How to create a Main IVR

How to create a Main IVR with Options

You can use the IVR Editor.  An IVR, or Interactive Voice Response, is an automated menu system (also known as an auto-attendant) that you can program to greet and interact with your callers. An IVR can provide information to the caller, collect information from the caller, and send the caller to the right extension.

To create an IVR, it’s best to plan the entire IVR experience that you want to offer to your callers, then start from the end and work towards the beginning. For example:

• Determine all of the recorded sounds you want to play for the caller (instructions, information, etc.), and create those sounds in the Sound Manager.

• Determine which extensions the caller might end up being transferred to, and create an IVR menu for each one. (Those menus would have a ‘Dial Extension’ action.)

• Determine what factors might change your IVR, and build an IVR menu to handle each situation. For example, if your IVR behaves differently during regular business hours than after hours, or if it behaves differently based on a zip code the caller provides, you would create an IVR menu for each situation.

• Once you have your sounds and a set of ‘component’ IVRs built, then you can build the main IVR menu that answers your calls.

Begin Construction your IVRs from the end and work your way to the beginning.

• Create the Options IVR first

• Go to Tools → PBX Features → IVR Editor

• Create IVR Menu

  1. ​ Set your name and description for the IVR.  These can be arbitrary.

• Add actions

  1. Under the Actions section click on Create Action

  2. Click the drop down and choose: Dial Extension and then click Next

  3. Manually enter the extension for the operator

  4. Click on Save Settings

  5. Verify the extension is correct, then click on Back to the IVR Editor

  6. Once the action is created go back to the Main IVR and create your options

Main IVR

• Go to Tools → PBX Features → IVR Editor

• Create IVR Menu

  1. ​ Set your name and description for the Main IVR.  

• ​Add Actions 

  1. Create IVR Action 

  2. Action Type: Play Sound  

  3. Listen for Options will be the last action in an IVR

  4. Click on Back to IVR Editor

• Setting up Options

  1. ​Click on Modify Options

  2. Menu Options

     • ​Option Number - Select a number, or the * key. This what the caller presses to select this option

     • New IVR Menu: - Select the IVR menu the caller is sent to when the Option Number is pressed

     • IVR Menu Entry Point - Select an Action that is in the IVR menu. (You don’t have to start at the beginning of the menu.)

  3. Enable Extension Dialing -Lets the caller dial an extension number during this IVR.

     • To enable extension dialing select a Group containing valid extensions caller can dial.  Using the All Extensions group will allow all extensions to be accessible.  This can be a custom group.

  4. Invalid Option Settings - Specifies what should happen should the caller presses a key for an option that doesn't exist.

     • Select a sound to play

     • Select an IVR menu

     • Set an IVR menu entry point (you don't have to start from the beginning of the menu)

  5. Option Timeout Settings - Specifies what should happen if a caller fails to select any option within a certain time

     • Timeout in seconds - Select the number of seconds for when a caller fails to select any options

     • Select sound to play

     • Select an IVR menu

     • Set an IVR menu entry point (you don't have to start from the beginning of the menu)

  6. Retry Settings - Specifies what should happen if a caller chooses an invalid option or times out several times.

     • Select the number of times to allow

     • Select an IVR menu

     • Select an IVR menu entry point (you don’t have to start from the beginning of the menu)