# Routing and call flow #### How does the call flow designer work? A call flow is a sequence of building blocks processed from top to bottom. Each call starts at the entry point (phone number) and goes through the building blocks in the configured order. The call flow designer determines what happens to an incoming call — from the greeting to forwarding to an agent. Opening the call flow designer: 1. Open the contact center channel. 2. Click **Routing** . Add building blocks: Click the +-symbol between two existing building blocks to insert a new building block, or click an existing building block and click “edit”. Available building blocks: | **Building block** | **Function** | | --------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | Phone number | Entry point, multiple phone numbers per channel possible, internal extension can optionally be assigned | | Anonymous filter | Filter or redirect anonymous calls | | Date filter | Control behavior on public holidays or special days | | Time filter / service hours | Control availability by day of week and time | | Greeting message | Play audio message | | Queue | Place callers in the queue | | Agent group / user | Distribute calls to agents | | Voicemail | Forward to voicemail | | AI agent (opt-in) | Integrate AI agents | #### How do I set up service hours? The time filter controls when the team is available and what happens to calls outside these times. To set up service hours: 1. Insert a time filter building block in the call flow designer. 2. Open the building block for configuration. 3. Define service hours by day of week (e.g. Mon–Fri, 08:00–18:00). 4. Define behavior within service hours (e.g. forwarding to queue). 5. Define behavior outside service hours (e.g. announcement + voicemail). Multiple time profiles: Up to 3 time profiles can be created per contact center channel. Holidays and special days: You can use the date filter building block to separately control public holidays or individual closing days. The date filter is typically placed before the time filter in the call flow. #### How do I configure the queue? To set up the queue: 1. Click the queue building block in the call flow designer. 2. Make settings: | Setting | Description | | --------------------- | -------------------------------------------------------- | | Hold music | Use default hold music or upload your own audio file | | Position announcement | Enable automatic announcement of the waiting position | | Maximum waiting time | Set a time limit; if exceeded, the fallback rule applies | Note: A fallback rule must be configured after the queue. #### How do I configure fallback rules? Fallback rules define what happens when no agent can take a call. * All agents absent or logged out: Immediate forwarding to an announcement, voicemail, or an alternative call flow Maximum waiting time exceeded: Automatic forwarding after a configurable waiting time has elapsed. Failure forwarding: Optional forwarding that can be enabled when all of the agents' devices are offline. #### How do I integrate an AI agent? An AI agent can automatically answer calls, respond to common requests, and forward callers to a human agent if needed. #### How do I set up forwarding from an IVR to a contact center channel? The IVR menu allows callers to reach the desired department by pressing a key. Prerequisite: The IVR menu is available as part of the sipgate PBX basic contract (plans L and XL) and must be linked to the contact center channel. Under “Products,” navigate to the desired IVR that should forward to a contact center channel. Under the desired key, select the contact center channel as the destination. Note: More than 3–4 selection options increase the abandonment rate. Keep the menu as short as possible. --- # Agent Instructions: Querying This Documentation If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question. Perform an HTTP GET request on the current page URL with the `ask` query parameter: ``` GET https://help.sipgate.de/contact-center/en/routing-und-callflow.md?ask= ``` The question should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language. The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation. Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.