Chapter 14: The Outbound Box
What is an OutBound Box?
The OutBound Box is a very powerful feature of your software. From an OutBound Box your system can dial out for various purposes, such as prospecting for new customers or automated surveying and data collection. In an OutBound Box you will indicate the phone numbers to be dialed, the days and times that outbound calls will take place, and the message that will be delivered.
The true power of the OutBound Box comes from the fact that once an outbound call is answered, the call recipient can be routed to any other type of box, such as an Access Box, Question Box, Fax Box, or Mail Box. For instance, you could set up an OutBound Box to deliver a short sales message, then send the call recipient to a Question Box where interested callers could be prompted to leave contact information if they would like more information about your product or service.
You may use an OutBound Box to prospect for new leads on the phone lines you designate as outbound lines, while conventional voicemail and fax activities continue simultaneously on your remaining lines. The OutBound Box utilizes an ASCII text file you create, which contains the telephone numbers you wish to have the OutBound Box dial.
The phone numbers are loaded into queue database files in the \stplus\db\queue subdirectory when you click on the 'start all' button. The interval at which the program checks the queue files for jobs to be done is determined by the outinterval=x setting in the \winnt\stplus.ini file. If your system is taking inbound calls as well, you may want to increase the interval to allow for callers to get access to your system. If you are only doing outbound dialing, you may be able to set the interval to 1 second. That will keep your lines busy all the time.
* Note - at the end of the outbound box field information are some example outbound applications.
**Note - The VFEdit voice file editing program can be extremely useful in creating professional sounding recordings. It will allow you to mix music in the background and eliminate any dead air at the beginning or end of your recordings. This means the called party will hear your message that much sooner after they have said "Hello".
For outbound broadcast faxing, you will also need to see the section on FaxTalker. You will need to put a text file or a TIFF/F file into a fax box, either by faxing it in or by manually loading the file onto your hard drive, then selecting it for the list in the fax box. That will be the document that gets faxed to the phone numbers in your source file. You will enter that fax box number in the field 'if fax use'.
Box Number
Just like all other boxes, the box number is a reference number between 0 and 999,999,999 (with a maximum of 100,000 boxes allowable on the system) that the system assigns when a new box is created. The reason for allowing such large box numbers is so that boxes can be numbered with seven-digit phone numbers, or even nine-digit Social Security numbers. When you use the New Box Icon to create a new box you can assign the new box any box number that is not already in use within your system.
Box Name
In this field enter a descriptive name that will help you locate this box in the future. You can search on information contained in this field using the Box Finder screen.
Client
Every box on the system is owned by a Client Box. If you are the system supervisor you will be the default Client, and your default Client number is 0. Each Client has a password which allows the Client to remotely access and modify boxes assigned to them. If you wish to assign a box to a different Client, double-click on the field where you enter the Client number and the Client Finder screen will appear. This window will display a list of the Clients currently defined on your system. Double-click the Client you would like assigned to this box.
Type of Call
Select here whether the system will be delivering a prerecorded voice message or a fax document to the phone numbers on the outbound call list.
Voice - The system will begin delivering your prerecorded voice message when the call recipient's voice is detected.
Fax - this assumes you are calling fax numbers and will automatically deliver the document(s) you have in a given fax box.
If Voice is Detected Goto
This field indicates the number of the box to which call recipients will be sent if a voice is detected.
If Fax is Detected Goto
This field indicates the number of the box that the call will be sent to if a fax machine connect tone is detected. This box designated here should be a fax box.
If Answering Machine
If the OutBound Box detects an answering machine it will wait until the answering machine recording ends, and then go to the box you define here.
There are several parameters that control the way your system handles answering machine detection. These can be found in the [VOICE] section of the STPLUS.INI file.
Select Source File
With the basic Voice Service Bureau program you can choose any plain ASCII text file containing phone numbers. If you have purchased the IVR module, you will have the option of choosing an ODBC compliant database file as a source file. See below under Sample Scenarios for IVR specifics.
A Source File is a text file which contains telephone numbers for the OutBound Box to dial. Click on the Browse button to bring up the standard Windows NT (tm) Open dialog box. Locate a Source File that you have created which contains the phone numbers to be dialed by the current OutBound Box. In the Technical submenu, which is accessed by clicking on the Technical button in the OutBound Box screen, you will tell the system which column to begin looking for numbers to dial. You will also need to enter the total length of the phone number strings by entering the length of your phone number strings in the String Length field.
Note: You can generate a list of phone numbers yourself (by area code, or by prefix) by clicking on the Utilities menu, number generator, then phone number generator.
Exclude File
An Exclude File is a text file which contains telephone numbers you do not want the current OutBound Box to dial. Click on the Browse button to bring up the standard Windows NT (tm) Open dialog box. Locate an Exclude File that you have created which contains the phone numbers which will not be dialed by the current OutBound Box, even if they are present in the Source File. Remember that the Source File and the Exclude File can be the same file if different Start Columns are indicated in the Technical submenu of the OutBound Box. An Exclude File would typically contain numbers such as to the Police or Fire Department, or any other numbers that you would never want dialed.
Log File
By default, the OutBound Box creates a log file named "RESULTS.DBF", which is saved in the current OutBound Box directory (look for the box number) within the Boxes directory on your hard drive. You may simply accept this default log file, or you may create a .dbf log file with a name of your choosing. To rename the log file, click on the Browse button. This will bring up a standard Windows NT (tm) Save As dialog box. Name the log file in the File Name field (the .dbf extension will be added to the name), and select the directory where you would like to save this log file using the right side of the Save As dialog box. Click on the OK button to save your new log file. You can use any program that reads database (.db or .dbf) format files to view or sort the information in the OutBound Box log file. When your calling job has completed, you can click on Utilities and run the Report Generator to create a text file showing how many no answers, busies, etc. were logged.
Start All
The Start All button will activate the OutBound Box. If you have created a schedule and the Use Schedule option is checked in the Schedule submenu, the OutBound box will use the schedule when making calls. If you haven't created a schedule or the Use Schedule option is not checked, the OutBound Box will begin its outbound calls immediately and will continue until all of the phone numbers in the Source File have been dialed.
Suspend
The Suspend button will pause the OutBound Box at any point in the Source File and retain information about where the OutBound Box left off, and also about calls that need to be retried.
Restart
The Restart button will cause the OutBound Box to resume where it last left off when the Suspend button has been used. If the End All button has been used, the Restart button will not be available and you would need to use the Start All button, which would call from the beginning of the source file again.
End All
The End All button will end any actions by the OutBound Box. If the End All button is used before the end of the Source File is reached, the OutBound Box will not retain information about where it left off in the Source File.
Schedule (submenu)
The Schedule button brings up the OutBound Notification window in which you schedule the dates and times you wish the current OutBound Box to be active. The available options are described in detail below.
Use Schedule
This check box allows you to activate and deactivate the schedule which has been established for the current OutBound Box. When this box is checked, the schedule defined in the OutBound Notification window will be in effect.
Important: If Use Schedule is not checked, the system will begin calling when you click on the Start button, and will not stop until the job is completed, regardless of the date and time settings in the Schedule window.
Start Date
Enter in this field the date you would like outbound calling from this OutBound Box to begin.
End Date
Enter in this field the date you would like outbound calling from this OutBound Box to end.
From - Until
In the From field enter the time of day you would like outbound calls to begin. In the Until field enter the time of day you would like outbound calls to end. Be aware that most localities have regulations pertaining to the hours that phone solicitations may be made. Outbound calls will take place only between the two times that you specify. Use 24-hour time to enter times. (For example, 2:00pm = 14:00.)
Days of the Week
Using the Days Of The Week check boxes, select the days on which you would like outbound calls to take place.
Lunch Period
The Lunch Period check box allows you to set a range of time for the system to take a break from its outbound dialing. You may use this option if you feel that many of your prospects will not be available during a certain time range. Enter the beginning time and the ending time for the lunch break in the fields provided. Use 24-hour time to enter times.
Technical (Submenu)
The Technical button brings up the OutBound Technical Information window. In this window you specify how you want the system to handle the various functions of the OutBound Box, which are described below.
No Answer Interval (Mins)
In this field enter the number of minutes the system will wait before retrying a phone number which was not answered on the previous attempt.
Busy Interval (Mins)
In this field enter the number of minutes the system will wait before retrying a phone number which was busy on the previous attempt.
Number of Retries
Enter the number of times the system should attempt to reach each phone number if the phone is either busy or there is no answer. Calls which are answered and then disconnected will not be retried.
Number of Rings
Enter the number of rings you would like the system to wait before assuming the outbound call will not be answered.
Start Column for Source File
Enter in this field the number of the column in the source file which contains the phone numbers the system will be dialing. If you are using an ASCII (plain text) file with phone numbers that begin in the left-most column, enter a 1 in this field. If the phone numbers you wish to dial begin at any other column number you will need to enter this number here. Columns are counted by counting the number of mono-spaced character spaces across your file from left-to-right to the column in which your phone numbers start.
Start Column for Exclude File
Enter in this field the number of the column in the source file which contains the phone numbers to be excluded from the outbound dialing list. If you are using an ASCII (plain text) file with phone numbers that begin in the left-most column, enter a 1 in this field. Columns are counted by counting the number of mono-spaced character spaces across your file from left-to-right to the column in which your phone numbers start.
String Length
This field contains the length of your phone number strings to be dialed. If you will be dialing seven-digit phone numbers in the format xxx-xxxx, your String Length will be eight (one column is used for the dash character).
Line Group
This field indicates the Line Group setting that is in effect for this OutBound Box. To select another Line Group setting, click on the down arrow and select another Line Group from the drop-down list. You can define the lines to be used in a Line Group by going to Line Groups, under the MAINTAIN menu, and modifying an existing Line Group or adding a new one.
After your calling job has completed, you can utilize the \stplus\report.exe program to create a text file with your calling results - number of no answers, busies, etc.
OUTBOUND DIALING - QUICK START - SAMPLE SCENARIOS
SCENARIO 1:
system makes a call, waits for an answer, delivers a message, hangs up.
1) create an access box with the message you want to deliver as the greeting, with default routing set to H for hang-up, error routing H for hang-up. Under tweaks, check full range, greeting only max loops 1 (or 2 if your message is VERY short)
2) create an outbound box, set type of call to voice and 'if voice go to' enter the access box number you created.
3) create a text file in DOS with a phone number you have control over entered 3 different times. then enter the name and path of the file in the source file field.
4) click on START in the outbound box to test
SCENARIO 2:
system makes a call, waits for answer, delivers a message, asks caller to enter a digit to leave a message if they can attend a meeting.
1) create a mailbox to hold the callers message record a greeting such as "Please state your name and whether or not you can attend". first action will be blank last action - only check 'take a message'.
*If you want to offer the caller the option to talk to a person by pressing a key, you can send that caller to a mailbox that has been set up to perform a transfer (see Chapter 13: The Mailbox).
2) create an access box with your initial SHORT message as the greeting. in your greeting say 'The church meeting has been changed to Thursday. Please press a 1 to leave us a message." Set the default routing to H for hang-up, error routing H for hang-up. In the main window on the bottom of the screen, click on the key 1 to highlight, then click modify send the key 1 to the mailbox you just made under tweaks, check full range, accept tones max loops 1 or 2
3) see step 2 in scenario 1
4) see step 3 in scenario 1
The above works well if you are not calling a tremendous amount of numbers and will not have a lot of responses to hear. If you are going to be calling a few hundred or thousand numbers, you may want to utilize the question box with its automatic text file. Also, all outbound calls are logged to the .dbf log file shown in the outbound box. Any dbf program can read this file. You could then perhaps extract the numbers that were busy, or no answer and try them again later. It is recommended that you put no more than 10,000 numbers in a source file, and if you are calling that many numbers, set the retries to 0, so you can get through the list as quickly as possible. If you are calling fewer numbers, you can have the program retry (under the technical button in the outbound box, although it will slow down the calling).
The general logic is: If you have a hundred people in your list that you MUST get in touch with, set your retries to 3-5. If you are just trying to get as many responses as quickly as possible (political poll, for example) set your retries to 0, and recall the busy/no answer numbers later.
In the stplus.ini file in the \winnt directory, you can lower the outinterval to 1, for fast outdialing.
In scenario 2, step 2, you can send the digit 1 to any type of box. For example if you want to ask people several questions, you can send the digit 1 to a question box you create.
If a question box is used, you can see on the screen (under messages, question box), and in a text file (if checked on the question box), the phone number that was dialed, along with the message that the called party left. The text file is also very effective if you simply want to 'poll' callers. For example: access box goes to question box question box has 1 question = 1 for yes 2 for no
You will end up with a file showing the phone number called, with either a 1 or 2 under it. You can total those calls (50 yes, 40 no) and you will know who answered yes and who answered no, if you would like to follow up.
SCENARIO 3: FAX BROADCAST
Be sure your fax board is loaded and you have the correct information in your \winnt\stplus.ini file according the Part III h: FaxTalker section.
Create a fax box with the setting you want. Under Maintain, Switch, double click on the line you want to call in on. Enter the fax box as the initial box. Go to your fax machine, enter your document and call the system. Press the key to send a fax. After the call, open the fax box and add the .tif file that was created in the \stplus\boxes\60 directory. Save. Press send on the fax box to have your document sent to you be sure it is ok.
Then, you can create a small text file with your fax machine number entered 3 times. Use that as your source file and run a test using an Outbound Box.
SAMPLE SCENARIO 4 - OUTBOUND USING IVR
With the IVR module, the program can access phone numbers that are listed in an Access database (.mdb file). That file must have been registered with ODBC and BDECFG (see Part III d: IVR Box Module for specific registration instructions).
You can create a database file with 2 fields. The first field can contain the phone number to be dialed and the second can contain the box number you want the program to go to upon answer. Choose that database file both as the source file. Create an IVR box choosing that same database file, with the call flow as follows:
step 1 - account outbound key - select phone number field (the program knows what number it dialed and uses that number to search this field for the correct record)
step 2 go to box - select your second field which contain the box you want played to the person who answers that call. In your Outbound Box, enter that IVR box number in the 'if voice go to' field.
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* Note - it is possible to utilize the 'start', 'suspend', 'restart', and/or 'end all' features remotely.
You would call into the system and enter the User Phantom box. When it asks for the mailbox
number, you would enter the outbound box number you wish to manipulate. When it asks for the
password, you enter the password of the CLIENT BOX that owns the outbound box, as the
outbound box has no password of its own. At that point the system default prompts will take over
and walk you through the possible operations.
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If your application is to keep in contact with a group of people, perhaps in an association, you may want to give each person a mailbox. This works well if you have up to a few hundred people who do not change often. You can then just create a mailbox for each person (or family) and have them as a member of a group box. You can simply leave a message in the group box, and all members of that group will get the message in their box. Then, if you have message notification set up, the system will call the mailbox owners and give them the option to hear the message you left for them, and they could have the option to respond. You could even let them use your system for voicemail.