Phone set up

[cc2022]

I just upgraded to zoom pro united and established ability to use zoom phone to make private calls. However, zoom was only able to give me a new number. I spoke with the phone team at zoom and they told me I would need to go to verizon. Verizon told me only zoom is able to do this. Zoom is able to port my verizon number onto zoom. but then I would lose that number with verizon.

has anyone tried to have the same number with verizon and zoom once you have already had a verizon number?

thanks for the help!

[BrandonS]

You can't have it both places, but maybe you are not fully understanding the capabilities of Zoom Phone.

If you want people/customers to call your existing VZ number and come into Zoom Phone you want to port it into Zoom away from VZ.  You could then have a new VZ number, but still receive calls on the phone via the app and/or call forwarding.

This is a typical way people separate business and personal while using one mobile phone.

Does that help at all?

[cc2022]

Thank you for your reply! I don't want two different places. I just want the same number in both regular service and Zoom. The phone team explained that this is possible to have the phone ring simultaneously so I can choose to answer on Zoom or on my regular phone. Maybe he didn't know what he was talking about? The purpose is that I have many clients who already have my current verizon number and I now want to make calls to those clients on a secure HIPAA compliant platform. I would hate to lose the phone number I have for all my business connections (who i dont need to use zoom with) etc. Are you saying this is not true what the Zoom phone team told me? That the ONLY  way to have that number is by porting it and receiving a totally new number on Verizon?

[FORE-Craig]

Hi,

I believe that I understand your goal with your last reply. Yes, it is possible to have multiple phones to ring simultaneously. The phone number that you want people to call into would have to be the one associated with Zoom account ultimately. 

It would work this way:

1. Your Zoom Phone account would be set up with the number that you want people to call into AKA Main Company Number in the Zoom Phone system. Let's call it 212-555-1212.
2. The Zoom Phone system is like a business PBX. In the web portal under Admin > Phone System Management > Auto Receptionists you have to have what is called an Auto Receptionist and set it to route the calls to a User or a Call Queue, etc. You would set yours up to route the calls to a User (that user is your extension in the Zoom Phone system - let's call it extension 101).
3. In the web portal under your Personal > Phone > Settings you have to specify what is called Call Handling. You would set it up as Simultaneous Ring on:
   • Zoom Applications (Zoom App on Mac/PC/Android/iPhone)
   • AND an External Phone Number (which would be the number assigned to your Verizon phone service - let's call it 212-777-1234)

When someone then would call 212-555-1212, the Zoom Phone system would:

1. route the call to your User extension 101 for Call Handling
2. because you selected Zoom Applications, it would ring in the Zoom app on whichever platforms your use as long as you were signed into the app, and not set to do not disturb, etc.
3. because you also selected an External Phone Number it would dial outside the system and ring 212-777-1234 simultaneously in the native phone app for whichever type of phone you are using.

If someone calls 212-777-1234, only the Verizon mobile phone would ring in the native phone app for whichever type of phone you are using.

Does that make sense?

I haven't tested this scenario personally, but you could test it out right now with the number that Zoom has assigned to you at the moment (pretending that it's the one you want people to ultimately call). 

I hope that helps!

Craig

[cc2022]

Thank you Craig. I will fiddle around with it. Sounds like it will almost be easier to just tell clients my new zoom number for when we use zoom:). I appreciate all this help though. You never know, this may work for my purposes too!

[FORE-Craig]

You're welcome!