Auto Attendant / IVR Receptionist

Overview

An Auto Attendant (AA) is an automated greeting that prompts the caller with a list of options. An AA functions based on time frames. Most commonly, an AA can be configured to present the caller with one set of options during a "business hours" time frame and with a different set of options during a "default" time frame, which acts as a catch-all for calls outside of business hours.

Time Frames should be created before configuring an AA, as explained in this article: Time Frames.

This article explains how to configure an auto attendant (navigating the AA user, creating an introductory greeting and menu prompt, and utilizing the dial pad menu).

Warning
This section is critical in understanding where to edit an Auto Attendant. Not following these guidelines could cause a loss of AA functionality.
We highly recommends only editing an AA from the Auto Attendants page and never editing the AA System User's answering rules from the Users page.
If AA answering rules are necessary for your environment, then the solution is to create a Routing User who can be safely edited on the Users page.

It is best practice to edit an Auto Attendant from the Auto Attendant page in the Manager Portal. Each AA can be configured on this page with an intro greeting, a menu prompt, dial pad options, and multiple time frames.

Configure an Auto Attendant

Navigate to the Auto Attendant page in the Manager Portal. To add a new AA, click Add Attendant.

Fill out the information in the resulting Add an Auto Attendant modal. Click Add when finished.
- A name is a friendly name to distinguish one AA from another.
- Extension must be an unused number. If an existing extension is selected, there will be a warning dialog stating that the extension is already in use.
  - Extension range for AA is : 90000 - 90999
- Time Frame determines specific hours of certain days, or a span of days, that the AA will be active. For example, a pre-configured time frame could be Monday-Friday from 8AM-5PM (specific days and times) or maybe 1/1 - 2/1 (specific days). Time Frames are configured elsewhere. Read Time Frames for more information.
  - If you do not have a time frame already created, then select the default "all the time" option in the meantime.

Intro Greetings

The resulting screen is to modify the AA that you just created. This screen can also be found by modifying an existing AA.

Intro Greetings is the audio prompt that plays when a caller reaches this AA extension. It is an automated answering option that will provide callers with a greeting followed by some brief information. Click on the volume icon to modify it.

The Manage Greetings modal lists configured intro greetings. To create a new greeting, select from the available options (text-to-speech, upload, or record) and then select a time frame for when this intro should play.
1. Refer to Record a Greeting for detailed explanation on how to add your new greeting.

For example, users could configure one intro greeting to play during business hours and one greeting to play outside of business hours (You've reached us outside of our normal business hours...).

If there is no introductory greeting, then the caller will be directed straight to the menu prompt.

The next section when modifying or creating an AA is the Menu Prompt.

The caller will automatically skip directly to the menu prompt if there is no intro greeting.

The Menu Prompt describes the options that are available via the assigned numerical keys (e.g. For the directory, press 1. For Sales, press 2.)

Best practice is to configure the dial pad menu first; then write the script and record the menu prompt.

In the Dial Pad Menu, assign keys to choices by choosing a new application from the available choices.
- Fill out the information as prompted.
- After selecting an application, the option to "remove" that application is also available.
- After the dial pad menu has been configured, then record the menu prompt.

Here are the available application choices:

Dial Pad Menu Application	Description
User	When this key is pressed, send the caller to a specific user's extension.
Conference	When this key is pressed, send the caller to a specific conference number.
Call Queue	When this key is pressed, send the caller to a specific call queue. Choose whether an announcement is played or not.
Directory	When this key is pressed, the company directory will play. This is traditionally by pressing "1".
Voicemail	When this key is pressed, send the caller to a specific voicemail box.
Voicemail Management	When this key is pressed, send the caller to voicemail management. It will prompt the caller for their account number and voicemail pin.
External Number	When this key is pressed, send the caller to a specific external number.
Play Message	When this key is pressed, play a specific message and then choose what happens after (hang up or follow the path of another configured key).
Repeat Prompt	When this key is pressed, the menu prompt will replay.
Add Tier	If more than two tiers are needed, it is possible to chain two auto attendants together. This is a more advanced Auto Attendant configuration and if you need more assistance then please contact Client Services.