Short answer
The group's overflow takes over. It can send the caller to voicemail (the default), the waiting queue, another ring group, a forward number, or hang up. Groups can chain up to five hops, such as Sales, then Support, then the after-hours line, and loops are refused when you save. Overflow also kicks in straight away when nobody in the group is free.
Every ring group needs a plan for the moment nobody picks up. That's its overflow.
When overflow happens
- Nobody is free: every member is on a call or offline, so overflow runs straight away.
- Nobody answers: every free member was rung and none picked up.
The five overflow actions
| Action | What the caller gets | Use it when |
|---|---|---|
| Voicemail (default) | The number's greeting, then a message | Small teams, or after hours |
| Queue | Hold music, their place in line, and optionally press 1 for a callback | Busy lines where callers will wait |
| Another ring group | The next group's strategy and members | Tiered support, or a backup team |
| Forward | The call goes to an outside number | An answering service or a mobile |
| Hang up | The call ends | Rarely. Lines that must not take messages. |
The queue in detail
When a ring group overflows to the queue, the caller:
- hears hold music, and their place in line about every minute,
- can press 1 to be called back instead of waiting, if callbacks are on for the number. That creates a callback task for the team,
- is offered to the group's members as they become free, longest-waiting caller first,
- goes to voicemail if they wait longer than the maximum wait.
If an agent is offered the caller and doesn't answer, the caller goes back in line at their old place.
Chaining groups
Point a group's overflow at another group to build a chain:
Sales (round robin) → Sales backup (simultaneous) → Support (longest idle) → voicemail
- Up to five hops per call.
- Loops are refused when you save, so A → B → A is impossible.
- Each group uses its own strategy and ring time.
What the caller hears
Each number has its own greeting (recorded audio or text-to-speech), used for voicemail at the end of any chain. Missed calls can also trigger an automatic text back, if you turn on missed-call text back.