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Inbound Calls

Inbound calls are phone calls initiated by external parties to your Crew-managed phone numbers. This guide covers configuration, handling logic, and optimization.

How Inbound Calls Work

Phone Number Configuration

Assigning Numbers to Agents

Each phone number can be assigned to one or more agents:

Number Sources

Call Handling Flow

Pre-Call Processing

Before the agent speaks, Crew processes:
  1. Caller ID lookup — Identify known callers
  2. Business hours check — Route to appropriate agent
  3. Blocklist check — Filter blocked numbers
  4. Queue management — Handle concurrent call limits

Caller Identification

Match incoming numbers to known contacts:
When a known caller is identified:

Business Hours Routing

Configure different behavior based on time:

Concurrent Call Handling

Crew can handle multiple simultaneous calls:

Queue Behavior

When at capacity:

Call Quality Settings

Latency Optimization

Crew is optimized for sub-second response times:

Audio Quality

Call Events

Crew emits events throughout the call lifecycle:

Webhook Configuration

Call Recording

Recording laws vary by jurisdiction. Ensure compliance with local regulations.

Transcription

Real-time transcription is available for all calls:
Access transcripts via:
  • Dashboard call logs
  • API: GET /v1/calls/{call_id}/transcript
  • Webhooks: call.ended includes transcript

Error Handling

Connection Failures

If a call fails to connect:
  1. Retry connection (up to 3 attempts)
  2. Log error for debugging
  3. If persistent, route to fallback

Agent Failures

If the agent encounters an error mid-call:

Analytics

Track inbound call performance:

Best Practices

  • Test your numbers — Call your own numbers regularly to verify behavior
  • Monitor answer rates — High abandonment indicates issues
  • Optimize greetings — Keep initial greetings under 5 seconds
  • Handle silence — Configure appropriate silence detection
  • Log everything — Enable full logging for troubleshooting

Next Steps