From the customer's point of view, virtual phone systems are indistinguishable from their brick and mortar counterparts
. Phones are answered promptly. The business can customize all of the messages, just as if an answering machine were physically located on a desk in the office. Callers are given a menu of choices to ensure that their calls are routed properly. A company can customize the "on hold" time, enabling the customer to listen to a variety of music or to information about the company while waiting for his call to be answered. Features such as call forwarding ensure that critical phone calls are never lost in the system. For calls that are routed into voice mail, subscribers can receive a text message to tell them that they have a new voice message. Best of all, a virtual phone system answers calls twenty-four hours each day.