If you work on a remote team and you’re tired of calls bouncing around aimlessly or your teammates getting burned out by a ringing phone at 3 a.m., this guide is for you. You’ll learn how to set up call routing in Aircall the right way, so customers don’t get lost in voicemail purgatory and your team actually gets some peace.
This isn’t a sales pitch or a fluffy overview. It’s a practical, step-by-step guide — with the honest bits most “guides” leave out.
Why Call Routing Matters For Remote Teams
Let’s be real: remote teams aren’t sitting in the same room, and they’re probably not even in the same time zone. If you just turn on default call routing, you’ll end up with:
- Calls going to people who are asleep or off the clock
- Missed calls piling up
- Team members getting cranky and customers getting annoyed
Good call routing means the right person gets the call, at the right time, and nobody’s overwhelmed — or left out.
Step 1: Map Out Your Team & Needs First
Before you touch Aircall, slow down and get clear on:
- Who’s on your team?
- Where are they located (time zones matter)?
- Who should answer calls — everyone, or just certain roles?
- What hours should calls be answered live?
- What happens after hours? Voicemail? On-call rotation? Something else?
Pro tip: Draw a simple chart or make a spreadsheet. If you skip this, you’ll end up backtracking — trust me.
Step 2: Set Up Your Aircall Account & Numbers
Assuming you’ve already signed up for Aircall, here’s what to check next:
- Numbers: Make sure you have all the phone numbers you need (support, sales, etc.). You can add numbers from within Aircall’s dashboard.
- Users: Invite everyone who’ll be taking calls. Set their names and emails correctly — this saves confusion later.
- Teams: Create teams in Aircall (e.g., “Support,” “Sales,” “On-Call”). This will make routing way easier.
What not to do: Don’t just dump everyone into one team. That’s chaos later.
Step 3: Set Time Zones & Working Hours
This is the step most people mess up. Aircall lets each user set their working hours and time zone. If you skip it:
- Calls will go to people who aren’t working
- Routing rules won’t respect people’s actual schedules
How to do it:
- Have each team member set their time zone and working hours in their Aircall profile.
- Double-check — people forget to update this after travel or daylight saving time.
- Set up “Business Hours” for each team or number in Aircall, reflecting your actual support or sales hours.
Pro tip: If your team covers multiple time zones, stagger working hours to avoid gaps. Or, use Aircall’s “follow the sun” routing (more on that below).
Step 4: Decide on Routing Logic
Here’s where things get interesting — and where you need to ignore the hype. Aircall offers several routing options:
- Simultaneous: Rings everyone at once. Fastest, but can be annoying on big teams.
- Sequential: Rings people in a set order. Good for small teams or on-call rotation.
- Round Robin: Distributes calls evenly. Best for spreading workload.
- IVR (Interactive Voice Response): “Press 1 for support, 2 for sales...” — handy, but don’t overcomplicate.
What works best?
- For small teams (5 or fewer): Simultaneous or sequential is fine.
- For larger or global teams: Round robin or IVR with team-specific routing is better.
- Avoid: “Everyone gets every call, all the time.” That’s how you burn people out.
How to set it up:
- In Aircall, go to the number or team you want to set up.
- Under “Call Distribution,” pick your routing method.
- If you use IVR, keep the menu short. Nobody wants to press 4, then 9, then 2.
Step 5: Build Schedules & After-Hours Routing
Remote teams rarely work 9-5 in one time zone. Aircall lets you set business hours for each number or team.
- During business hours: Route calls to the right team or agent.
- After hours: Send to voicemail, an on-call agent, or another number.
How to do it:
- In Aircall, set your business hours for each number.
- Choose what happens after hours (voicemail, forward to mobile, etc.).
- If you want true 24/7 support, set up a rotating on-call schedule.
Don’t: Just send everything to voicemail after hours unless you really want to miss out on customers.
Step 6: Handle Overflow & No-Answer Cases
Even with good routing, sometimes nobody picks up. Here’s what you can do:
- Overflow routing: If no one in Team A answers, send to Team B or a supervisor.
- Voicemail: Set up a clear, friendly voicemail message. Don’t use the robotic default.
- Callback request: Aircall can offer callers a callback option — use it if your team is often busy.
What to skip: Don’t set up infinite loops (“If not answered, go back to the start”). That just frustrates callers.
Step 7: Test Your Routing — Don’t Assume
This step gets skipped all the time. Run through the whole flow yourself:
- Call in during and after hours
- Try each menu option (if using IVR)
- Let a call ring out to see what happens
What you’ll catch: Wrong time zones, missing voicemails, or calls dropping into the void.
Fix anything confusing or broken before you go live.
Step 8: Train Your Team
Even the best routing system won’t help if your team ignores calls or doesn’t know what to do.
- Show everyone how Aircall works (answering, transferring, setting availability)
- Make sure they know how to update their status (“available,” “away,” etc.)
- Set expectations: who takes which calls, how to escalate, etc.
Step 9: Review Metrics & Tweak
Aircall gives you call analytics — use them. Look for:
- Missed calls by time of day
- Long wait times (means not enough coverage)
- Calls sent to voicemail
If something’s off, go back and adjust routing or schedules. Don’t just set it and forget it.
Honest Tips & What to Ignore
Let’s cut through the noise:
- Don’t overcomplicate. Fancy IVR menus and endless rules rarely help small teams.
- Time zones matter more than you think. One wrong setting, and your system falls apart.
- Regular check-ins help. Ask your team if the routing’s working for them.
- Don’t rely on Slack or email to alert people to calls. Use Aircall’s native notifications — they’re more reliable.
And if you’re a tiny team, don’t feel like you have to use every feature. Start simple, then add complexity as you grow.
Wrapping Up
Setting up call routing for a remote team in Aircall isn’t rocket science, but it does take a little planning. Map out your team, use smart routing rules, and test everything before you go live. Keep it simple at first — you can always tweak things as you go. The real win is when your team isn’t stressed and your customers aren’t left waiting. That’s the whole point.