Voice agents
You'll need: an administrative role. Administration → Voice Agents.
A voice agent answers phone calls. Callers talk to your AI agent over a real phone line, and it answers from your knowledge bases and takes messages around the clock.
Create a voice agent
| Agent | Which agent answers. Only public-facing agents can be used. |
| Greeting | The first thing it says when it picks up. |
| Language | The primary spoken language. It switches automatically if the caller speaks another. |
| Daily credit cap | Calls stop being accepted for the day once this many credits are spent. |
Under Voice, you can optionally set a specific text-to-speech voice (provider and voice ID). The default suits most cases.
Get a phone number
Get a phone number provisions a dedicated line, with no extra accounts or telephony setup on your side. Choose:
- Country, where availability varies
- Preferred area code, optional, US and Canadian numbers only, matched where possible
Once the number is active, anyone who calls it reaches your agent.
Bring your own number
To use a number from your existing telephony provider:
- In your provider, buy or import a phone number.
- Set that number's Server URL to the address shown on this screen.
- Call the number, and the agent configured here answers.
Review calls
The Analytics tab lists recent calls. Select one to listen to the recording and read the transcript.
Notifications fire when a call finishes, so the bell in the header is a practical way to keep up without watching the screen.
What to expect
A voice agent handles calls that have a definite answer: opening hours, whether you stock something, where you are located, or taking a message with a callback number. It is not suited to calls that require a judgment call.
Two things make the difference between a useful line and a frustrating one:
A first message that sets expectations. "You've reached the Northfield support line. I'm an automated assistant and I can answer questions or take a message" works better than an agent that presents itself as a person, and it changes what callers ask.
Knowledge that covers the top ten questions. Note what customers most often ask on the phone today, and make sure those answers are in the attached knowledge bases before you publish the number.
The same exposure rule as widgets applies, and more sharply: everything attached to the agent can be extracted by anyone who calls. Attach only publishable content.