This guide explains how to transfer calls in CloudTalk Phone, including warm and cold transfers, when to use them, and what happens if a transfer fails.
User Level:
Agent
Call transfers are a crucial feature in any customer service environment, allowing businesses to route calls to the most appropriate agent or department for quicker resolutions. By offering seamless transfers, companies can minimize wait times and enhance the overall service experience for their customers.
Types of Call Transfers
Warm Transfer
A warm transfer lets you speak privately with the next agent, group, or external contact before completing the transfer. This allows you to provide context and ensure a smooth handoff.Cold Transfer (with Safe Mode)
A cold transfer passes the call directly to the next agent, group, or external contact without a private conversation first. During a cold transfer, CloudTalk keeps the original agent connected until the transfer is completed or fails. The call is not released until the outcome is known, which helps prevent silent drops and ensures the agent stays informed. Cold transfers are best suited for straightforward scenarios where no additional context needs to be shared before handing off the call.
How to Transfer a Call With CloudTalk
Start or answer a call.
Once a call is ongoing, open the on-call actions menu at the bottom of the CloudTalk Phone app.
2. Click the Transfer icon.
You’ll see a menu of available contacts, divided into tabs:
Internal Contacts: teammates, agents, or groups in your company.
External Contacts: saved external numbers.
Internal contacts open by default, as they are the most common transfer destination.
Transfer to an Internal Contact (Agent or Group)
You can transfer a call to either an individual agent or a group from the Internal tab.
Open the Internal tab.
Select an group (1) or an agent (2) from the list.
Choose how to proceed:
Transfer now (cold transfer) to immediately pass the call
Talk first (warm transfer) to speak privately before completing the transfer
Transfer to an External Contact
You can also transfer a call to an external phone number, such as a customer, partner, or third-party service.
Open the External tab.
Select an existing external contact.
If the external contact has only one phone number, the transfer starts immediately.
If the contact has multiple phone numbers, CloudTalk will prompt you to choose which number to use before completing the transfer.
How Warm Transfers Work
A warm transfer lets you speak with another agent or group privately before deciding whether to pass the call to them.
When you start a warm transfer:
The caller is automatically placed on hold
You are connected to the selected agent or group
The screen clearly shows that you are in a private conversation, not yet transferring the call
During a Warm Transfer
While speaking with the other agent or group, you can choose to:
Transfer the call
This completes the transfer and connects the caller to the new agent or group.Go back to the caller
This ends the private conversation and returns you to the original call.Hang up the warm transfer
This disconnects the private conversation without affecting the caller.
At no point during a warm transfer is the caller disconnected unless you explicitly complete the transfer.
What Happens If a Transfer Fails
CloudTalk is designed to prevent silent call drops and keep both agents and callers informed if a transfer cannot be completed.
If an Internal Transfer Cannot Be Completed
A transfer may fail if the selected agent or group:
is unavailable
declines the call
does not answer
Safe Cold Transfer Failure
If a cold transfer fails:
The original agent remains on the call while the call is being transferred
The agent sees a clear "Transferring" status during this time
The call is not released until the transfer outcome is known
If the selected agent or group:
is unavailable
declines the call
does not answer
Then:
The original agent receives clear in-app feedback about the failed transfer
The agent stays connected with the caller and can decide what to do next
Warm Transfer Failure
Warm transfers behave differently:
If the next agent or group does not answer, the original agent stays connected with the caller
The agent can retry the transfer or continue the call
No bounce-back is needed because the call never leaves the original agent
Warm transfer behavior remains unchanged by these improvements.
To understand how transferred calls are displayed in reporting and analytics, check out our Call Log and Dashboard Overview guides
If you need further assistance or have any questions, you can contact our Support team. We are always here to help you!