This article discusses the basic principles of outbound calling in LeadDesk: what methods agents can use to call contacts, and what restrictions are in place to prevent excessive calling attempts to a number.
Call rounds
Each contact list in LeadDesk has an associated number of call attempts. This limits the number of times a particular number can be called by the system. The default is three, though this can be changed to reflect local legislation and sponsor preference.
Each time a call is placed to a number on that contact list, the number of available call attempts for that number decreases by one. When it reaches zero, LeadDesk will no longer attempt calls to that number, although agents could still call manually, make callbacks or call from their history.
Waiting Periods
After a call is placed to a number, a waiting period must elapse before it can be called again by the automatic calling methods. The number can still be called manually, via callback or using contact list dialing, but no further automatic attempts will be made until the waiting period ends.
Calling modes
When setting up each project, Admins select which calling methods their agents have access to when making outbound calls. The main two calling methods are Progressive and Preview.
In Admin, if you choose Agent selection, the agent will be able to switch between progressive and preview calling modes.
These are the calling modes that agents may be able to use, depending on how the Admin set up their campaign:
- Progressive. When an agent finishes one call, the next call is immediately placed and offered up to the agent.
- Preview. When an agent finishes one call, they are shown a preview of the contact card for the next call. It is up to the agent to click the call button when ready, after reviewing the information on the contact card.
- Manual. Agents can type a number to call. If this number does not already exist on the contact list, LeadDesk will create a new contact.
- Contact list. The agent can review the contact list associated with the campaign and pick which contact to call. If a contact is on a waiting period, they are highlighted in yellow in the Outbound interface (or have an info icon in Legacy Outbound). The agent can still call the contact from the contact list.
- History. Agents can review calls they made in a date range and can call one of the numbers again.
- Call back.
- B2B. Handles contacts a little differently, allowing agents to record multiple contacts for the same company. This lets agents select a company and then a contact to dial at that company.
- Simulated. Sometimes agents may need to spend time working on behalf of a contact without calling them. Simulated calls allow agents to track that time without making a call.
Further Reading
If you are an agent unsure of which interface you use, try this article.
If you are an Admin wanting more information on how to control the robot that places calls, check out these articles.