Configure

Bring your own phone numbers

Keep the phone numbers your customers already know — including several toll-free lines — and have a Quincer AI persona answer them. Calls route by the number the caller actually dialed, so each line can map to its own persona even when they all share one connection to us.

How routing works

When a call reaches us we resolve it to a persona by the dialed number (DNIS). If a call is forwarded to us, the number the caller dialed is preserved (Twilio sends it as ForwardedFrom; SIP trunks pass a Diversion header) and we route on that first, falling back to the number the call actually arrived on. That means you can forward five different 1-800 numbers into a single connection and still send each one to a different persona — just register each number below.

Two ways to connect

Option A — Forward your numbers

Easiest, works with any carrier or PBX. In your phone provider, forward each number you want answered to the Quincer number we provision for you (or to a Twilio/Telnyx number on your own account). The original dialed number rides along, so we route each forwarded line to the right persona.

1. Register each of your numbers in the dashboard (see below).
2. In your carrier/PBX, forward those numbers to your Quincer number.
3. Call each number and confirm the right persona answers.

Option B — Bring your own carrier (SIP trunk)

For teams who own their telephony (Avaya, Cisco, Mitel, or any SIP trunk): point an outbound trunk at Twilio or Telnyx as a bring-your-own-carrier termination. The call arrives with your real number as the dialed number, so it routes directly. Add your trunk identifier when you register the number so calls are attributed to the right trunk.

Register a number

1. Open Phone numbers in the dashboard.
2. Enter the number your customers dial, in E.164 format (e.g. +18005551212).
3. Choose the persona that should answer it (or the widget default).
4. Pick the carrier the call arrives through (Twilio or Telnyx).
5. Optionally add a Carrier trunk ID — your BYO-carrier or SIP trunk identifier — for clean cost attribution.
6. Save, then forward the number (Option A) or trunk it (Option B).

Check that it's working

Two tools on the Phone numbers list help you confirm a number is set up correctly — so a customer's call isn't the first time you find out something's off:

• Check setup — for numbers on your own Twilio account, this reads the number's live configuration and verifies its inbound-voice webhook points at Quincer over HTTP POST, that the number is voice-capable, and that it exists in the connected account. It also checks that the Twilio account is active (not suspended or on a trial) and whether Twilio has actually received any calls to the number recently — so if a caller hears “the call cannot be completed as dialed” but Twilio has logged no calls, you'll know the call isn't reaching Twilio at all (a number-provisioning or account problem, not your webhook). If something's wrong it tells you exactly what to change.
• Last call received — each number shows when Quincer last received a call to it and whether we connected it or rejected it (and why — e.g. out of voice minutes, or voice not configured). If it says “No calls received yet” and you expect calls, your carrier almost certainly isn't pointed at Quincer — run Check setup.

Use your own Twilio / Telnyx account (voice + SMS)

To answer both calls and texts on a number you own, connect your carrier account and point its webhooks at Quincer. Unlike call-forwarding (which can't carry SMS), this runs voice and SMS on your own number end-to-end. In Integrations → Telephony → Connect your carrier account, the dashboard shows the exact values for the provider you pick; in short:

1. In your carrier console, set the number's Voice webhook to https://phone.quincer.com/carriers/<twilio|telnyx>/inbound.
2. Set the number's Messaging / inbound-SMS webhook to https://<your-app-domain>/api/sms/inbound?carrier=<twilio|telnyx>.
3. Paste your credentials into Connect your carrier account (Twilio: Account SID + Auth Token; Telnyx: API key + public key) — we use them to send replies from your number and to verify your webhooks.
4. Register the number under Map a number and pick its persona.
5. For US SMS, complete A2P 10DLC brand/campaign registration in your carrier account first, or texts won't deliver.

How SMS replies work

A persona answers texts with the same knowledge and workflows it uses on calls and chat. The number's mapped persona replies (or the widget default); the thread appears under Conversations. Two-way SMS is gated by the “Text things to callers” toggle on the Telephony settings. Replies are sent from the number that was texted. Incoming texts are always free; outbound texts (replies + booking links) draw from your voice plan's included SMS.

How SMS conversations open and close

SMS is more transactional than chat, so threads don’t linger “live” all day. An SMS conversation auto-closes after 2 hours of inactivity; a WhatsApp conversation stays open for 24 hours. A closed thread simply drops out of the live inbox — the next inbound text starts a fresh conversation, and you can always re-open the old one to follow up.

• Each (customer ↔ business-number) pair is its own thread. If a customer texts two of your numbers, those are two separate conversations — and a reply always goes back out the same number the customer texted. Assign a different persona per number on the Phone numbers page (see Register a number).
• The sender’s phone number is the caller identity. An inbound SMS shows the texter’s number in the inbox (in E.164 format), not “Anonymous Visitor”, so operators can tell threads apart at a glance.
• Operators can reply to a text. Open the conversation in Live chat, click Take over, and type — your reply is delivered to the customer as a text message from the number they reached you on.
• Re-open a closed thread to follow up later. A customer texts overnight, the AI handles it and the thread closes; in the morning a teammate opens it on the Conversations page and clicks Re-open & reply to respond. This works for closed SMS and WhatsApp threads. See Live chat.

Transfer a call to a human

When a caller asks to speak to a person — or presses 0 — the AI warm-transfers the live call to a real human and bridges the two together. No app required for the human; their phone simply rings.

The transfer is screened: the AI first asks the caller for their name (and email), then announces it to your teammate before connecting — “You have a call from {name}. Press 1 to accept, or hang up to decline.” Only an accepted call is bridged.

1. On a persona’s page, set “Phone handoff — transfer calls to”: pick a teammate, or enter a phone number directly. Leave it blank to only notify the team (no live transfer).
2. To route to a teammate, set that person’s phone number on the Team page. The persona dropdown shows who has a number set.

Troubleshooting

• "This number isn't in service." The dialed number isn't registered (or is disabled). Add it on the Phone numbers page and make sure it's enabled.
• The wrong persona answers a forwarded number. Your carrier may not be passing the original dialed number. Confirm forwarding preserves it, or have your SIP trunk send a Diversion header (or a custom X-Original-Number header) carrying the dialed number. As a fallback, forward each number to its own dedicated Quincer number 1:1.
• Need direct numbers instead of forwarding? We can also provision Twilio/Telnyx numbers for you — those answer with no extra setup.