How to Use Dynamic Forward in Twilanswer

Dynamic Forward is a call action you can choose when you configure a call route. Instead of sending every call to one destination, it looks up the caller in Contacts and forwards the call to the teammate assigned to that contact.

How it works

When a call arrives on a route that uses Dynamic Forward:

1. Twilanswer looks up the caller’s number in your contacts.
2. If that contact is assigned to a user who has a forwarding number, the call is sent to that user’s forwarding device.
3. If the call cannot be resolved—the number is unknown, the contact has no assigned user, or the assigned user has no forwarding number—the call follows the backup you configure (Twilanswer voicemail, or a dedicated backup number such as a front office or founder line).

What you need before you start

Dynamic Forward needs three things in place:

1. Forwarding numbers for the people who should receive calls. See How to Add a Forwarding Number in Twilanswer.
2. Each teammate associated with a forwarding number on Settings > Users.
3. Contacts assigned to those users.

Associate a forwarding number with a teammate

1. Go to Settings > Users.
2. The Forwarding Number column shows which device is linked to each user.

1. Click Edit on a user.
2. Under Forwarding Number, choose the device they should receive calls on.
3. Click Save.

Assign contacts to teammates

On the Contacts page, set Assigned to when you add or edit a contact so inbound calls from that person can reach the right teammate. See How to Manage Contacts in Twilanswer.

Set up Dynamic Forward on a call route

1. Open the route and, under call action, choose Dynamic Forward. The product describes this as Forward to the contact's assigned user.
2. Configure the settings below.

Backup for unresolved calls

Choose what happens when Twilanswer cannot send the call to an assigned teammate (unknown number, unassigned contact, or assigned user with no forwarding number):

• Voicemail — Send those callers straight to Twilanswer voicemail.
• Backup forwarding destination — Forward them to a dedicated number, such as a front office or founder line.

Twilanswer voicemail fallback

Twilanswer voicemail fallback applies to every forwarded Dynamic Forward call, no matter which teammate (or backup number) the call was sent to.

When it is on, if the destination does not answer, the call comes back to Twilanswer voicemail instead of the personal voicemail on that user’s phone. You choose a recording as the greeting. This is the same idea as forward with voicemail fallback.

When it is off, an unanswered forward follows that phone’s normal behavior—typically the carrier voicemail on that line.

Caller ID

Dynamic Forward uses the same caller ID options as other forward actions:

• Original caller’s number — Useful when you want to see who is calling, especially if that number is already in your contacts.
• Your Twilio number (shown in the product as your system number) — Useful when you want an obvious signal that the call is coming through your work line.

Call approval

Call approval works the same way as on forward with voicemail fallback: when it is enabled, answering does not connect you immediately—you must press a key (for example 1) to accept the call.

We recommend leaving call approval enabled. On Dynamic Forward, Twilanswer reads the contact’s name aloud so the person answering knows who is calling before they connect.

Why we generally recommend call approval is covered in How to Forward Calls in Twilanswer: it helps Twilanswer reclaim the call for Twilanswer voicemail if you decline, instead of the caller landing in personal voicemail.

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Use How to Configure Call Routes for the full route workflow (hours, actions, notifications). For a fixed destination instead of per-contact routing, use How to Forward Calls in Twilanswer.