Features / Business hours and after-hours
Ring during business hours. Stay quiet after.
Set when each line is open, and Onyx Phone only rings during those hours. After hours, callers hear your message and leave a voicemail. Each person on the team can also set their own alert hours, so the crew isn't woken by a 6 a.m. call.
Business hours for each line
Choose open hours for each day of the week, mark days closed, and pick the line's time zone. Hours can run past midnight for a late shift. Outside them, nothing rings: callers hear your after-hours message, then leave a voicemail with a transcript.
The after-hours message is yours to write, in the voice you pick, and can be turned off. Texts that arrive after hours still reach the inbox, just without alerts.
Alert hours for each person
Business hours are when the line is open. Alert hours are when each person wants to be rung. Everyone sets their own, on the website or in the Android and iPhone apps, and can use different hours for different lines, or be reachable at any hour on the emergency line.
If nobody on a line is available, the caller goes to voicemail rather than ringing out. Off the clock, voicemails and texts still arrive, quietly.
Common setups
- Office 8 to 5 on weekdays, closed weekends, after-hours message points to your website.
- An emergency line open around the clock, with each technician's alert hours set to their on-call days.
- A seasonal business that changes its hours in spring and fall.
Getting started
- Create a login and pick a plan. Checkout saves a card for the 7-day free trial, and nothing is charged until it ends.
- Confirm your business and its 911 address, and get a local number on the spot. Bringing your own number? You answer on a temporary one while it moves over, for free.
- Choose where calls ring, write what callers hear, invite your team, and register for texting. Then answer in the browser, the iPhone and Android apps, or a desk phone. How it works has the details.
Included on every plan
Starter is $17, Business is $29, Scale is $42 per user a month, or less billed yearly. The plan includes a business number for each user and unlimited calling and texting in the US and Canada. Every plan starts with a 7-day free trial, and moving your current number over is free.
Questions
What happens to calls outside business hours?
Nothing rings. Callers hear your after-hours message and can leave a voicemail, which is transcribed and emailed if you've set that up.
Can each person have different hours?
Yes. Alert hours are set per person, and per line if they like.
Does missed-call text-back work after hours?
Yes. A caller who reaches voicemail after hours can still get a text back, on lines that use it.
Related
Missed-call text-back
When nobody can answer, Onyx Phone texts the caller from your business number a couple of minutes later, so the job doesn't go to the next number they try.
Phone menu (IVR)
Press 1 for sales, 2 for service: a phone menu sends each caller to the right person, ring group, or voicemail. On every plan, Starter included.
Robocall screening
Callers press 1 to confirm they're a real person and ring through; robocalls go to voicemail, and nobody's phone rings. Every plan, switched on per line.