Appointment Reminder Web Interface

I am testing out your Appointment Reminder software and the web interface. I have a couple questions:

Issue #1. Frequency of Calls

I see that under the Appointment Reminder “Customize Appointment” lets you specify a max call retry. How often does Voicent AutoReminder call back if it does not get an answer the first time? I’m assuming that after the designated max call attempts it “gives up?”. Will it always leave a message if it gets an answering machine or does it retry until it gets a human voice? Is there a way to prevent it from calling very late at night or early in the morning?

When the call is answered, either by a human or answering machine, the call is considered completed. No retry will be made.

If the line is busy, no answer, or the call does not go out (line occupied), the call is considered incomplete and will be retried after 15 minutes. For Auto Reminder calls, the default is keep trying till the appointment start time. If you set the max retry, it will stop retry if the max retry is tried and the call will be marked “failed”.

Issue #2 – Leave a message option

When answering the phone – choosing option 4 – “leave a message” – records a .wav file. Is there a way to access/download this wav file through the web command interface? If not, is there a way to remove option #4 so it is no longer an option when a person answers the phone.

It is possible to get the audio file through HTTP, AutoReminder client is using that method to play the wave file on remote client. But that will be a lot more work on your end, you basically have to re-produce the work of AutoReminder Client.

To disable the option, you can use the Message Designer to create a message template any way you want. Then specify that message template (message ID) when creating your appointment.

Issue #3 – Confusion about parameters. When checking the status of the appointment through the web interface the parameters returned are: “STATUS=status CONFIRM=confirm INFO=infostring”

According to the documentation: “The possible values for call status are: pending, retry, made, failed, mixed.”

What does “mixed” mean?

“The possible values for call confirmation are: Confirmed, Confirmed (No), Maybe, Cancel, Reschedule, Message, and [Customized String].”

However, when answering the phone the user only has three choices: “press 1 to confirm, press 2 to cancel, press 3 to leave a message, or press 4 to replay the message”

So what does “Confirmed (No)”, “maybe”, and “reschedule” mean?

I can’t find the documentation about what the “INFO” parameters are – could you let me know what values are possible here?

You will not get “mixed” status if your appointment has only one phone number. You could have a group calling appointment that multiple calls are made to different people. And if the call status are not the same, the return status for group calling is “mixed”.

“Confirmed (No)” is when the person called does press a key to comfirm. But instead of a “yes” answer (confirmed), it is a “no” answer (confirmed No). You will see the full range of options when you use the Message Designer. The system provided message does not use all of the confirmation options.

INFO values are not necessary fixed. It will change from release to release. Do not try to parse the result and write your program based on that. They are for information display only.