Number voice modes — how each line answers
Every Ody number has a voice mode — the rule for how it answers — shown on the number's cube in Settings → Numbers; click the cube to open its settings and change the mode by turning features on and off rather than picking from a single dropdown.
The modes
- Rings in app — incoming calls ring your team's apps (everyone at once, or per the number's ring order). Voicemail if no one answers. This is the default.
- Follows the work schedule — the work schedule decides per call: AI receptionist, ring the team, or voicemail, based on your hours.
- Call flow (IVR) — the number answers with a multi-step flow you design: menus, a business-hours check, team ring, the AI assistant, voicemail boxes (see Set up a call flow).
- Phone menu (IVR) — the number answers with a single spoken menu and routes keypresses (see Phone menus). Call flows are this mode's more powerful successor.
- Voicemail — every call goes straight to voicemail.
- Forwarded — every call is sent to an outside number. Turn it on under How calls answer → Call forwarding in the number's settings — see Call forwarding.
How to switch modes
All from Settings → Numbers. Your numbers shows one cube per line — the number, how it answers, Local or Toll-free, and who it is assigned to. Click a cube and its Number settings open right below the grid, grouped into How calls answer (AI receptionist, Call flow, Phone menu, Call forwarding, Ring order), Voicemail & recording (Voicemail, Call recording), and Outbound identity (Caller ID name) — each row has a short description and a Configure button (or a toggle for the AI receptionist). Click the cube again, or the × in the panel, to close it.
- Put it on the schedule — under How calls answer, turn on AI receptionist (or use Use schedule in Settings → Work schedule). The label changes to "Follows the work schedule".
- Ring the team directly — turn AI receptionist off (or Remove from schedule). The label changes to "Rings in app".
- Answer with a call flow — open Call flow, create a flow from a preset, and click Publish & turn on. The label changes to "Call flow (IVR)". Turn off returns it to ringing the team.
- Answer with a menu — open Phone menu, build the menu, and click Turn on menu. The label changes to "Phone menu (IVR)". Turn off returns it to ringing the team.
Assigning a number to a teammate (the dropdown in its settings) doesn't change the mode — it narrows who rings when the mode is "Rings in app".
Texts are separate
Voice modes only decide who answers calls. Who answers a number's texts is a separate setting in the same panel — How texts answer — where you can pick an AI agent to reply automatically from your knowledge base, or leave it to your team. See Let your AI agent answer texts.
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Frequently asked questions
Where do I see a number's current mode?
In Settings → Numbers, on each number's cube — e.g. "Rings in app", "Follows the work schedule", or "Phone menu (IVR)". Click the cube to open the number's settings.
Can two numbers answer differently?
Yes — voice mode is per number. Your main line can use a phone menu while a direct line rings one teammate.