We currently have some fields in our IVR that are fixed length e.g. 8 digit dates. We’ve noticed that when a DTMF is not interpreted by the IVR, the person is disconnected after 30 seconds of no input. This occurs if the person starts entering the date before the IVR has completed the prompt and the IVR only gets 7 of the 8 digits pressed.

Is there a way that we can play a prompt after 15 seconds of waiting to suggest to the caller that they may need to re-enter the date? Many callers seem are confused when they get disconnected. Alternatively could we extend the time that the IVR waits before disconnecting?

You may try to catch “noinput” exception in IVR Studio to re-prompt the user to enter the keys again. At this time, the time before an noinput exception is thrown is fixed in IVR Studio. The only way to change that is directly edit the generated VXML file. The value to change is the “timeout” value for the prompt element.

We’ve got a couple of questions for you… If we choose to buy one line now, then in a few months want an additional one… will we have to pay full price as if we were buying a separate line, or can we add it along with our other one and still receive the discount?

You can add more lines to your existing product any time. However, it is normally cheaper to purchase together. For detailed pricing info, please visit Voicent online store.

When we buy one of your products, how is it installed? Do we download it off of the Internet or are we provided the software? Do we require anything additional for the Professional Edition

You can download the software and give it a try first. When you have tested all the features you need, you can then purchase the software.

Where do I find information about the IVR progamming?

The best place to start learning IVR programming is the Voicent IVR Studio Tutorial, which can be accessed from program Help menu, under Product Walkthrough. After that you can try some of the included IVR samples.

If you want to learn further, you can learn VoiceXML technology, which is what Voicent IVR system based on. VoiceXML is a w3c standard for interactive voice applications. You could take a look at Voicent Gateway tutorial and outbound call tutorial, both of which can be found under the developer sections of Voicent website.

Specifically what are the uses of the ‘always true’ and system throws exception’ options. Can I get the syustem to hang up if no prompt is selected within a certain period of time? Is there a pdf or something which explains more about the IVR specifics of use?

This is best explained in an example. Support the system is expecting “1″ for confirm, and anything else for cancel, then you can create two element, one to handle the key press “1″, and create another element to handle everything else. For everything else, it should be set to “always true”. If you want to handle certain system exceptions, for example, if the otherside hangs up the phone, you can use the “system throws exception” option.

The current system default for system exception “noinput” is set to 10 seconds.