Callouts is a subscribed module contained within Descartes Route Planner On-demand that enables the user to perform automated voice calls to customers based on actions (triggers) performed within the website application.

Once this module has been activated by a Descartes representative, users will have access to a link, Call Profiles, contained within the Configuration section of the Descartes Route Planner On-demand website. This link is accessible only to users assigned the ‘client_admin’ role.

Callout Components

A Callout consists of the following four components:

Call Profile
- The main classification for the content of the calls
- Multiple profiles may be configured depending on the needs of the client
- Configured globally by language, location and delivery company and may be applied to multiple entities as required
- Locations and languages available are specific to the client from categories that have been configured
Call
- Configured depending on requirements for types of calls to be made (e.g., Call Ahead, Rainy Day, etc.)
- Multiple calls can be created for each call profile
Call Sequence
- Linked to an individual call
- Represents individual calls that will be sent in the order that they are configured. For example, the first call made may be a follow up call after a delivery, and then there may be a secondary call if no answer is received at the delivery stop.
- Configured for expected responses from recipients (e.g., no reply or key pressed by recipient)
- Multiple call sequences can be created for each call
Call Fragment
- Linked to an individual call sequence
- Represents the message(s) to be conveyed in the call sequence
- Represents the individual voice prompt(s) a customer will receive and the response by keypad from the customer
- Multiple call fragments can be created for each call sequence

The following diagram depicts the relationship between all the callout components.

Configuring a Call Profile

The Call Profile is the main classification for a callout's contents. Once the profile is created, the call's contents can be configured. If desired, call profiles can be configured and used across multiple locations.

To configure a call profile:

From the main menu, select Configuration.
Click the Call Profiles link found under 'The following categories are available for configuration' heading, the View Call Profiles page appears.
Click the Add Call Profile button. The Edit Call Profile page appears.
Enter a Description of the call profile, the description will be displayed throughout the application.
Choose the Language(s) used in the profile.
Choose the Location(s) where the profile will be available.
Choose the Delivery Companies that will use the profile.
Check to verify that the information is correct and click Add Call Profile.

Creating a Call

When a call profile has been created, the option to add a call is available.

To add a call:

Click the Add Call button. The Add Call page appears.
Enter a description of the call; the description will be displayed throughout the application.
Choose the Trigger Type from the dropdown menu. The following options are available:
- Delivery Day Activation: This option will automatically send calls to all customers assigned to routes as part of the delivery day activation process, automatic and/or manual
- Manual: This option requires the user to send the calls to the customers using a menu option from the user interface
- Stop Arrival: This option will automatically send the call to the customer once the driver arrives at the stop
- Stop Service Time: This option will automatically send the call to the customer once the driver begins to service the stop
Choose the Customer from the dropdown menu that will receive the call. The following options are available:
When the Trigger Type is set to “Delivery Day Activation” or “Manual,” the only option for the Customer is “Current Customer.”
When the Trigger Type is set to” Stop Arrival” or “Stop Service Time”, the Customer can be set to one of the following options:
- Current Customer: Current stop to which the associated execution related information pertains
- Previous Customer: Previous the stop to which associated execution related information pertains
- Next Customer: Next stop to that of the stop which associated execution related information pertains to
Choose the Destination Number Type from the dropdown menu to determine which phone number to user for the call. The following options are available:
- Phone 1: This number is configured by the user
- Phone 2: This additional number is configured by the user
- Both: This option will call both Phone 1 and Phone 2
Enter the Caller ID, which is displayed to the customer receiving the call.
Select the Answer Machine Enabled option, if applicable. If the option is set to ‘No’, the call will not detect an answering machine to play the message. If the option is set to ‘Yes’, the call will play a message if it is determined to be answered by a machine.
Select the Breakout Type, if applicable to determine if the recipient of the call will be directed to a representative. The following options are available:
1. None: No representative is contacted
2. Seller Depot: A representative from the seller depot is contacted, utilizing the phone information contained/specified for the respective depot within the Configuration-Depots section of the application
3. Fulfilling Depot: A representative from the fulfilling depot is contacted, utilizing the phone information contained/specified for the respective depot within the Configuration-Depots section of the application
4. Global: A representative from the company is contacted, utilizing the information configured within the successive fields displayed.
The following additional information is required when the Breakout Type is set to ‘Seller Depot’, ‘Fulfilling Depot’ or ‘Global’:
Select the Record Message Enabled option, if applicable. If the option is set to ‘No’, the recipient is not given the option to record a message. If the option is set to ‘Yes’, the recipient can leave a message and the following additional information is required:
Select the Language Selection Enabled option, if applicable. If the option is set to ‘No’, the recipient cannot choose a language to play the message. If the option is set to ‘Yes’, the recipient can choose a language and the following additional information is required:
Enter the Timeout(s) value. Call timeout length if there is no answer. This value must be set for the callout to function.
Select the End Call Delay value. Length of time from the end of the message being played to the end of the call (options are 0s, 2s, 5s and 7s).
Select the Set Default Call option. If the option is set to ‘No’, the call will not be the default call for the profile. If the option is set to ‘Yes’, the call will be auto-populated in a dropdown selection if multiple calls exist. Only one call can be set as the default.
Check to verify that the information is correct and click Add Call. The call is added to the profile.

Creating a Call Sequence

A call sequence can be added if a call requires more than one two-way interaction between the caller and the recipient of the call.

To create a call sequence:

From the View Call Profiles page, expand the profile to view the Call, and click the Edit/Delete button next to a call. The Edit Call page appears with a section at the bottom to add a call sequence.
Click Add <Language> Call Sequence.

The Language is populated and cannot be changed based on how the associated profile is configured. If the profile allowed different languages and the call was configured to allow a language to be selected, then the user would see a section for each langue for the call sequence. The Order is populated and specifies the order in which the call sequence is played for the call. This value cannot be changed.
Enter a Description for the call sequence.
Select the Expected Response option. The valid options are:
- No Response: No response is expected from the recipient
- Key Response: A numeric key response expected from the recipient
If “Key Response” was selected as the Expected Response, then enter a numeric key(s) for what is to be considered as the Valid Responses.
If “Key Response” was selected as the Expected Response, then enter the length of time (in seconds) to wait for a response from the recipient in Wait time (sec) before which the call sequence will be repeated to the recipient.
Click Save. The Call Sequence is added to the Call.

Creating a Call Fragment

A Call Fragment is linked to the call sequence and represents the message(s) to be conveyed in the call sequence. Multiple fragments can be created for a call sequence. The fragment is played either through text-to-speech or audio messages based on the responses from the call sequence.

To create a Call Fragment:

Click the Add Fragment button for the call sequence. The Order is populated and specifies the order in which the call fragment is played for the call sequence. This value cannot be changed.
Select the Type from the dropdown list. The valid options are:
- Audio: The fragment is an audio message and requires an audio file
- TTS: The fragment is a text-to-speech message and requires a TTS message
If “TTS” is selected as the Type, then enter the TTS Message.
If “Audio” is selected as the Type, then click Browse to select the Audio File.
Click Save. The Call Fragment is added to the Call Sequence.

When all the call fragments have been created for a call sequence and all call sequences have been created for a call, the user must accept the changes and save the call. The user can select Save Call to save the call but keep the Edit Call page open. The user can also select Save and Exit Call to save the call and exit the Edit Call page.

Dynamic Text Tags

The following dynamic text tags can be added to a Call Fragment to insert and/or use customer order information as part of the call sent to the end customer from Descartes Route Planner On-demand. These tags are only supported when the TTS (text-to-speech) Call Type option is selected.

Text	Definition
$day	Will insert and say the delivery day on which the customer order is scheduled for.
$name	Will insert and say the customer name as found displayed within the Name field.
$adr	Will insert and say the customer address.
$tws	Will insert and say the open time of the set time window value associated to the customer stop.
$twe	Will insert and say the close time of the set time window value associated to the customer stop.
$tw2s	Will insert and say the open time of the second set segment time window value associated to the customer stop.
$tw2e	Will insert and say the close time of the second set segment time window value associated to the customer stop.
$rp	Will repeat the call fragment.
$ss	Will insert and say the selling depot associated to the customer order. *The selling depot value is set via the inbound integration process, when no value is specified then the fulfilling depot is set against the order and used.*
$dom	Will insert and say the Delivery Company (Domain) associated to the customer order.
$ctws	Will insert and say the open time of the set custom time window value associated to the customer stop. *The custom time window functionality must be enabled within the application for use of this field. If specified and/or used in call fragment and not set, then time window value will be substituted.*
$ctwe	Will insert and say the close time of the set custom time window value associated to the customer stop. *The custom time window functionality must be enabled within the application for use of this field. If specified and/or used in call fragment and not set, then time window value will be substituted.*
$brand	Will insert and say the customer assigned brand name value.
$eda	Will insert and say the planned arrival time for customer stop.

Performing Manual Callouts

Manual Callouts can be performed directly from the Descartes Route Planner On-demand application from one of the following locations:

View Delivery Day Page
View Route Detail Page
Deliveries – Dispatch Page
Map View Page

To perform callouts from the View Delivery Day page:

From the main menu, select Deliveries > View Delivery Days and select a delivery day.
From the Callouts List, select the call from the dropdown list.
Click Perform Callouts.

The callouts will be sent to all customers assigned to routes on the selected delivery day.

To perform callouts from the View Route Detail page:

From the main menu, select Deliveries > View Routes and click the > symbol next to a route to display the details.
Right-click on a stop and select the Manual Callout option from the menu.

Manual callouts are only available for customer stops from this page.

To perform manual callouts from the Deliveries – Dispatch page:

From the main menu, select Deliveries > Dispatch. Select a Dispatch Preference, if applicable.
Right-click on a route and select Manual Callout. This option will send the callout to all stop on the selected route.
To send a callout to a customer stop, select a route and go to the Selected Route tab.
Right-click on a stop and select Manual Callout. This will send the callout to the customer stop.

To perform callouts from the Map View page:

From the main menu, select Deliveries > Map View.
From the Routes pane, right-click on a route.
From the right-click menu, select Callouts.
To send a call to customers that are newly assigned to the route and did not receive a callout previously, select Send To New Stops.
To send a call to all customers on the route, select Send To All Stops.
To send a call to a customer stop, click the > symbol next to a route from the Routes pane to display the details of the route.
Right-click on a stop and select Send Callouts. If multiple call profiles are configured and active for the current location, the user will be prompted to select the desired Call to execute.

Configuring and Performing Callouts