Business Hours Routing
During scheduled hours, route visitors straight to live agents. No unnecessary AI deflection when your team is ready and waiting to help.
Time of Day Chat Routing
Smart Office Hours Logic
The Time of Day module checks the current time and day of the week, then routes visitors down the right path automatically. During business hours, connect them to live agents. After hours, switch seamlessly to AI chat or an offline message form — no manual toggling required.
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What Is the Time of Day Module?
The Time of Day module is an automatic schedule gate that sits inside your chat workflow and evaluates the current time against your defined business hours. When a visitor opens your chat widget, this module instantly checks whether your team is scheduled to be online and routes the conversation accordingly — all without any visible delay or manual intervention.
Most businesses operate on fixed schedules: Monday to Friday, 9 AM to 5 PM, or perhaps extended hours with evening coverage. Without a Time of Day module, you'd need to manually toggle your chat widget on and off, or worse, let visitors start conversations that go unanswered because agents have left for the day. This module eliminates that problem entirely. It reads your configured schedule and makes routing decisions in real time, every single time a chat begins.
The module supports multiple time windows per day, different schedules for different days of the week, and timezone-aware evaluation. You can set Monday through Thursday as 9:00–17:30, Friday as 9:00–16:00, and weekends as closed. Each scenario follows a distinct branch in your workflow, giving you full control over the visitor experience at every hour.
After-Hours Fallback
Outside business hours, switch to AI chat, offline message forms, or a knowledge base — so visitors always have somewhere to go.
Day-of-Week Schedules
Configure different hours for each day of the week. Shorter Fridays, weekend closures, or extended Wednesday shifts — it's all supported.
Timezone Aware
Set your business timezone once and the module handles the maths. Visitors from any timezone are routed based on your local operating hours.
How Time of Day Routing Fits Into a Workflow
The Time of Day module is typically placed near the beginning of your workflow — right after an initial greeting or data-collection step. Its job is to act as the first major routing decision, splitting the conversation into "open" and "closed" branches before the visitor invests time in a path that won't be available.
Placing it early prevents frustration. Imagine a visitor who fills out their name, email, and question, only to learn that no agents are available. With Time of Day at the top, they're directed to the correct experience from the start — a live agent during hours, or AI and offline capture after hours. This is far better than a dead-end handoff attempt.
Example: Accounting Firm — Hours-Based Routing
An accounting firm uses the Time of Day module to present a professional, always-available experience.
START
Time of Day
Mon–Fri 9–17?
Open
Closed
Step-by-Step Breakdown
- Welcome Message: A branded greeting fires the moment the widget opens, setting a professional tone for the firm.
- Time of Day Check: The module evaluates whether it's Monday–Friday between 09:00 and 17:00 in the firm's timezone.
- Open Branch: During business hours, visitors are asked for their name and query, then connected to the next available adviser.
- Closed Branch: After hours, a clear message explains when the team returns, followed by an offline message form to capture the enquiry for the next business day.
Best Practices & Tips
Time-based routing is straightforward, but small details make the difference between a professional experience and a frustrating one. Follow these guidelines to get the most from the module.
Add Buffer Time
Set your "open" window to start 10–15 minutes after agents actually log on. This gives your team time to settle in without visitors queuing before anyone is truly ready.
Never Dead-End After Hours
Always provide an alternative after-hours path. AI chat, an offline form, or a link to your FAQ — visitors who hit a dead end leave your site and may not come back.
Combine with Queue Gate
Being within business hours doesn't guarantee agents are free. Place a Queue Gate after the "open" branch to check real-time availability before attempting a handoff.
Tell Visitors Your Hours
In the after-hours branch, include your actual opening times in the message: "We're back Monday at 9 AM GMT." This sets clear expectations and builds trust.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I set different hours for each day of the week?
Yes. The Time of Day module lets you define unique open and close times for every day of the week. You can set shorter hours on Fridays, mark weekends as fully closed, or add extended evening hours on specific days — whatever matches your team's schedule.
What timezone does the module use?
The module uses the timezone you configure in your account settings. All evaluations are performed against that timezone, regardless of where the visitor is located. This means your schedule stays consistent with your team's local hours.
Can I use Time of Day together with a Holiday Override?
Absolutely. Place a Holiday Override module before the Time of Day check. If today is a holiday, the override routes visitors to a special path. If not, the workflow falls through to the Time of Day module for normal business-hours evaluation.
Does the module handle daylight saving time changes?
Yes. Because the module evaluates against your configured timezone (e.g., Europe/London or America/New_York), daylight saving adjustments are handled automatically. You do not need to update your schedule when clocks change.
Related Modules
The Time of Day module pairs naturally with these modules to build robust, schedule-aware chat workflows.
Automate Your Business Hours Routing Today
Set up time-based chat routing in minutes. Your visitors get the right experience at every hour — no manual toggling, no missed conversations.