Intercom Phone lets you make outbound phone calls or Messenger voice/video calls straight from the Inbox and Contacts page.
Phone calls let you contact a customer on their saved number, while Messenger voice and video calls allow you to connect with customers directly through the Messenger, and enable screen sharing.
After you've set up Intercom Phone, teammates can make calls. Access to specific call routing options and features may vary depending on your plan and teammate permissions — for example, teammates on the Essential plan can only be assigned to workspace (all available teammates) rather than a specific team.
Note: Intercom Phone is not supported in the Intercom Conversations mobile app or Mobile SDK app. Phone calls can only be answered or made from the web-based Intercom inbox.
Outbound calls from the Inbox
Using the outbound dialer
Click on the Create new icon at the top of the inbox navigation menu and then select Phone call.
When the outbound dialer/dialpad opens, the country will be set to the phone line selected to call from. Use the dropdowns to select another line or country dialing code. Then you can either use the dialer keypad or your keyboard to enter a number to call. Note: there is no standalone dial pad for making calls independent of a contact — outbound calls must be made to a user or lead with a phone number saved to their profile.
Note: Outbound numbers must be entered in full E.164 format (e.g. +441234567890).
E.164 numbers start with a +, followed by the country code (1–3 digits) and the national number — up to 15 digits in total.
Using local dialing patterns or invalid country codes will cause calls to fail.
You can also switch to Contacts to search for an existing contact (by name or phone number).
This only displays results of existing contacts with a phone number.
When you make an outbound call it creates a new conversation with the contact.
If the phone number dialed matches the phone number of an existing contact, a conversation with the matching user is created.
If the phone number dialed doesn’t match the phone number of an existing contact, a conversation with a new lead is created.
You can add notes to the conversation while the call is ongoing.
An option to open the keypad during the call is available while on an active call (both inbound and outbound calls).
When you begin an outbound call, you’ll hear a short “chirp,” followed by ringing as the call connects to the customer.
If the call is answered, music plays on the teammate’s end while the “this message is being recorded” message plays for the customer
Once the message ends, the teammate and customer are connected
If the call goes to voicemail, the teammate hears a short tone and can leave a message after the beep
From a conversation
To make a call from a conversation, simply select the phone icon in the top right, then choose Phone call.
Note:
The number shown comes from the phone number saved to the user or lead’s profile in Contacts.
If no phone number is saved, the option to make a phone call will be unavailable and grayed out.
If the conversation is taking place via mobile, the Messenger call options will be grayed out as Messenger calls are not supported on mobile.
If you’ve activated and set up multiple phone numbers on your workspace, you can also select which number you’d like to make the call from.
See pricing for outbound phone calls.
From a contact
You can make an outbound phone call directly from the Contacts page by selecting the phone icon next to a contact who has an existing phone number. This will open the dialer in the Inbox with their phone number ready to call.
Scheduled calls
Outbound calling from the Inbox also enables your team to schedule calls with our calendar integrations like Calendly or Google Calendar and keep the whole conversation in one place.
Messenger voice/video calls and screen sharing
Messenger calls are web-based voice or video calls that are perfect for connecting to customers while they’re active in the Messenger (i.e. during a live chat). These calls utilize VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) technology, which allows voice communication to be transmitted over the internet rather than traditional phone lines.
To make a Messenger call from the Inbox, ensure the conversation is in the Messenger and the customer is online. Then click the phone icon in the top right and select from Messenger voice or video call.
Note:
Only teammates can initiate Messenger calls.
Messenger calls currently work on web, not mobile devices or mobile SDKs. If the customer is on a mobile device, the option to start a Messenger call with them will be grayed out.
Find information on Messenger call pricing.
Messenger voice call will initiate the call with only audio for the teammate and customer. Video can be turned on later if needed.
Messenger video call will initiate the call with audio and video for the teammate. The customer can turn on their video later if needed.
Use the call controls to start or stop video, adjust the video screen size, mute, or end call.
You’ll only see the customer on your screen if they enable video for the call on their end too.
Customer experience
When a teammate makes a Messenger call, the customer will receive a message in the Messenger to join the call.
Customers joining a Messenger call need to accept browser microphone/camera permission.
If recordings and transcripts are enabled, when a customer joins the call there’s a red indicator next to the time which indicates that the call is being recorded.
Note: If your customer is using a browser in Private or Incognito mode, the process will fail. The customer will need to use a regular browsing window.
Screen sharing
Once the customer has joined the call, they can share their current screen, window, or tab with the teammate using the screen icon in the call controls.
This will present their screen to the teammate in the inbox.
Note: The ability to screen share is only available on the customers end in the Messenger, it is not possible for teammates to screen share.
Traditional phone calls
Alternatively, customers can make or receive traditional phone calls to the phone numbers activated on your workspace.
Customer calling your workspace phone number (inbound call to Intercom). | Customer receiving a call from your workspace phone number (outbound call from Intercom). |
Conference calling
You can create 3-way calls from your inbox. Both the ability to add other teammates and external phone numbers are supported.
First, add a participant to a call. Click on the ellipsis icon in the Phone calling modal and select Add participant.
Select a saved user from the provided list 👇
Or type a new phone number from the dial pad.
Once a new number is selected, the modal will initiate a call to the new participant. When the additional participant joins the call, the modal will update to reflect that there are 3 participants on the call.
If the participant rejects the call, a voice message that the call has not been accepted will be played.
Important: The End the call button (or Hang up button) for an outbound call is only available once the call has been connected (customer answers) or has terminated automatically (e.g., customer declined or reached voicemail). You cannot cancel an outbound call while it is in the ringing/dialing phase.
Transfer outbound calls
Teammates can transfer an active outbound call to another teammate, an external phone number, or a workflow.
On outbound calls, we support three transfer types:
Transfer to another teammate
Transfer to an external phone number
Transfer to a workflow
Transfer outbound calls to a workflow
You can transfer an outbound call to a reusable workflow to apply automated actions like queuing, routing, or inbox assignment during a live call.
How it works:
During an active outbound call, click Transfer
Select Transfer to workflow
Choose a live phone reusable workflow
Confirm the transfer
Once transferred, the workflow takes control of the call and runs its configured steps.
Important:
Only live reusable workflows configured for the Phone channel are available.
When an outbound call is transferred to a workflow, the transferring teammate is automatically removed from the call.
Next, learn how to take calls from the Inbox. 😃
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