After Hours Human Transfer Logic

Automatically Route Calls Based on Business Hours Using Voice AI

Objective

This guide shows you how to control when live transfers to human agents happen, based on your company’s defined business hours.

✅ Eliminate the need for multiple numbers, duplicated agents, or manual routing ✅ Automate after-hours coverage using GHL Voice AI ✅ Ensure live calls only reach humans during business hours

1. Why This Matters

Without this logic:

• Calls get routed to unavailable agents after hours

• Teams need to set up multiple numbers or duplicate workflows

• Customers may experience dead ends or long waits

With this setup:

✅ Voice AI automatically handles after-hours and weekend calls ✅ Appointments get booked instead of missed ✅ Live agent transfers only happen during staffed business hours ✅ Supports weekday, weekend, and holiday logic

2. Use Case Examples

Scenario | Voice AI Behavior

🚫 After Hours / Weekends No live transfer. AI books appointments or collects info.

✅ During Business Hours AI initiates a live transfer to an available agent.

📅 On Holidays (optional config) Same as after-hours. AI takes over.

3. Setup Overview

You will use:

• GHL’s Voice AI Agent Goals

• A custom schedule based on your working hours

• Conditional logic to toggle between human transfer and fallback AI action

4. Step-by-Step: Configure Business-Hour Based Human Transfers

Define Your Business Hours

• In your main prompt be very specific on your company hours.

Create the Voice AI Action for Human Transfer

• Open your Voice AI Assistant

• Under Agent Goals, add:

  • Add Action Type: Call Transfer

Step 1. - Copy and paste this in the CALL TRANSFER action:

WHEN THE CALLER ASK TO BE TRANSFERRED DURING BUSINESS HOURS AS OUTLINES IN THE HUMAN TRANSFER PROCEDURE IF TRANSFER RULES ARE FOLLOWED BY THE AGENT

Step 2. - Paste prompt in and save.

HUMAN TRANSFER PROCEDURE

#MANDATORY DO NOT SKIP: Before initiating any live human transfer or escalation, you MUST verify the current time and day. Today is {{current.date}}, and the time is {{current.time}}. Live human transfers are ONLY permitted during the following business hours:

#Days: Monday through Friday ONLY

#Transfer Only From: 8 AM to 5 PM Eastern Standard Time (EST) ONLY

#No transfers on weekends (Saturday/Sunday)

#No transfers on holidays

#When to transfer:

• When someone asks for a human or live agent

• Technical questions

• Complaints or specialist needed

REQUIRED ACTIONS OUTSIDE BUSINESS HOURS:

If a customer requests a live transfer or escalation outside of business hours, you must:

1. Politely inform the customer that live support is currently unavailable

2. Provide the business hours: "Our live support team is available Monday through Friday from 8 AM to 5 PM Eastern Time"

3. Offer alternative assistance: "I'd be happy to help you with your question right now, or you can contact us during business hours for live assistance"

4. If the matter is urgent, collect their contact information and assure them someone will reach out first thing during business hours

5. DO NOT activate the live transfer tool/trigger under any circumstances outside business hours

VERIFICATION PROCESS:

###Before any transfer, confirm:

• Current day is Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, or Friday -## Current time is between 8 AM and 5 PM EST

• If either condition is not met, DO NOT transfer

EXAMPLE RESPONSES FOR OUTSIDE HOURS:

"I understand you'd like to speak with someone from our team. Our live support specialists are available Monday through Friday from 8 AM to 5 PM Eastern Time. I'm here to help you right now, or if you prefer, someone from our team can contact you first thing during office hours. What would work best for you?"

"I'd love to connect you with our live support team, but they're currently unavailable. Our office hours are Monday through Friday, 8 AM to 5 PM Eastern Time. I can assist you with many questions right now, or we can arrange for someone to reach out to you during business hours. How would you like to proceed?"

This restriction overrides any other transfer triggers or escalation protocols. Business hours compliance is mandatory and non-negotiable.

5. Deployment Tips

📌 Screen Shot Included (Refer to attached screenshot for visual configuration of business hour logic)

📹 Watch the Walkthrough Video A step-by-step tutorial is available — please take a few minutes to watch before implementing to avoid missteps.

💡 Optional Enhancements:

• Add holiday-based logic using a calendar API or manual override

• Use tag-based routing to direct priority clients to a different team

6. Benefits of Business Hour Logic

✅ One assistant, no duplicate versions needed

✅ Keeps call flow professional 24/7

✅ Prevents transfers to agents who aren't available

✅ Ensures every caller is acknowledged and routed appropriately

7. Implementation Checklist

✅ Set your business hours in promt

✅ Create live transfer action (Voice AI → Agent Goals)

✅ Add conditional "During Business Hours" logic in promt

✅ Define fallback flow for after-hours

✅ Watch the video walkthrough before launch

✅ Test both open and closed scenarios via test calls

Next Steps 🚀

• Deploy this logic to all applicable Voice AI Assistants

• Train team leads on fallback behavior and appointment flow

• Monitor performance: Are after-hours calls being captured successfully?