Phone numbers and routing
Set up an Australian 04 virtual mobile number for team calls, two-way SMS and native MMS, or port the mobile number your clients already know.
Updated 5 September 2026
Seglo Phone gives the business an Australian 04 virtual mobile number for voice calls, two-way SMS and native two-way MMS. The number is shared by the team rather than tied to one person's handset. This page is where you add the number, choose who answers it, switch the AI receptionist on or off, and stop blocked callers getting through.
Open in app: Phone Numbers
A few things to know before you start. A dedicated number carries a monthly charge, and the exact rate for each available number is shown in the selection step when you add one. The calls and texts your team makes and sends on that number are included, and do not draw down your credit balance. Credit covers the reminders and notifications Seglo sends on your behalf, and the minutes your AI receptionist spends on a call. The receptionist's actual behaviour — its greeting, what it answers, when it hands off — lives in AI agent configuration; this page is only about the lines themselves and whether the AI picks up on each one.
Port your existing Australian mobile number
If you already have an Australian mobile number your clients know, you can ask Seglo to bring it across instead of taking a new 04 number. Your clients keep calling and messaging the same number, and voice, SMS and MMS move into Seglo Phone. Other number types are not supported.
Click Bring your own number (beside the Add Phone Number button on the Phone Numbers page) to open the port form.
What you'll need before you start:
- The phone number in full international format (e.g. +61 412 345 678)
- Your carrier account number — find it on a recent bill or in your carrier's online portal
- A PIN or account passcode (same place)
- The name the account is registered under
When you submit, Seglo checks that it is an Australian mobile number and that the carrier can transfer it. An eligible number can continue to the port request. If it is not eligible, the form stops before any charge and you can take a new Seglo 04 virtual mobile number instead.
If the check passes, submit the form. Seglo lodges the port order with the carrier immediately.
What happens while porting is in progress
Porting takes days, not minutes — the carrier controls the timeline. The number row shows a Port pending chip, then Porting once the carrier picks it up. During this time the number stays live at your current carrier so clients can still reach you.
When the port completes, the number becomes active for calls and messaging. The AI receptionist can answer its calls, while SMS and native MMS arrive in the shared team inbox without another messaging setup step.
If the port fails for any reason, the chip shows Port failed and a Retry button appears. Clicking Retry reopens the form prefilled with your number — correct the details and resubmit.
Porting timeline
An Australian mobile-number transfer typically takes 3–10 business days. There's no action required once the form is submitted; Seglo sends you an email when the status changes (see Email notifications below).
What changes when the number arrives
Once the port is complete:
- The Enable AI toggle on that row activates the AI receptionist on the ported number.
- Staff can send and receive SMS and native MMS picture messages through the shared inbox in the Seglo Phone app.
- Your old carrier line is released as part of the porting process; your clients' calls and texts now route through Seglo.
Get your first number answering calls
Open Phone Numbers in the left navigation. With no numbers yet you'll see "No phone numbers configured yet" and an Add Phone Number button; if you already have one, use Add Another Number at the bottom of the list. You need a permission level that includes settings access and a business location set up first. Every number Seglo Phone supplies is an Australian mobile-format number beginning with 04.
The setup panel walks four steps down the left: Select Number → Verification → AI Setup → Complete. Seglo finds an available 04 virtual mobile number and pre-selects one; tap Pick a different number to see the other available 04 numbers. Each number shows its monthly cost before you commit. Click Continue, complete the Australian identity check, and the panel connects the number to your AI receptionist. Tap Done and the number appears in your list.
Messaging is automatic. Voice, two-way SMS and native two-way MMS are set up on the same 04 virtual mobile number. There is no separate messaging add-on or forwarding step.
Clear the identity check your country requires
An Australian 04 virtual mobile number cannot go live until the required identity check is complete. The Verification step asks for a proof-of-address document, your business name and registration number (or your own name if you're registering as an individual), and a full address. A separate identity-verification link for ID and a selfie is then generated for the end user. Complete both parts before the number activates.
The number is purchased the moment you submit verification, not after approval — so a verified line shows as Pending while the check runs, then flips to Active once approved. If the documents fail to submit for any reason, the number is still reserved for you and Seglo's team is notified to finish the process by email; you can also reach them at support@seglo.ai. While a region-wide check is under review, a banner at the top of the page tells you you can't buy more of that number type until it's approved.
Switch the AI on or off for each number
Every active number carries its own Enable AI toggle. Switch it on and the row shows an AI Active badge — the receptionist now handles every call to that line. Switch it off and the number rings through to your team instead. This is per-number, so you can let the AI cover one location while another rings straight to staff.
If the toggle shows an Error badge instead of on/off, the connection to the receptionist couldn't be confirmed — hover for the reason and click Retry to reconnect. This is the first thing to check when you expect the AI to pick up but calls keep reaching your team: confirm the toggle is on and reads AI Active, not Error.
Read what each number's row is telling you
A row shows the formatted number, small icons for what it supports, when it was added, and a status badge. The icons mean the line carries voice calls, SMS, and/or MMS picture messages — hover any icon to confirm. The badge is one of three states: Active (live and usable), Pending (purchased, waiting on verification — with a Complete Verification button if it still needs your details), or In Review (your documents are in and being checked).
Finish a number that's stuck on Pending
If a number sits on Pending with a Complete Verification button, the identity step was never finished — click it to reopen the verification form and submit your documents. A number reading In Review needs nothing from you; it's waiting on approval. This is the usual reason a newly bought number never goes Active: the documents are still sitting unsubmitted behind that button.
Recover when AI setup didn't finish
Setting up the 04 virtual mobile number and connecting the AI are two separate steps. If the AI step doesn't complete, the panel says the number is reserved and offers Retry AI Setup or Configure Later. Choosing later doesn't lose the number. Your team can still use the Seglo Phone number, and you can switch the AI on later from its Enable AI toggle or AI agent configuration.
Block the callers you don't want
With at least one active number, a Call Blocking panel appears lower on the page. Turn on Block calls from blocked clients so anyone you've marked as blocked in their client profile hears a busy signal instead of reaching you or the AI. This setting doesn't save on its own — a Save Changes button floats at the bottom right; click it (or Reset to undo) to apply the change.
Stop paying for a line you no longer use
The trash icon on a row opens a Release Phone Number? confirmation. Releasing hands the number back to the carrier and stops the monthly charge — but it cannot be undone, and the number may later go to someone else, so only release a line you're truly done with. Every active number is a recurring monthly cost, so release idle ones rather than leaving them on your bill.
Email notifications for buy and port
Seglo emails the business owner at each stage of a buy or port. The page itself doesn't update automatically — refresh it manually to see the latest status.
When you buy a number:
| Situation | Email you receive |
|---|---|
| New Australian 04 virtual mobile number | Order submitted at purchase, then Number active once verification passes |
When you port a number:
| Stage | Email you receive |
|---|---|
| Port submitted | Port request received — confirms Seglo lodged the order |
| Port complete | Number ported successfully — the number is live in Seglo |
| Port failed | Port failed — includes a reason and a prompt to retry |
All emails go to the owner's registered address. There are no in-app alerts or push notifications for these events in the current version.
Tips
- A verified number is charged from the moment you submit documents, not when it's approved — it shows Pending in the meantime, but the monthly charge has started.
- Releasing is permanent. The number goes back to the carrier and can be reassigned; there's no getting it back.
- AI on the wrong line? The Enable AI toggle is per-number — an Active number with the toggle off rings your team, not the AI.
- Numbers are matched to your location, so set up a business location first or the search comes up empty.
- To see who's been calling, open Recent calls in the Front Desk menu, not this page.
- Porting takes days. Your number stays live at the current carrier the whole time — clients can still reach you. The port chip on the row updates automatically.
- Port failed? Use the Retry button — the form opens prefilled. Double-check the account number and PIN from your carrier bill before resubmitting.
- Voice, SMS and MMS are on the same number. A new Seglo Phone number is an Australian 04 virtual mobile number; no other number type is supplied.
- Status emails are the source of truth. The page doesn't refresh automatically — if you're waiting on a port or verification, check the email Seglo sent or manually reload the page.
Two-way SMS and native MMS with customers
Customers call, text and send picture messages to the same 04 virtual mobile number. SMS and MMS arrive in a shared team inbox in the Seglo Phone app, where any authorised staff member can continue the thread. Outbound replies show the business number, never the staff member's personal number.
Automated texts use your number too, when you have one
It's not just staff replies. A grooming business's ready for pickup text can send from its own Seglo Phone number. If the customer replies, it lands in the same shared thread as every other message from them. There's nothing extra to turn on for that conversation.
Send and receive MMS picture messages
In the Seglo Phone app, tap the attachment icon in a conversation and choose an image from the camera roll. The customer receives the picture as native MMS in their phone's Messages app. Seglo does not replace that picture with a viewer link.
Customers can send pictures back to the same 04 number. Inbound MMS appears in the shared team inbox against that customer, so the picture and the reply stay in one conversation rather than on one person's handset.
What's not supported: video messaging. SMS and MMS picture messages work in both directions.
What STOP, HELP, and START do
These are carrier-level compliance keywords. Any customer can text them at any time:
- STOP (also: UNSUBSCRIBE, CANCEL) — the customer opts out of SMS from your business. Outbound replies to that contact are blocked immediately. The thread in the app shows an Opted out marker so staff know not to try sending manually.
- HELP (also: INFO) — the customer gets an automatic reply with your business name and a short opt-out reminder. No staff action needed.
- START (also: UNSTOP) — the customer reverses a previous STOP. Outbound replies are unblocked.
These keywords are processed automatically; no staff action is required or possible. Opt-out is per customer per business number.
What the "opted out" marker means
When a thread shows Opted out, any attempt by staff to send a reply is blocked. This is a legal requirement under carrier regulations — it cannot be overridden from the app. If a customer re-texts START, the block lifts automatically and the marker clears.
Tips
- Staff don't need to do anything when a customer texts STOP. The system handles it.
- Opted-out threads are still visible. Staff can read the history but cannot reply until the customer sends START.
- The AI receptionist handles voice calls only. It does not read or reply to SMS — all SMS replies come from staff in the seglo-phone app.
Related
- AI agent configuration — set the greeting, what the AI answers, and when it hands off to your team.
- Recent calls — the call history for the numbers you add here.
- Credits — the balance that call and text usage draws from.
Related