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Call screening is the practice of identifying who is calling and why before connecting or acting on the call. A receptionist or AI asks the caller questions, checks the reason for the call, and then decides whether to transfer, take a message, or handle it directly.
Call screening protects people's time by filtering calls before they reach them. A receptionist might ask the caller's name, company, and the purpose of the call, then relay that to the intended recipient before transferring.
AI receptionists screen calls by asking configured questions and using the answers to route the call, take a message, or block obvious spam. This keeps interruptions down while making sure important calls still get through.
Effective screening balances filtering with courtesy, so genuine callers are not turned away and priority calls reach the right person quickly.
Screening evaluates each caller and decides how to handle them. Blocking simply prevents specific numbers from ringing through at all.
Related: Call Screening Questions, Call Routing, Spam Call, Warm Transfer