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A call step is your agent ringing a contact. It is the step every campaign starts with, and almost all of the quality comes from one decision: which agent makes the call, and whether that agent’s instructions were written for outbound.

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Before you start

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Steps

1

Add the step

Open the campaign, go to Overview, add a step, and choose Phone call.
2

Select the agent

Use Select Agent to pick which agent places the calls. This decides everything the caller hears: the voice, the language, the knowledge, and what it can do on the call.
3

Set the timing and condition

For a first step, immediately after the contact is added. For a later call attempt, a delay of one to three days and a condition of Couldn’t be connected. See Choose when each step runs.
4

Check the agent opens like an outbound caller

This is the step people skip. Call the agent yourself and listen to how it opens. If it says “how can I help?”, it thinks somebody rang it, and every contact will be confused.An outbound opening does three things in one sentence: names your business, says why you are calling, and asks whether now is a good moment. See Example instructions.
5

Test on five contacts and listen to all five

See Test your agent yourself.

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You will know it worked when

You answer a test call and know who is calling and why before you have to ask, and your agent checks whether it is a good time before launching into anything.

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Should you use a separate agent for outbound?

Usually yes. The knowledge and the actions can be shared, but the instructions cannot, because the two calls are different conversations. Running one agent for both means one of the two is wrong. Copy the agent, rewrite the opening, and point the campaign at the copy.

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What your outbound agent must handle

Write these explicitly, because they come up on real campaign calls and an agent that has not been told handles them badly:
  • “Now is not a good time.” Offer to call back, and end the call. Do not push.
  • “Who is this? How did you get my number?” Say the business name and the reason plainly.
  • “Take me off your list.” Confirm you will, and end the call. Then make sure the campaign honours it. See Let people unsubscribe.
  • “I’m driving.” Offer to call back. Do not continue.
  • Voicemail. Decide whether to leave a message or hang up. See Voicemail.
  • A screened mobile. Newer handsets ask who is calling before they ring. See Get past call screening on mobiles.

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What else you can do here

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If it did not work

No calls are placed. The agent has no phone number attached, the plan does not allow outbound, or pacing and hours are holding them. See My campaign did not call. Your agent opens as if it were answering. Its instructions are inbound instructions. Rewrite the opening. This is the single most common campaign fault. People hang up in the first few seconds. Either the number is unfamiliar or the opening buries the business name. Lead with the name and use a local number. Calls reach voicemail every time. Try a different time of day before you change anything else, then check whether the handsets are screening you. The agent keeps talking after somebody says it is a bad time. Nobody told it to stop. Add that rule explicitly.

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FAQ

Add a Phone call step to a campaign, select the agent that should make the calls, and add contacts. The agent dials each contact in turn, inside your calling hours and daily cap.
Usually yes, because an outbound call has to open by saying who is calling and check it is a good moment. Copy your inbound agent, rewrite the opening, and point the campaign at the copy. Knowledge and actions can be shared.
The number attached to the agent making the calls. A local number for the area you are calling is answered noticeably more often than a distant one.
Yes. A campaign call is an ordinary call, so every action your agent has is available on it, including booking and transferring. See What are actions.
Whatever the agent’s Voicemail Behavior says: hang up, or leave a message you have written. The call still uses minutes because the line answered. See Voicemail.
Yes, with a second call step on a delay and a condition of Couldn’t be connected. Call at a different time of day, and cap the total with Max call attempts. See Stop calling a contact.