If you’re wrangling incoming calls for a team—whether that’s customer support, sales, or the catch-all “reception”—you know the pain of a poorly managed queue. Dropped calls, frustrated customers, stressed-out agents. It’s not pretty, and no amount of pep talks will fix it.
This guide is for anyone using Krispcall who wants a real-world, no-nonsense approach to setting up and running call queues that actually work. Skip the theory—let’s get your queue running smoother, with fewer headaches.
1. Start With Your Real Needs—Not the Default Settings
Krispcall has a decent set of queue features out of the box, but don’t just turn it on and hope for the best. Before you touch anything:
- Map out how you want calls to flow. Who should take which types of calls? Do you need different queues for sales and support? The fewer “catch-all” queues, the better.
- Figure out when you need live coverage. If you don’t have enough staff for 24/7, set clear expectations up front (with voicemail or callback offers).
- Decide who owns the queue. Someone needs to be responsible for monitoring and improving it. If everyone owns it, no one does.
Pro tip: Don’t overcomplicate it. Start with as few queues as possible. You can always split them later if needed.
2. Setting Up Call Queues in Krispcall
Let’s get practical. Here’s how to set up your first queue the right way.
- Create your queue.
- Go to your Krispcall dashboard, find the “Call Queues” section, and hit “Add Queue.”
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Name it something obvious (“Support – US,” not “Queue 1”).
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Assign agents.
- Add agents who actually handle this type of call. Don’t throw everyone in “just in case”—that leads to chaos and missed handoffs.
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If you have part-timers or folks who split roles, be clear about when they’re in the queue.
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Set up routing rules.
- Ring All: Good for small teams, but gets messy fast.
- Round Robin: Rotates calls evenly, avoids burnout.
- Least Idle/Longest Idle: Helps keep everyone engaged, but can be confusing if agents take breaks without logging out.
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Start simple. If you’re not sure, Round Robin works for most.
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Define queue limits and overflow.
- Set a max wait time and max callers in the queue. If things get overloaded, decide what should happen: voicemail, callback, or another group.
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Don’t let callers sit forever. If you wouldn’t wait 15 minutes, don’t make your customers.
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Set up hold music or messages.
- Use clear, honest messages. “We’re experiencing higher than normal call volumes” is fine, but don’t promise a wait time you can’t deliver.
- If you can, offer a callback option after a certain wait.
What to ignore: Don’t waste time customizing every tiny announcement or micromanaging ring tones. Focus on speed and clarity.
3. Monitor—Don’t Set and Forget
The biggest mistake? Setting up your queue and never looking at it again. Krispcall gives you live and historical data—use it.
- Watch live stats during busy hours. If calls are backing up, you’ll see it in real time.
- Track average wait times and abandonment rates. If people are hanging up before reaching an agent, that’s a red flag.
- Look for bottlenecks. Is one agent overloaded? Are certain times of day a mess? Adjust coverage or routing as needed.
Pro tip: Ask your agents what’s working (and what isn’t). The numbers tell you what’s happening; your team tells you why.
4. Train Agents on Queue Etiquette
Even the best system fails if people ignore it. Here’s what works:
- Log in/out properly. Make it a habit. If someone steps away and stays logged in, calls die in the queue.
- Don’t cherry-pick calls. If your routing lets agents skip tough calls, it’ll hurt morale and customer experience. Set clear rules.
- Handle wrap-up time smartly. Krispcall lets you configure post-call “wrap time.” Don’t make it too short—agents need to log notes—but too long slows things down.
What doesn’t work: Nagging people to “answer faster” without fixing process issues. If folks are drowning, it’s not a motivation problem—it’s a system problem.
5. Keep Your IVR (Auto-Attendant) Simple
It’s tempting to build a maze of options (“Press 9 to repeat these options in Esperanto!”). Resist.
- Limit to 2-3 choices. Sales, support, billing—that’s probably enough.
- Use plain language. “For sales, press 1.” No need for a scriptwriter.
- Test it yourself. Call in from a customer’s perspective; see how annoying it feels.
Pro tip: If you need more complex routing, consider if you’re solving a real problem or just adding friction.
6. Handle Out-of-Hours and Overflow Gracefully
People don’t mind waiting if they know what to expect. They do mind being dumped into voicemail without warning or having their call dropped.
- Set clear after-hours rules. Krispcall lets you schedule open/closed times for queues. Set these up and double-check them on holidays.
- Offer callbacks or at least honest voicemails. “Leave a message and we’ll call you back within one business day” is better than silence.
- Route overflow to a backup queue if you can. But don’t send calls to a team that can’t actually help.
What doesn’t work: Fake “your call is very important to us” messages if you never call back. Just be honest.
7. Review and Tweak Regularly
Don’t fall into the trap of building a Rube Goldberg machine and then hoping it runs forever.
- Set a calendar reminder to review queue stats monthly. Look for trends—did a new product launch spike calls? Is a certain queue always in trouble?
- Ask for customer feedback. One quick post-call survey can tell you more than a dozen dashboards.
- Experiment with small changes. Shorten messages, tweak routing, add or remove agents—then see what happens.
Pro tip: If you’re spending hours fiddling with settings for marginal gains, stop. Simple beats clever, every time.
Final Thoughts: Keep It Simple and Stay Flexible
Managing call queues in Krispcall isn’t about chasing perfection—it’s about reducing friction for everyone. Don’t get seduced by every feature or drown in analytics. Start with the basics, watch what works, and don’t be afraid to make changes if something’s broken.
Remember: your callers mostly want to talk to a real person, quickly, without feeling lost. If you can do that, you’re already ahead of most. Keep things simple, check your numbers, listen to your team, and iterate as you go. That’s really all there is to it.