. Drag a Prompt node onto the canvas and connect it to the queue's timeout/failover output.
2. Configure it with a message (e.g., "All our agents are currently busy. Please leave a message.").
3. Add a Transfer node after the prompt, set to the sales voicemail.

Step 7. Save and activate

1. Click Save.
2. Return to the call flow list and enable the call flow using the Status toggle.
3. Test by calling the sales number when all team members are busy.

Flow structure

Initial Action (sales number)
  └── Transfer (Sales Ring Group, 20s timeout)
        ├── Answered → Call connected
        └── No Answer / Timeout
              └── Transfer (Sales Queue)
                    ├── Answered → Call connected
                    └── Timeout
                          └── Prompt (busy message) → Transfer (Voicemail)

Variations

Add business hours check

Insert an Office Hours node before the ring group transfer. During business hours, route to the ring group + queue flow. After hours, play an after-hours message and forward directly to voicemail.

Announce queue position

If your queue is configured with position announcements, callers will automatically hear their queue position while waiting. Configure this in the queue settings under Call Control > Queue > Queue Settings.

VIP caller routing

Add a Condition node before the ring group to check the caller ID. If the caller is a VIP (matching a specific number or prefix), route them directly to a specific extension or a priority queue, bypassing the ring group.

Tips

• Ring timeout: Keep the ring group timeout between 15–25 seconds. Too short and callers hear a jarring transition; too long and they may hang up.
• Queue hold music: Upload custom hold music for the queue to match your brand. Configure under Call Control > Queue > Queue Settings > Music on Hold.
• Agent availability: Ensure queue agents are logged in. If all agents are logged out, the queue will immediately time out and trigger the failover.