Call queues - the call centre feature, without the call centre
When more calls arrive than your team can answer, the worst sound a customer can hear is the engaged tone. A call queue fixes that: callers hold with music and announcements, keep their place in line, and are answered in order as soon as someone is free.
Queues used to mean a call centre - agents, headsets, a phone system in a cupboard. On ONSIM the queue lives in the network and the "agents" are your staff on ordinary mobiles, in the van, on site, or in the office.
How it works on ONSIM
Calls to your number arrive at the queue in the ONSIM network. If someone is free, the call goes straight through. If everyone is busy, the caller holds - hearing music and announcements rather than ringing into the void - and the network connects each waiting caller, in order, to the next available mobile on your Landline SIM account.
Because the queueing happens at network level, the phones answering it are just phones. Your team does not install an app, log into a portal or sit at a desk; a queued call is delivered as a normal mobile call to the handset already in their pocket. A two-person trade business gets the same hold-and-answer behaviour a bank gives its customers.
Queues also play well with the rest of the toolkit: put a virtual switchboard menu in front so callers queue for the right team, and use timed call routing so nobody is left holding after closing time.
What it costs
Call queueing is an optional paid add-on on Landline SIM accounts - it is not included in the base plan. The Landline SIM itself is £10/user/month + VAT with unlimited UK calls and SMS, and the queue add-on is priced when you set it up, based on your configuration. There is still no call centre licence, no per-agent software fee and no hardware - the number, the SIMs and the network do all of it. Request a quote for your setup.
Monthly rolling, no contract, cancel any time - so you can run a queue for a seasonal rush and scale back afterwards. If your call volume is modest, the included hunt group (free with 2+ users) may be all you need, without the add-on at all.
Call queue questions
What is a call queue?
A call queue holds callers in order when everyone is busy, playing music and announcements while they wait, then connects each caller to the next free person. It is how call centres avoid the engaged tone - and on ONSIM it works the same way, except the people answering are on ordinary mobiles via a Landline SIM.
Do I need a call centre or special equipment?
No - that is the point. The queue runs at network level on the ONSIM network, and queued calls are delivered as normal mobile calls to the phones your team already carries. No VoIP apps, no headsets wired to desks, no on-premise kit to maintain.
What do callers hear while they wait?
Music on hold and announcements, rather than an engaged tone or endless ringing. When someone becomes free, the caller at the front of the queue is connected. It is a far better experience than asking people to call back - and far fewer of them give up.
When is a queue better than a hunt group?
A hunt group is ideal when someone is usually free to answer. A queue earns its keep when calls arrive faster than people can pick up - lunchtime rushes, promotions, bad-weather days for trades. Many businesses use both: hunt group first, queue when all members are busy.
How much does call queueing cost?
Call queueing is an optional paid add-on on Landline SIM accounts (the base plan is £10/user/month + VAT with unlimited UK calls and SMS; the add-on is priced when you set it up - request a quote). Monthly rolling, cancel any time. Pair the queue with timed call routing so out-of-hours callers go to voicemail-to-email instead of holding.
Never play the engaged tone again
Order SIMs and set up your queue, or request a quote and we will help you plan it. Busy phones are a solved problem in plenty of sectors already.
This is one feature of the ONSIM network - browse the full feature set, or see it in context on Landline SIM.