What Is Call Screening? Features, Best Practices, And More

A single spam call can waste your time when you can invest in something productive for your business.

You may also miss an important opportunity while receiving spam calls. This is why your business phone system requires Call screening software. 

Call screening allows you to know who is calling from the other side before picking up the call. This can prevent you from picking up spam calls and robocalls.

In this article, we will discuss call screening, how it works, what to look for in call screening software, its benefits, advantages and disadvantages, best practices, and how to set up call screening on your business phone system. 

What is Call screening?

Call screening is the process of identifying an incoming caller before you answer them. You can screen your calls, look at the caller’s ID profile, filter the calls, and more.

The most well-known step in the call screen process, caller identification, provides information about the caller, including name, phone number, location, and possible spam status. 

In the event that caller ID is unable to identify the caller, the call screening option on your VoIP app or device will automatically ask for the caller’s name and provide it to the agent.

Call screening is designed to assist you in filtering out unnecessary calls while giving priority to those that are important. 

When you are aware of who is calling before you answer the phone, you can choose whether to block, transfer, or send a caller to voicemail. 

In some business phone systems, routing features such as Interactive Voice Response(IVR) and Automatic Call Distribution(ACD) offer advanced call screening capabilities.

These features connect callers to an automated virtual attendant who asks for their name and the reason for their call before transferring them. 

How Call Screening Works?

Call screening works by initially employing the CNAM database or prompt to identify the incoming caller. After that the agent is presented with the caller’s details.

Additionally, call screening can start an automated response that announces the caller’s name, blocks the calls, or sends the call to voicemail. Here’s how the call screening works on a step-by-step process.

Receive the caller’s number:  The number of the incoming caller is sent to your phone system with the call.

Identify the caller’s name:  your carrier looks up the associated name for the incoming number in a CNAM database. Your carrier shows the corresponding name of the CNAM next to the number of it exists.

Prompt for the caller’s name: Your phone provider may just show the caller’s phone number if it is unable to determine their identity. If call screening is enabled, the phone system will play a message asking the caller for their name. Prior to initiating the call, the phone system says the caller’s name.

Identify the spam status: Your phone system can also look up the number in databases related to spam or robocalls to find out if it has been blocked or reported. 

Automated action: Based on the caller’s identity, you can configure automated call screening actions, such as rejecting the call, sending it to an IVR, replying via text, or connecting it to a live agent.

Forward to live agents: Caller ID is displayed on the phone, or the caller’s name is whispered aloud if the call reaches a live agent, who can then decide how to reply.

What To Look For in Call Screening Software?

Call screening software should include every essential feature, such as call blocking, call routing, and Caller ID.

If you are acquiring call screening software, you should also look for the features and functionalities that your business requires. 

1. Call blocking 

You can easily block the unwanted numbers that you feel are irritating and disturbing to your business with call screening software.

It allows you to decline robocalls automatically and spam callers from numbers found on the telemarketing blacklist and databases. 

You can even block all unknown calls, which prevents spam from reaching you. You will be able to reject all calls that do not provide caller ID  information.

Furthermore, you can create a list of blocked numbers and area codes. Besides blocking reported CNAM spam numbers, call call-blocking service also lets you create your own blocklist for callers. 

2. Call center analytics and reports

Call Analytics for cloud-based phone systems monitors relevant key performance indicators and metrics, such as the total number of incoming calls received by your call center and the number of banned calls.

Call logs and reports provide information about every blocked call. With these real-time capabilities, administrators can track caller patterns and the number of blocked calls.

If the system made a mistake, they can also investigate specific blocked calls. 

3. Visual voicemail and voicemail forwarding

Sending an incoming call to voicemail instead of fully blocking it can be useful when it is either automatically or even manually screened.

In this way, the caller’s identification can be verified by the agent or the system in case of an error. 

Visual voicemail provides a full transcription of voicemail audio so agents can briefly read the screened caller’s voicemail before deciding to reply.

Tools like Voicemail-to-email and Voicemail-to-text forward voicemail transcription and audio playback to the users’s email addresses or as an SMS.

4. Automatic SMS response

With certain VoIP phone systems, agents can program automated or pre-written texts to respond to missed calls. 

This allows agents to maintain communication with callers even if their calls are monitored or go to voicemail.

You can customize SMS responses based on the type of caller, such as first-time callers, VIP customers, and returning customers.

5. Automated attendant

This function sets up a virtual receptionist to take phone calls and directs the caller to the necessary extension.

The auto-attendant reduces robot calls since a human must select a menu item. If none of the options are chosen, the call is automatically ended.

6. Automatic callback

Using automated customer callbacks, incoming callers can select their preferred callback time, whether it’s later in the day or later in the workweek.

These callbacks not only make customers’ lives easier but also save a ton of time because they do not require a phone tag. 

7. Do Not Disturb

The “Do Not Disturb” call screening service automatically passes calls to voicemail or other agents for a predetermined amount of time when an agent does not want to accept incoming calls for a few hours but does not want to block calls completely.

8. Remote call forwarding

Agents can use remote call forwarding to transfer specific calls to a different phone line while they are at home or on the road. 

Benefits of Call Screening

Call screening offers lots of benefits of using call screening. Some of them are listed below. 

I. Improves productivity

With call screening, employees or agents can dedicate more time to attending to important calls and less time to handling undesirable calls. They might be better able to service your clients and experience less stress and frustration. 

Interruptions like spam calls certainly affect a worker’s productivity. According to research, it might take eight to twenty-five minutes for a person to recover mentally from an unexpected interruption at work. 

II. Cuts down on spam

Call screening can automatically stop spam calls, saving you time from having to discuss. Removing spam calls can also help you reach customers more quickly, as they can occupy important call queue spaces.

III. Saves time on both ends

Call screening, from the point of view of the client, enables them to be routed straight to their destination without the need for audio prompts or operators.

Based on call routing rules, they can be routed to the appropriate department as soon as the call screening service confirms their identification. 

You can set it up such that, for instance, a client of yours who frequently interacts with the finance department gets connected to them immediately each time they call, bypassing the need to talk with a receptionist initially.

Additionally, as a business, you save time by not having to answer calls that will eventually need to be forwarded.

Pros and Cons of Call Screening

Call screening is very advantageous for the business phone system. It helps businesses reduce spam calls and robocalls and avoid unwanted interruptions.

But, along with the advantages, call screening does have some drawbacks. Let’s check some of the pros of call screening. 

A. Pros

Many options: Let’s begin with the main benefit of call screening, which is the availability of call-handling alternatives. Call screening makes managing your calls easier at any time.

Spam: We are unable to avoid calls from credit card and loan companies. You will receive a lot of calls regardless of what you do. A spam feature is now operational. It is useful for spamming these unwanted calls.

Efficient: Call screening allows you to filter calls based on your preferences. This allows you to work productively and noise-free.

B. Cons

Manual error: You can only fully profit from call screening if you are aware of its capabilities and know how to utilize them. You cannot benefit from call screening if you lack the necessary expertise.

Practical information: You can track the number of calls you receive and useful information about the caller. But, this could work against you because someone else employing call screening technology will also receive access to your information.

Privacy: Many businesses record your calls for informational purposes, but this can also be detrimental.

How to Set Up Call Screening?

Here is how you can set up call screening. 

I. For VoIP System

Step 1: log into your VoIP desktop or phone app and navigate to the “settings” menu

Step 2: Ensure that “caller ID” is turned on

Step 3: Under “call blocking and spam prevention,” choose the types of calls that you want to block automatically and how you want to respond. Choose any of the following responses to unknown numbers, first-time callers, and callers with a high spam score. 

• Send directly to voicemail in a spam folder 
• Send to voicemail and notify the user about the transcription
• Ask new callers to state their names and announce it to the agent. 

II. For Mobile Phone 

Mobile devices automatically display the inbound caller ID, but you can turn on call screening to prompt for the caller’s name. 

Here’s a step-by-step process on how to turn on call screening on mobile phone 

• Navigate to the “settings” menu. 
• Click calls, then toggle screen calls.
• When receiving an inbound call, the phone records the caller’s response and announces this information before connecting the call.  

Call Screening Best Practices

Implement the best practices mentioned below when setting up your phone system to optimize call screening. 

1. Leverage Automatic Call Screening

Agents can use caller ID to screen and reject calls efficiently, but many phone systems also have automatic call screening rules that let you stop calls from numbers that fit specific criteria.

Agents save a significant amount of time and effort when using automatic call screening instead of manual call screening.

2. Keep IVR Menus Concise

Call routing can greatly benefit from IVR menus, but if users must wait through a long IVR menu, they can become irritated.

Make menu selections simple so that customers can quickly find and select their desired location.

3. Turn on Voicemail Notifications

Make sure that your phone system notifies agents when they receive a voicemail. In the event that a call is mistakenly screened, agents can call the contact again from the voicemail.

4. Manage your IVR call flow.

When using your IVR system’s call flow, aim for an equal distribution of inbound call volume among agents. This can avoid long wait periods. 

Final Words

Call screening software allows businesses to block unwanted numbers, create a list of blocked numbers and area codes, and create a blocklist for callers.

It works by using the CNAM database or prompt to identify the caller and can start an automated response that announces the VoIP caller’s name, blocks the calls, or sends the call to voicemail.

Lastly, Call screening helps businesses reduce the time spent answering calls, improve customer service, and improve overall productivity. 

FAQs

Can I customize my caller ID number?

Yes, you can customize your caller ID number. Most of the service providers offer customization options. 

Is call screening and call blocking the same thing?

Call screening is different from call blocking. With call screening, you check to see who is calling before you pick up. After that, you can take several actions, such as sending the call to voicemail, answering the phone, or blocking the number.

What are the best features of call screening? 

The best feature of call screening software depends upon your business needs and requirements. Call screening offers features such as call routing, caller name announcement, Voicemail screening, and call blocking. 

Does the caller know that I blocked their caller ID?

No, the caller does not know that you blocked their caller ID. But they can get slightly suspicious as you will not be receiving their caller ID, and the automatic message system will send them a message saying that the number is no longer in service.