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Grasshopper voicemail texts for the person covering the phones

A Grasshopper voicemail text lets the person covering tonight hear an 8 p.m. message about a frozen pipe that burst from their own phone. Grasshopper can email each voicemail with the audio attached. Add your Welco address to that extension, and the text shows the caller, the extension and a link to play it.

Text me my Grasshopper voicemailsBook a demo

7-day free trial, 15 message creditsCard required for verificationNo charge for 7 daysEmail reminder before billing

  • No Grasshopper app needed to listen
  • About 10 minutes to set up
  • No per-user fees

Works by email with

  • Grasshopper

Published:

A call from (905) 555-0131 rings Extension 3; Grasshopper records a 0:41 voicemail and emails it with voicemail.wav attached. The email reaches Welco and the phone shows: “Welco: Grasshopper voicemail, ext 3, from (905) 555-0131, 0:41. Listen: welco.ai/v/G8pw2L Reply STOP to opt out.”

Animation: a long Grasshopper alert email is trimmed into one short text: "Welco: Grasshopper voicemail, ext 3, from (905) 555-0131, 0:41. Listen: welco.ai/v/G8pw2L Reply STOP to opt out."

What a small office gets after hours

  • The repair call, not the sales call

    Only the extension that matters becomes a text. Sales and general messages wait in email until morning.

  • Listen without the app

    The link plays the message in the phone's browser. Nobody needs a Grasshopper login on their own phone.

  • Cover shared by two people

    Weeknights can go to one person and weekends to another, each from their own cellphone.

What you need

Grasshopper suits small offices, and small offices rarely have someone at a desk at night. Welco's on-call voicemail alerts close that gap, and setup takes about 10 minutes.

Think of a property manager's repair line in the Golden Horseshoe, or a small IT shop's support extension.

  • Admin access to your Grasshopper account, so you can change an extension's voicemail emails.
  • A Welco account with your business verified. Start free if you don't have one.
  • Invites for the people who cover the phones. Each joins with their own cellphone and confirms with a YES text.

Send Grasshopper voicemail to a phone in 5 steps

Grasshopper sets voicemail emails per extension. Start with the one extension callers use when something can't wait.

  1. Find the address Grasshopper sends from

    Open a recent Grasshopper voicemail email and read the From line. Add that address to your Welco list of approved senders.

  2. Add your Welco address to the extension

    In Grasshopper, open the extension's voicemail notification settings. Add your Welco address next to the email that gets voicemails today. Leave the option on that attaches the audio file.

  3. Match on the extension number

    If several extensions email your Welco address, add an alert rule that looks for Extension: 3. Only that extension's messages become texts.

  4. Choose who covers and the hours

    Put the staff who joined on the rule. Set the hours the office is closed, so daytime messages stay in email only.

  5. Call in and leave a message

    From another phone, call your Grasshopper number, pick the extension and leave a short test. The text should name the extension and carry a listen link.

Cover the phones tonight without the office

Add one email to your Grasshopper extension and the right person hears the next message.

7-day free trial, 15 message creditsCard required for verificationNo charge for 7 daysEmail reminder before billing

Text me my Grasshopper voicemailsBook a demo

A late Grasshopper voicemail, before and after

Here is a Saturday message on a different extension. The email repeats the date and a settings footer. The text keeps what the person on call needs.

Alert email from voicemail@phone.example.com, subject “New Grasshopper Voicemail from (289) 555-0174”. Welco trims it to one text of 113 characters: “Welco: Repairs line (ext 7) voicemail from (289) 555-0174, 1:18. Listen: welco.ai/v/Rp4n7V Reply STOP to opt out.”

Text received: Welco: Repairs line (ext 7) voicemail from (289) 555-0174, 1:18. Listen: welco.ai/v/Rp4n7V Reply STOP to opt out.

Characters1991131 credit

Animation: the alert email "New Grasshopper Voicemail from (289) 555-0174" is trimmed into one text: "Welco: Repairs line (ext 7) voicemail from (289) 555-0174, 1:18. Listen: welco.ai/v/Rp4n7V Reply STOP to opt out."

A rule that trims long emails keeps the text to one message. The audio stays behind the link.

Which Grasshopper extension should text the on-call phone?

Pick the extension callers choose when something can't wait, such as Repairs or Service. Leave sales and general extensions on email, so a quote request never wakes anyone.

Your main greeting does the sorting for you. Ask callers with an urgent problem to press the repairs option, and the right messages reach the right phone.

  • One job per extension. A repairs extension that only takes repair calls makes every text worth reading.
  • A second crew, a second extension. Give snow clearing or IT its own extension and its own Welco rule.
  • Forwarding stays off. The main number keeps ringing the office, and no one's cell number is handed to callers.

Tips for Grasshopper voicemail texts

  • One sender, many companies

    Grasshopper sends voicemail emails for all of its customers from the same kind of address. Welco only acts on mail sent to your own Welco address by a sender you approved.

  • Weekends to one person, weeknights to another

    Make two after-hours voicemail windows on the same rule, each texting a different phone. Welco doesn't rotate people, so keep a shared note of who covers which nights.

  • Call back from the text

    The caller's number is in every text. A reply to the text goes by email to the address that sent it, so a call back is the faster answer. See how SMS replies reach email.

If no text arrives

The extension doesn't list your Welco address yet

What to do
Add it again and save the change in Grasshopper.

The From address changed

What to do
Check the Welco feed for a refused sender and approve the new one.

The text arrived without a link

What to do
Turn the audio attachment back on for that extension.

A phone is a landline or VoIP number

What to do
It can't receive texts. See why landlines miss alert texts.

Frequently asked questions

Does the person on call need the Grasshopper app?

No. The text arrives like any other text message, and the link plays the voicemail in the phone's web browser. The person doesn't need a Grasshopper login, the app or the Welco website.

Can I text only one Grasshopper extension?

Yes. Add your Welco address to that extension only. If more extensions email Welco later, an alert rule can match the extension number in the email and text just that one.

Will adding a Welco address change my Grasshopper voicemail emails?

No. Your current email keeps getting voicemails as before. The Welco address is one more place the same email goes, and Welco turns that copy into a text.

Why is there no listen link in my Grasshopper text?

Welco can only make a link when the email carries the audio file. Check that the extension still attaches the voicemail to its notification emails, then leave a new test message.

Can a Grasshopper voicemail text go to two staff members?

Yes. Invite both people, then put both on the rule. Each gets the same text with a separate link. A phone only starts getting texts after its owner replies YES, so ask both to join before the first night.

What do callers hear once Grasshopper voicemail texts are on?

Nothing new. They dial the same Grasshopper number, hear your greeting and leave a message as before. Only the copy of the voicemail email changes where it goes.

Does Welco sign in to my Grasshopper account?

No. Welco never logs in to Grasshopper and never touches your calls or numbers. It only reads the voicemail emails sent to your Welco address. You change the extension's email setting yourself, once.

What does it cost a small office to text Grasshopper voicemails?

Plans are based on message credits, not on how many people cover the phones. A short voicemail text with a link uses one credit per phone, and there is no setup fee. The 7-day trial includes 15 credits for a few test calls, and plans have no overage. See Welco plans and prices, all in US dollars.

Let tonight's Grasshopper messages find the person on call

One email address on one extension is all it takes.

Text me my Grasshopper voicemailsBook a demo

7-day free trial, 15 message creditsCard required for verificationNo charge for 7 daysEmail reminder before billing