Dialing modes
The mode decides who waits: an agent listening to ringing, or a customer who has answered and is waiting for an agent. The more numbers are dialed ahead, the busier the agents are, and the more often an answering customer has to wait.
| Mode | Rule | Call path | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Preview | agent, then card, then "Dial" | agent-first | The agent sees the lead before the call; the customer never waits. Today this mode is used for callbacks (the card goes to the agent who has been free longest). Preview for regular leads is planned. |
| Progressive | 1 call = 1 free agent | agent-first | The default. One attempt per free agent. The agent is connected before the customer is dialed, so the agent hears the ringing, not the customer. Utilization about 72 to 74 % at a 25 % contact rate. |
| Power | lines in flight ≈ free agents minus a margin | customer-first | Dials ahead based on the contact rate, without forecasting when agents free up. A customer who answers is queued for the first free agent. For teams of 12 agents or more. |
| Predictive | free agents plus agents about to be free | customer-first | Like power, but also counts agents who will finish within the time it takes to reach a customer. Holds the missed-wait target (3 % by default). Utilization about 79 % at 20 agents, about 89 % at 50. |
SMS and WhatsApp campaigns have no dialing mode: messages go out without an agent, and the pacer never dials them.
With fewer than 12 active agents (a built-in threshold, not a campaign setting), power and predictive fall back to progressive by themselves. In the simulator, overdialing with 10 agents only hurts: holding a 3 % wait target needs a margin of 40 % of the team. The real gain starts at around 15 agents.
The utilization figures come from the pacing simulator; see Pacing.
Choosing a mode
- Small teams, or campaigns where every customer must reach a person straight after "hello": progressive.
- Large teams with a low contact rate, where agent idle time is the main cost: predictive, or power if you want dialing ahead without forecasting.
- Callbacks that should always go to a person who has reviewed the lead first: a preview campaign.
The mode can be changed in the campaign settings; the channel (voice, SMS, WhatsApp) cannot.