Caller ID

Caller ID works in two directions. Customers see your business number when you call them, and you see who’s calling you, with the name your team saved for them.

What customers see when you call

When you call from SimpleVox, the person you’re calling sees the number you chose in Call from, not your personal mobile. Pick the number that fits the job, so the customer recognizes it next time and can call it back. Texts work the same way: they come from the number you send them on.

When your call flow forwards a call to an outside phone, that phone also sees your SimpleVox number.

Phones that show caller names will show your number’s city and state unless you add a caller ID name.

Add a caller ID name

A caller ID name (sometimes called CNAM) is the business name shown on phones that display caller names. You add it in Settings → Trust Center → Caller ID name. There’s no charge.

Before you can add one, the Trust Center checks three things:

• Paid plan.
• Business tax ID. A registration without a tax ID (sole proprietor) can’t have caller ID names.
• Approved carrier registration. See A2P 10DLC registration.

Then, as the billing owner or an admin:

1. In Caller ID name, choose Add a name.

2. Type the name, up to 15 characters. Use letters, numbers, spaces, periods and commas, starting with a letter. Choose a name that clearly stands for your business.

3. Tick the numbers that should show it, then choose Add name.

Carriers review each name before it’s used, so it shows In review first, then Approved. A number’s General tab shows its caller ID name, or “City and state” if it doesn’t have one.

• You can have up to 10 names. Each number shows one name. Choosing a number for a different name moves it.
• To change which numbers use a name, open the name’s menu and choose Choose numbers.
• You can’t rename a name. Add a new one, move your numbers to it, then remove the old one. The new name needs its own review.
• Removing a name puts its numbers back to showing their city and state.

Approval doesn't guarantee the name shows

Whether a name appears is up to the carrier of the person you’re calling and their phone. Most US mobile carriers only show caller names to customers who have turned on a caller name feature, and a newly approved name can take a few days to reach carriers.

Calls that carriers trust

Once a business with a tax ID has an approved carrier registration, SimpleVox signs calls from your numbers with STIR/SHAKEN, so carriers can confirm the call really comes from your number. See Spam calls and spam labels.

Who’s calling you

When a call rings in the web app, the call card shows:

• The number they called, such as Office or Crew.
• Who it is: the contact’s name and number if they’re saved, with a View contact link. Otherwise you see their number.

In the inbox, conversations show the contact’s name too. For numbers you haven’t saved:

• “Maybe: Mary” means someone gave a name on an earlier call and SimpleVox picked it up. Anyone who can see that call can review it and create the contact. See Contacts.
• The phone number shows when there’s no saved contact or suggestion.
• Unknown caller means the caller hid their number.

If more than one contact shares a number, such as two people at the same company, you can choose who a conversation or a single call was with.

Contacts are shared with your whole team, so everyone sees the same name for the same customer.

Calls that look like spam are labelled Spam likely as they ring, so you can tell junk from a new customer before you answer. See Spam call protection.

Before you call back

Open the conversation or the contact to see your history with them before you call. If you’ve connected an AI tool, you can also ask “What’s the latest with Mary?” and the answer comes with links to the calls and texts it’s based on. See AI tools.