Setup
Forwarding your business line to an AI receptionist
There are two ways to point your business at an AI receptionist. You can forward the number you already advertise, which keeps every sign, vehicle, business card and directory listing valid and changes nothing a customer sees. Or you can put a new number on your Google Business Profile and leave your original line alone, which keeps that original number free to be the human line the agent transfers callers to. Forwarding is usually right when you have signage everywhere and do not want to touch Google; a new number is usually right when live transfers to a person matter more.
We describe forwarding generically here rather than publishing carrier-specific instructions. Forwarding behaviour and dial codes vary by carrier, plan and line type, and we have not tested enough of them to publish a table that would be true for your provider.
Which of the two routes should you take?
The decision is almost always made by two things: how much of your number is already printed on physical objects, and whether you need callers transferred to a person mid-call.
| Forward your existing number | New number on your Google Business Profile | |
|---|---|---|
| What customers dial | The number they already have; nothing changes | The new number, wherever Google is how they found you |
| Signage, vehicles, print, business cards | All still correct | All still correct; they point at your original line |
| Your Google Business Profile | Untouched | Updated, which is the one change you are making |
| Where a live transfer goes | Needs a separate destination; the original line is committed to the agent | Straight back to your original number, which is now the human line |
| Directory and citation consistency | Perfect, by definition | Needs your other listings checked so they do not disagree with Google |
| Best when | Your number is on trucks, signs and a decade of paperwork | You want a person reachable mid-call without re-plumbing anything |
There is a third arrangement worth naming because it suits businesses running paid campaigns: a new number used only on one channel, so the calls that channel generates are answered by the agent and attributed cleanly, while everything else rings your desk as it always has. It is the cheapest way to test the line against real callers without touching anything you have already printed.
Does changing the number on Google hurt my local ranking?
The change itself is routine; the risk is inconsistency afterwards. A Google Business Profile carries real local weight, and what matters is that your name, address and phone number agree across the places Google can see them.
If you take the new-number route, the work is not updating Google; that takes two minutes. It is finding every other place your old number is published and deciding, deliberately, which of them should change and which should not. Directory listings, your website footer, your booking system's confirmation emails, industry association pages, review profiles.
The consistent arrangement is straightforward once you decide the roles: the new number is your public front door and goes wherever a stranger might find you, and the original number becomes the line staff and existing customers use, which the agent transfers to when a caller needs a person. Problems arise when a business updates Google and leaves eleven directories advertising a number that now behaves differently.
If you take the forwarding route none of this applies, which is a real part of why it is the more common choice. Nothing about your published presence changes at all; the number simply behaves differently when it is dialled.
One thing worth checking either way: your Google Business Profile's primary category is the strongest single local signal available to you, and it is frequently set wrong or left at whatever was chosen years ago. It has nothing to do with call forwarding, but it is the highest-value ten minutes available while you are already in there.
What kinds of forwarding are there?
Four, and every carrier implements them under its own names. Which one you want depends on whether the agent is replacing your front desk or standing behind it.
- Unconditional: everything forwardsEvery call goes to the agent, immediately. This is the setup for a business with no front desk, or one replacing a voicemail box entirely.
- On busy: forwards only when the line is engagedYour desk answers as normal; the second caller reaches the agent instead of a busy tone or voicemail. This is the overflow setup.
- On no answer: forwards after a set number of ringsThe desk gets first refusal, and anything unanswered after a few rings is picked up rather than rolling to voicemail. Usually paired with the one above.
- On unreachable: forwards when the line is unavailableCovers the power cut, the dropped connection and the phone that is switched off. Worth setting even when the other three are what you actually use.
What should you check with your own carrier?
We have not tested every Canadian carrier and will not publish a table pretending otherwise. These are the four questions worth asking your provider before a build, and they take one phone call.
- How many simultaneous calls will the line carry?This is the one that catches businesses out. The agent handles up to twenty at once; whether your line can deliver twenty to it depends on the line type and the plan, not on us. Ask specifically about concurrent call paths.
- Does forwarding change what you are billed?Some plans treat a forwarded leg as an outbound call. It is usually minor and it is occasionally not, and it is much better discovered before than on a bill.
- Which forwarding types does your plan actually support?All four above are standard in principle. Availability on a specific plan, particularly on mobile and on older business lines, is not guaranteed.
- What happens to your missed-call list?On some setups, forwarded calls stop appearing on the handset. That matters less with an agent (every call is logged with a transcript in your dashboard) but it is worth knowing before the change rather than noticing a week later.
AnswerAI connects two ways: forward the number already on your signage, or take a new number on your Google listing and keep the old one as the human line. We work out which one fits your business before anything is changed.
Bring your carrier and your Google listing to the first conversation and we will tell you which of the two routes fits before anything is set up.
Start free pilotQuestions about setting it up
Yes, on both routes. Forwarding keeps the number you advertise and simply changes what happens when it is dialled. The Google Business Profile route also keeps it; it just gives it a new job, as the line staff use and the agent transfers to, while a new number takes the public-facing role.
Only if you take the second route, and it is a real trade rather than a formality. Changing it means your Google listing points at the agent and your original line stays free for live transfers; not changing it means everything you have printed stays valid and transfers need a separate destination. Most businesses with vehicles and signage choose forwarding for exactly that reason.
Usually minutes, from your carrier's app or by dialling a code they provide. Get the code from your carrier rather than from a list online: they differ by carrier, plan and line type, and the wrong one wastes an afternoon. It is a single phone call, and we walk through it with you during setup.
The agent answers up to twenty simultaneously. How many your line can deliver to it is a property of your carrier plan rather than of the agent; ask your provider specifically about concurrent call paths, because it is the question most likely to produce a surprising answer on an older business line.
On some carrier setups, forwarded calls stop appearing in the handset's missed-call list. In practice this matters less than it sounds, because every call the agent takes is logged with a full transcript and recording in your own dashboard, which is more than a missed-call list ever gave you. It is still worth knowing in advance.
Two routes, one short conversation.
The pilot runs about 14 days with no call limit. We work out the forwarding or numbering arrangement with you before the build, so nothing about your published presence changes by accident.
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