The Callback appointment schedule window

To limit and distribute calls peaks by offering customers to set up phone appointments with the contact centre via IVR, as described in Basics about Callback appointment schedule , you use the Callback appointment schedule window, found in CallGuide Admin, under the Media | Outbound telephony | Callback Appointment schedule menu choice.

To adapt a callback appointment schedule to an organization you must know

• the complexity of the errands, in order to estimate how many minutes each appointment may last. This estimate is an important input for defining the length of the time slots the working day is divided into,
• the manning situation, to determine how many concurrent appointments can be handled per time slot,
• what is to be entered in the IVR by the calling person requesting an appointment. Is the caller allowed to change the first suggested appointment time and should the caller enter any kind of identification?
• Best practice for handling callback appointment schedules

Add a callback appointment schedule

To add a Callback appointment schedule, start with selecting the Organisation area in the top drop down menu.

Then add a descriptive name and a task type to the schedule, by doing one of the following, in the list area to the left:

• double click on the first available row,
• choose Add in the right click menu,
• press the keyboard's Insert.

The task type you select will be assigned to all callback appointments created for the appointment schedule. It is best practise to assign a unique task type to each appointment schedule. Doing so allows for unique phone numbers within each appointment schedule but duplicates between different appointment schedules. Note however that this behaviour requires the system parameter callbackDuplicatePolicy to be set to the value "Allow duplicates within the same task type".

Which schedules you need to see, and can see, is depending on what organisation areas you have access to.

For each weekday of the schedule you set:

1. Minutes per appointment
   How many minutes the average appointment may last, i.e. the length of each time slot.
2. Concurrent appointments
   How many concurrent appointments can be handled per time slot.

To set the time slots when callback appointment can be offered, select a time range for one or several days with your pointing device to open the Edit bookable time window. You can also select ranges with the arrow keys on the keyboard and then press Enter or Space to open the Edit bookable time window.

In the Edit bookable time window:

1. First choose whether you want the selected time period to be Bookable or Unbookable.
2. Then you select start and stop time in the From time, and To time time fields.
3. Tick (ü) the weekdays to be included in the schedule and click OK.

The times and weekdays you pick in the Edit bookable time window apply – regardless of the time range earlier selected in the schedule area.

The schedule area is divided into 30 minute intervals. If you move your mouse pointer over a block in the schedule, you see the exact range for that block and the amount of appointments allowed.

If you set up a schedule with many short intervals you might need to adjust the amount of minutes per appointment accordingly.

Before you close and save your schedule with OK, you might want to change how the IVR interacts with the person requesting callback.

Options to let a caller change suggested time

• None
  The caller can only accept the suggested time, or hang up to discontinue the booking.
• Request earlier time
  The caller can ask for an earlier time, accept the first suggested time, or hang up.
• Request later time
  The caller can ask for a later time, accept the first suggested time, or hang up.
• Request earlier or later time
  The caller can choose between asking for suggestions of both earlier or later time, choose to accept the first suggested time, or hang up.
• Enter arbitrary time
  The caller can propose any time within the bookable interval. The IVR will then suggest the closest available time. Tick the Read out interval check-box to make the IVR read out the bookable time interval to the caller.
  

Decide if and how the caller should be identified

• None
  The IVR dialogue will not ask for any identification.
• 10 digit social security number
  The caller is asked to enter a Swedish social security number, without century, YYMMDDNNNN.
• 12 digit social security number
  The caller is asked to enter a Swedish social security number, including century, YYYYMMDDNNNN.
• Arbitrary customer ID
  The IVR asks the caller for an ID number, for example a customer number, PIN code or booking number.

Exception dates, where the schedule differs

For days with other working hours than the regular schedule, or days with e.g. less staff available, you can in beforehand, create an Exception date. The configuration, made in the right hand side of the Callback appointment schedule window, is done in the same way as for the regular schedule described above. The only difference is that you start by choosing a date for the exception.

It is always possible to create exceptions for future days, and to change the weekly schedule at any time. However, changing the weekly schedule for the day booking is in progress for - if this day already has bookings - creates an automatic exception for this day in order to keep the schedule intact as it was prior to the change.

Stop a schedule temporarily

In case of unexpected changes you can stop a callback appointment schedule to prevent new bookings, and activate it again when e.g. the staff situation is sorted out.

The relation between opening hours in the IVR and bookable times

Setting correct opening hours for the counselling menu choice in the IVR (leading to booking of a callback appointment) is a prerequisite for the function to work properly.

For example, the counselling menu choice in the IVR may be configured to be open between 08.00 and 10.00 on weekdays and the bookable time slots may be configured between 13.00 and 16.00 on weekdays. In this example, customers can call the IVR between 08.00 and 10.00 to book an appointment among time slots still free between 13.00 and 16.00.

If however, the menu choice would be open between 08.00 and 15.00, a customer calling 14.00 to book an appointment would only be able to book an appointment among time slots still free between 14.00 and 16.00.

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