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3.9 Creating an Automated Menu System
The Automatic Call Distribution (ACD) system allows you to set up automated
audio menus and the connections between them which will allow incoming phone
calls to be routed to the best available people to receive them. For example, if the
Acme Widget company sells its products in two different countries (the United
States and Mexico), then it would probably want to set up a customer service line
that can direct callers based on their language preference.
Before getting started, there are a few ACD-specific terms with which you should
familiarize yourself first:
• Agent - An agent is a callee, or the person who ultimately receives an incoming
call. Agents are grouped according to skills.
• Skill - A skill is a specific function that an agent performs. For example, in the
Acme Widget company's customer support department, some of the agents are
fluent in English while others are fluent in Spanish. Both English and Spanish
are labled as skills for the purpose of routing calls through the ACD system.
• Auto-Attendant (AA) - The auto attendant is the crux of the automated menu
system. It functions as a kind of automated switch board operator. When
properly configured, the X2002 auto-attendant can be the foundation of any
automatic menu system, replete with custom the audio recordings which the
caller hears when first dialing in and keypad-responsive menus which guide
them to their intended recipients.
For a full description of all available ACD and Auto-Attendant features on the
X2002, see
3.9.1 Menu Design and Call Routing
First, you want to design your call center's automated audio menu "map". Start by
asking yourself a few key questions, such as: How are calls going to be routed
once a person dials the phone number assigned to the system? What is the first
level of menus the caller encounters? After the call makes his selection, then what
is the second level of menus? After the second level of menus, are calls then sent
to an agent?
For the Acme Widget company, the company manger decides he wants to divide
the menus up by languages first (English and Spanish), and then skills (Order
Status, Technical Support, and Operator) for each language, each of which
contains its own set of agents.
X2002 User's Guide
Chapter 23 on page 347
and
Chapter 19 on page
Chapter 3 Tutorials
287, respectively.
89
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