Agents - Outbound
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      1. Onboarding Guide
      2. Agents - Outbound

      What methods can I use to call a contact?

      Progressive. Preview. Agent selection. Manual. Contact list. Simulated. Dialing. Calls.

      The calling methods you have available will depend on settings that your Admin defines for the projects you work on. They can include:

      • Progressive
      • Preview
      • Agent selection
      • Manual
      • Contact list
      • Simulated

      Progressive calling

      In progressive mode, when you finish a call, LeadDesk will immediately dial the next available number from the contact lists associated with the project you are working on.

      Starting and stopping progressive calling

      In progressive calling mode, to begin calling:

      1. Click the green Start button.



      To finish progressive calling, as the next number is about to be called:

      1. Click the red Stop button.



      Additionally, while in progressive mode, you can:

      • Click the Next contact button to stop calling the selected contact and move to the next one.
      • Click the Skip and remove button to stop calling the selected contact, finalise it, and move to the next one.
      • Click the Change number button to stop calling and update the phone number for the current contact. You can then choose to call the new number, or move to the next contact.

      Preview calling

      In preview calling mode, you will be able to review and even update the contact's contact card before beginning to call. Once you are ready to place the call:

      1. Click the green call button, .

      Additionally, while in preview mode, you can:

      • Click the Next contact button to move to the next contact.
      • Click the Skip and remove button to finalise the contact, and move to the next one.

      Agent selection

      Not a separate calling mode, but your Admin may set up projects such that you can choose whether you work in preview or progressive mode. If this option is available for you, when you want to switch:

      1. Click the drop-down option next to the Start button.
      2. Click to select your preferred calling method.

      Manual

      If enabled by your Admin the manual call method lets you type a phone number to call outside the contact list for your project.

      1. Click the Manual call button in the top right of the interface.
      2. Type the number you wish to call.
      3. Click the green Call button.

      Contact list

      If enabled, you can choose a contact directly from the contact lists associated with your project to call.

      1. At the top of the Outbound page, click the Contact List tab.
      2. If necessary, search for the contact to call.
      3. Click the call icon to the right of the table for that contact to call them.

      Contacts with a yellow background are on a waiting period, most likely due to a recent call attempt. You can still call those contacts from the list, but they will not be selected in progressive or preview mode until the waiting time has ended.


      You can filter the contact list view:

      1. Click the filter icon .
      2. Click to tick the filter options you want to use.

      The filter options are:

      • Show all - including finalized. Will include contacts that have been finalised, using an outcome that finalises a contact, or contacts that have been removed. Finalised contacts will appear in the table with a green highlight.
      • Show only contacts reserved to me. It is possible to reserve particular contacts in a contact list for certain agents. If there are any contacts reserved for you, they will display a padlock icon in the contact list view.

      Simulated calls

      If enabled by your Admin, simulated calls let you can record time spent dealing with a contact without calling them. This can be useful to track time spent on behalf of a client on administrative tasks.

      Simulated calls are available in:

      • Preview calling mode.
      • Manual contact dialog.
      • The Contact List tab.
      • The Callbacks tab.
      • The History page.

      To create a simulated call:

      1. Click the icon. (In the Contact List tab, click the icon, then click the Simulate call option).
      2. In most places you can simulate a call, the New call entry dialog will be displayed. Complete the Date, Time and Duration fields, then click Create call. Creating a simulated call in Preview calling skips this step.
      3. Once you have finished handling things for this contact, click the Close button to choose an outcome as normal.