Telephones...

Andrew,

We are looking to integrate a new VOIP telephone system.  In doing the RFP for this system, we were asked many times for information about the Telephony API that the Tessitura Network provided to interact with the call center system.  I would like to see systems in place that would allow for stories like the following.

·         Andy an inbound call center agent is ready for the next call.  A call comes into vendor X’s VOIP system.  The phone number is available in the call data coming into our call center.  As the phone call starts ringing on Andy’s headset, the Tessitura system is informed that Andy will receive this call as the next available agent and automatically does a search for the phone number in the Tessitura database.  If the phone number exists once in our Tessitura database Andy’s copy of Tessitura will bring up the customers record.  If there are multiple customers in the database with that phone, number a list of possible customers will come up.  If no customer has the phone number of the number is restricted a search screen will come up in the system.  When the call from that customer is completed, Tessitura will receive over the API the end time.  Tessitura will also receive information about who all the customer talked to during the phone session.

·         Jay an outbound call center manager uses Tessitura Lists and Extractions to identify customers to be called about either ticket sales or donation opportunities.  This information is shipped through the telephone API to vendor X’s Call Center software.  The system starts calling folks and automatically records in Tessitura Failures and answers.  If a call is answered it is transferred to Andy the agent above with a customer summary screen presented and information provided by Jay on the reason for today’s call.

A bi-directional Telephony API for Tessitura would be a great addition.

--Tom Brown

Today we’re gathering information about constituent telephone numbers and how they are used in your business.  Thinking about constituent telephone numbers in your business…

What are some challenges that you have surrounding constituent phones today?

Are there trends you are seeing that could impact phone functionality in the future?

What do you like about telephone functionality in existing Tessitura? 

What would you like to see changed/improved about telephone functionality?

Any other thoughts about phones, your business, and Tessitura?

Keep in mind that this may be more than just thinking about the storage and retrieval of telephone numbers.  Try to think overall about how your business interacts with people via phone and how you might expect Next Gen to enable this interaction.

Thanks!

Andrew

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Or maybe  a rule-based system that was site-definable to deliver a site-based set of defaults, with an override.

Like

If the number is associated with an address, use the country and state info from that address

Else if the constituent has a country/state in their primary address use that

Else use the default country/state combo (set in t-defaults) and mark it as uncertain

Show those next to the number so you can over-ride if you want to

Then…

If the country is Australia

and if the number starts with 04, use this mask ####-###-###

– and mark it as a mobile (that’s a “cell” for you yanquis), .

with various other settings becoming visible and selectable maybe (like “ok to sms to”)

else if the number starts with 1300, use this mask ####-###-###

– and mark it as a special kind of number

else if the number starts with 0 use this mask (##) ####-####

else if the state is certain, use the mask for that state (eg for NSW use (02) ####-####)

else if the state is uncertain use this mask (??) ####-####

else if the country is USA

and the number has 10 digits, use this mask (###) ###-####

…

…

…

Etc

…and allow entering a leading + to explicitly mark and handle as an international number, like on a mobile phone…..

and if you don’t like the result you can maybe over-ride it with a named format.

Does that work for everyone?

We could collaborate on  writing the rules for various countries and then share them???

Ken McSwain Business solutions Manager

kmcswain@sydneyoperahouse.com

T+61 2 9250 7876  F+61 2 9251 7821  M 0418 659 360

SYDNEY OPERA HOUSE BENNELONG POINT

GPO BOX 4274, SYDNEY NSW 2001, AUSTRALIA

SYDNEYOPERAHOUSE.COM

It's an interesting questionYou get one mask per installation which you can override on a per-number basis.  Either enter the number according to the site's mask or hit some control and enter that number free form.  (Or make the site's mask free form and then all phone numbers would be that way.)

Thoughts?

I don’t think anyone actually handles it.

I was just fantasising.

…Buuuuut

Is this the story?

Julie is on the phone taking a booking from a new customer.

“And what is the best phone number to reach you on?” she says.

The customer says “95698417” or “08 4567 8954”

Or they say – “My mobile is best – 0418 659 360”

Julie wants to just type the number in as she hears it – she’s not going to be affected by the mask – she just accepts the number as is.

Then when she’s entered it, she wants to see it formatted, so she can read it back easily, and maybe recognise straight away that she must have made a mistake because it’s badly formatted.

But input masking doesn’t seem to help her in this story – it might even get in the way.

Ken McSwain Business solutions Manager

kmcswain@sydneyoperahouse.com

T+61 2 9250 7876  F+61 2 9251 7821  M 0418 659 360

SYDNEY OPERA HOUSE BENNELONG POINT

GPO BOX 4274, SYDNEY NSW 2001, AUSTRALIA

SYDNEYOPERAHOUSE.COM

It's interesting to have a mask that depends on the value being entered into the field.  How do other AU systems handle this?  ("and if the number starts with 04 use this mask")  Do such systems start with an unformatted mask and then depending on what you enter it reformats it?

So it would just be a display mask and not an input mask?

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Could be good for us.

Our biggest issue around this is that the state code is not required if calling from within the state, so its common practice to not enter (or say) the prefix at all.

So we have a significant data management issue with cleaning records that should be like this “02 9250 7180’ but because the prefix is commonly left off is saved as ’92 5071 80’.

So if the user left off the prefix but the mask applied it anyway (as Outlook does) that would be nice.

Although I notice my Outlook applies a (##) mask on the first two numbers even if it’s a mobile.

It's interesting to have a mask that depends on the value being entered into the field.  How do other AU systems handle this?  ("and if the number starts with 04 use this mask")  Do such systems start with an unformatted mask and then depending on what you enter it reformats it?

So it would just be a display mask and not an input mask?

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No – Outlook applies the normal area code format, like (04) 1865-9360, treating the mobile network lead-in code (04) like an area code – which it is, effectively,  of course - It’s just that we have this curious habit of pronouncing them with different groupings - probably because of what  Peter says in his note – that we don’t usually bother with the area code for fixed lines, but we always quote the full number for mobiles.

I think we can do better than Microsoft, can’t we? We don’t want to set the bar too low.  J

Ken McSwain Business solutions Manager

kmcswain@sydneyoperahouse.com

T+61 2 9250 7876  F+61 2 9251 7821  M 0418 659 360

SYDNEY OPERA HOUSE BENNELONG POINT

GPO BOX 4274, SYDNEY NSW 2001, AUSTRALIA

SYDNEYOPERAHOUSE.COM

Yep, that's what I meant by display mask instead of input mask.  You enter it free form and the system does it's best to figure out what you mean.  Ken, if you enter a phone number into Outlook, does it know whether it's a mobile number or not and format it properly?

It's interesting to have a mask that depends on the value being entered into the field.  How do other AU systems handle this?  ("and if the number starts with 04 use this mask")  Do such systems start with an unformatted mask and then depending on what you enter it reformats it?

So it would just be a display mask and not an input mask?

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With all the different ways that UK numbers can be formatted, we ask our staff not to include any spaces at all.  So 0208 123 4567 should be input as 02081234567.

It would be good if there was an option for Tess. to automatically take out any spaces on save.  That way you could identify the duplicates that Chuck mentions.

Absolutely - UK numbers are formatted in different ways e.g. depending on area, so there is no one mask that suits all.

It's an interesting question--how do you reconcile the fact that many people say that phones numbers should be removed from addresses and the need to format phone numbers?  And as Peter points out, it's not just at the country level where phone numbers need formatting.  And don't get me started on UK phone number formatting!

If you do it at the phone type level then you end up with duplicate types (mobile formatted, mobile unformatted, etc.)  Or maybe phone number formatting is just a take it or leave it proposition--You get one mask per installation which you can override on a per-number basis.  Either enter the number according to the site's mask or hit some control and enter that number free form.  (Or make the site's mask free form and then all phone numbers would be that way.)

Thoughts?

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