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Set up a call queue

Hold callers in an organised queue with hold music and position announcements while they wait for the next available agent, instead of ringing everyone at once.

Who this is for: admins

Before you start

  • Call queues distribute calls to agents who are logged in and available. If you don't see anyone answering once it's live, use the Agents tab (see Part 3 below) to check — and if needed, log — agents into the queue.

Steps

Part 1: Create the queue

  1. In the sidebar, under Communication, select Call Queues.
  2. Select New Queue in the top right of the page.
  3. On the Basic Settings tab, enter a Queue Name (for example, "Support Queue"). The Extension is auto-assigned for you in the 8000–8999 range. Add an optional Description, and leave Queue Enabled ticked.
  4. Switch to the Strategy tab and choose a Distribution Strategy — options include Ring All, Longest Idle, Round Robin, Random, Top Down, Least Talk Time, Fewest Calls, and Sequential. Each option shows a short description of how it picks the next agent.
  5. On the Caller Experience tab, tick Announce queue position to caller if you want callers to hear their place in the queue, and set how often (in seconds) that announcement repeats. You can also set a Caller Exit Key (a digit callers can press to leave the queue) and an Exit Action — Hang Up, Transfer, or Voicemail.
  6. On the Timing tab, set a Max Wait Time (0 for unlimited) and how long to wait if no agents are available before giving up.
  7. On the Audio tab, set the Music on Hold stream or file callers hear while waiting.
  8. Select Create Queue to save.

Part 2: Monitor and manage queues

  1. The Dashboard tab shows live queue activity — the Waiting Callers panel lists everyone currently on hold with their wait time and position, and the Agents panel shows who's logged in and their current status.
  2. The Management tab lists all your queues. Select a queue's row to expand it and see its settings and the agents assigned to each tier. Use the pencil icon to edit a queue's settings, or the trash icon to delete it.
  3. The Callbacks, Priority, and Overflow tabs let you review and manage callback requests, priority routing rules, and overflow behaviour for calls that wait too long, once these are configured for your queues.

Part 3: Log agents into a queue

  1. Select the Agents tab to see who's currently logged into your queues.
  2. Select Login Agent to open the login dialog. Enter the Agent ID / Extension and choose the Queue to log them into, then select Login Agent to confirm.
  3. Logging an agent in this way makes them available to take calls from that queue's tier straight away — you don't need to contact your provider to have someone assigned.

Screenshot

Screenshot of the Call Queues Dashboard tab showing the Waiting Callers panel and the Agents panel side by side, with the queue stat tiles above.

Ask Olivia

You can also ask Olivia, the in-portal assistant, to walk you through this.