Setup
Forward business calls without changing your number
Call forwarding keeps your public business number in place and sends selected calls to the receptionist. Use conditional forwarding when your phone should ring first; use always-forward when the receptionist should answer every call. Test from an outside phone before relying on it.
Choose what should forward
Conditional forwarding sends only busy, unanswered, or unavailable calls. It is the usual choice when the owner or team wants the first chance to answer. Always-forward sends every call directly to the receptionist and works well for a dedicated business line or a fully managed front desk.
After-hours-only forwarding is often configured in a business phone system’s schedule. Mobile carriers may require you to turn the rule on and off manually unless the phone itself or another service controls the schedule.
Mobile carriers and landlines
Carriers use short dial codes for forwarding, but the exact code and whether it supports no-answer, busy, or unconditional forwarding varies. Use your carrier’s current support instructions or account app rather than assuming one code works everywhere.
Enter the Nevermiss number exactly as provided, save the rule, then call the business line from a different phone. Let it ring long enough to trigger the condition and confirm that Ava answers in the correct business name.
Google Voice
Do not treat Google Voice like an ordinary carrier. Google’s current help page says forwarding a Google Voice number to an automated system is unsupported, so adding the Nevermiss number as a normal linked number is not a dependable integration path.
Google’s current plan matrix lists auto attendants for Voice Standard (Standalone), Voice Standard (Workspace add-on), and Voice Premier (Workspace add-on). Free Voice and both Starter editions do not include them. The documented Workspace auto-attendant route can transfer callers to another number; check the dedicated guide and the exact edition before changing the live business line.
RingCentral, Nextiva, Grasshopper, Zoom Phone, and other VoIP systems
Business phone systems usually ignore mobile-carrier dial codes. Sign in to the provider’s admin portal and look for Call Handling, Call Routing, Call Forwarding, or When Not Answered. Apply the rule to the main number, auto receptionist, user, queue, or extension that actually receives customer calls.
Forward to an external number and put the Nevermiss destination before provider voicemail in the sequence. If several users or a ring group answer first, make sure the timeout is long enough for the team to respond but short enough that the caller does not hang up.
- RingCentral: review user or main-number Call Handling
- Nextiva: look for Call Forward When No Answer
- Grasshopper: place Nevermiss in the forwarding order before voicemail
- Zoom Phone: review the user or auto-receptionist “when not answered” action
Test the complete path
Do not treat a saved setting as proof. Call from a number that is not part of the phone system. Test an answered call, an unanswered call, a busy call when possible, and an after-hours call if schedules are involved.
Confirm the original caller number reaches the receptionist, the correct business greeting plays, the call appears in the dashboard, and the owner receives the enabled alert. Then document how to turn forwarding off so the business always stays in control.
Try the actual conversation
Hear Ava before you build yours
Talk in your browser, interrupt, change direction, and see how the call feels. Eligible new accounts can then start a one-time seven-day trial.
Talk to AvaFrequently asked questions
Will customers see a new number?
No. They keep dialing your existing business number. Call forwarding changes where the call is answered, not the number you publish.
Can my phone ring before Ava answers?
Yes. Conditional no-answer forwarding lets your phone ring first, then sends the call to Ava after the configured timeout.
Why does the call still reach voicemail?
The original carrier or phone-system voicemail is probably answering before the forward. Review the forwarding timeout and voicemail sequence, then test again from an outside number.
Can I turn forwarding off?
Yes. Disable the same carrier code or phone-system rule. Keep the provider instructions and your original routing settings documented before making changes.