Forwarding calls to AI correctly
One thing is particularly important so that your FlowLyne telephone assistant can greet callers personally, retrieve customer data or correctly assign callbacks:
➡️ The caller's telephone number must be retained when the call is forwarded.
In this article, we show you how to forward calls correctly to FlowLyne - and explain the two technical ways in which the caller's original number is transmitted: Network forwarding and CLI passthrough.
Why is the original number so important?
If you forward a call - e.g. to your FlowLyne AI - it may happen that your own number (e.g. that of your switchboard) is displayed instead of the caller's number. This has disadvantages:
The AI cannot greet the caller personally.
CRM systems do not automatically recognize the caller.
Recalls are more difficult to assign.
Option 1: Network forwarding (recommended for simple setups)
With network forwarding, calls are forwarded directly to your telephone provider's network - e.g. Telekom, Vodafone or Sipgate. The caller's original number is retained.
Forwarding is set up in the provider's customer portal, not on the phone itself.
Advantage: This variant is technically the cleanest and transmits the caller number reliably - no further configuration necessary.
Option 2: CLI passthrough (for cloud telephone systems)
If you use a cloud telephone system such as Placetel, 3CX, NFON, easybell or others, forwarding often takes place within the system.
To ensure that the original number is transmitted, you must activate CLI passthrough (also known as "CLIP no screening" or "Original CLI").
Pay attention to terms such as:
| Provider | Setting for original number transmission |
|---|---|
| Placetel | CLIP no screening |
| NFON | Original CLI |
| Sipgate | CLI passthrough |
| 3CX | Use original caller ID |
| easybell | Allow call number transfer |
| Telecom | Network-based call forwarding (via customer portal) |
| Vodafone | Activate network forwarding (via customer portal) |
When does the forwarding not work properly?
If network forwarding is not activated in your telephone system and CLI passthrough has not been set up, your own number will be transmitted instead of the number of the original caller when forwarding. In this case, the FlowLyne assistant does not recognize the caller correctly, cannot say a personal greeting and cannot retrieve any CRM data. It is therefore essential that you configure one of the two options correctly in order to exploit the full potential of your AI.