Short answer
Configure phone availability using regular hours, exceptions, holidays and a genuine closed-hours route. In Aircall and CloudTalk, confirm which rule takes priority for each number and use greetings that describe the service actually available.
Key verification: Test schedule boundaries and exception dates in the correct time zone.
Sources and limitationsConfigure the usual schedule first, then the date exceptions and finally the closing route. The phone system must know what to do at all times, including local holidays, vacations, and team breaks. A calendar without an outbound destination can send calls to an empty route.
The number's hours do not always coincide with those of the team that serves it. A landline in one city may be served from another time zone; What matters for the distribution is the coverage contracted and published.
Prepare an operational calendar
| Situation | Rule | Example Target |
|---|---|---|
| Usual day | Weekly opening window | Customer service team |
| Pause without coverage | Outside the open range | Mailbox with reopening message |
| Local holiday | Full date exception | Closing or royal guard message |
| Reduced hours | Exception with specific hours | Attention only during those hours |
| Vacation | Exceptional period and return review | Covering team or alternative channel |
Assign who reviews the calendar and who confirms coverage. A guard at the editor is of no use if no one has agreed to attend to it. Also set a review date to remove expired exceptions.
Aircall: separate regular hours and special dates
The Time Rule widget defines time slots and time zones; calls outside of them follow their alternate branch. Aircall explains these fields in their Time Rule guide . Expressly check the "At any other time" branch.
Special dates are managed with Date Rule. Your special dates guide details how to create them and link them to the number. The documented recommended flow places the date rule before the weekly rule, to evaluate the exception first. See joint configuration of schedules and holidays .
After saving, check if the flow requires publishing. A screen with the correct schedule may show an issue that is not yet active.
CloudTalk: Check the priority of each number
CloudTalk allows company hours and hours by number. The specific number replaces the global one. Exceptions for a date override the normal schedule for that day; They are not limited to subtracting a few hours. Its national calendar does not incorporate all regional or local holidays in Spain. Source: CloudTalk Schedules and Exceptions .
Therefore, review each number with its own rules. If you change the company to summer time, a number that has individual configuration can continue to be answered with another calendar.
Fictitious example: usual service is from 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. and one day there will only be coverage from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. Define and test that exception as a full day with reduced opening. Don't assume it will be added to regular hours.
Write greetings that describe the service available
You called [company]. Our opening hours are [days and hours, with area if necessary]. Today [date or reason] we have a special schedule. You can [leave a message or use the channel actually available].
Do not offer an immediate callback if the team returns several days later. A generic "we'll get back to you" message may continue to ring during vacations if it's not part of the correct branch.
Check that the dates and times published on the website match what the client hears. If there is an urgent channel, limit the route to the cases that that team can handle.
Test calendar limits
- A moment within a normal range.
- A moment just before opening and after closing.
- The pause between two slots of the same day.
- A reduced working day exception.
- A manually added local holiday.
- One number with individual time and another with global time.
Use simulation functions if the vendor offers them or prepare a handled exception in a test number. Avoid changing a production team's clock to test the schedule. Save the selected time zone and the result.
Coordinate business hours, on-call cover and advertising
Schedule a review before vacations and when shifts or locations change. Decide who will review the accumulated messages when you return; The temporary configuration must have a person responsible for monitoring it.
The phone system organizes the destination of incoming calls. If you need to also adjust when call-targeted ads are shown, follow the Google Ads scheduling guide . If there are already outstanding ones, use the Official source return procedure.
Sources and limitations
Documentary review: . Content type: Documentation-based procedure.
Sources describe terms and capabilities stated by their owners. Proposed protocols and fictional examples do not establish product tests performed by CallsIQ.
- Time Rule guidesupport.aircall.io
- special dates guidesupport.aircall.io
- joint configuration of schedules and holidayssupport.aircall.io
- Source: CloudTalk Schedules and Exceptionshelp.cloudtalk.io
Check current terms
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