How do I start a Dial Session?

PhoneBurner aims to provide our customers the means to have high quality conversations with their contacts. This functionality is at the very core of PhoneBurner's dialer, so let's go over how to begin a Dial Session and reach out to those contacts.

1. Click Contacts in the top navigation.

2. Select the contacts you wish to call by checking the boxes immediately to the left of them. You can also select all contacts on a page by selecting the check box next to the orange Begin Dial Session button. 

After you have chosen the numbers to dial you'll need to choose the options you would like to dial with such as Phone Script, Voicemail, Dialing Set, Live Answer Set and Caller ID setting. 

These will appear in the drop down which match your Email and Scripts settings, Voicemail Library,  Caller ID and your Disposition settings. 

3. Choose your dialing method: 

If you have subscribed to Softphone(In-Browser Dialing) and/or ConnectMe, you will see three tabs on your dialer window to choose how you want to dial out. 

 Note: You will want your Dispositions and One Touch E-Mails configured prior to starting a dial session.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I dial international numbers?

Unfortunately, PhoneBurner doesn't yet offer the ability to dial outside of the United States and Canada for international dialing, but we are always looking to expand our reach and welcome your feedback on where to start!

Please complete this one question survey to let us know where in the world you'd like to dial.

If a dial session number is long distance for me, is there another number to call?

We do not have a way to set a local number for a dial session for you, but you can use ConnectMe which will set up the account to call you instead of you calling in. 

1. Click Dial Sessions in the top navigation bar

2. Click PhoneBurner Settings

3. Click ConnectMe and review the instructions, charges, and general description.

Please contact support at support@phoneburner.com for information about plans that support this feature.

How do I dial an extension?
Currently an extension in PhoneBurner must be dialed on a keypad by desk phone, mobile phone, or softphone.

Is there a way to dial the next number as soon as a call ends?

No, PhoneBurner is an attended dialer and it requires human intervention to be told what to do next.

The dispositions are what saves the entire record of the call, the call data, and then moves the dial session on to the next contact, essentially ending the call. To read more about Dispositions, please see our article on Dispositions.

You need to use some type of disposition button configuration with the PhoneBurner system. 

Why is my disposition moving to the next contact instead of asking me?
The 'Ask Me' option only works if there are multiple numbers associated with one contact. When a contact has multiple numbers and this setting is active, the system will ask you if you want to dial the next number associated with that particular contact, or move on to the next contact. If there is only one number associated with a contact it will automatically move to the next contact.

Why were contacts/numbers skipped in my dial session? Why did my Dial Session immediately skip to the end and say "goodbye"?

When you hear the system say "Goodbye" then disconnect, it means that the session is ending because the remaining contacts cannot be called. This is happening either because the remaining numbers are on your DNC List, or it's skipping the numbers because they are invalid or the call time is invalid.

We recommend going to the Call History page (in the top center) inside of your standalone PhoneBurner account, then click the Details button next to the most recent dial session. Any contacts that were skipped will be notated on this page, with a reason as to why the contact was skipped.

If I click the voicemail button when the voicemail answers, will It cut off my message?
No, the voicemail message will not be cutoff if you click the Voicemail button. The voicemail message will be left after the contacts message is complete, but the dialer will move on to the next step after you click the voicemail disposition.

Can I play a voicemail when someone answers the phone?

You should never play a prerecorded voicemail when someone answers your call live. This is not the intended use of prerecorded voicemail and is a direct violation of PhoneBurner’s Terms and Conditions of Service and PhoneBurner's Acceptable Use Policy. Abuse of the prerecorded message option will result in your service being terminated.

If you have asked and been granted permission to play a recording for a contact, you can use the Click to Present feature but will need to stay on the line while this is playing. 

Does call recording stay on when using Call Transfer?
If the Transfer Agent is conferenced in but the lead has not been transferred, the system will record the Contact's line. When the rep calls the transfer agent the system puts the Contact on hold and continues to record the Contact's line. It doesn't record the private warm conversation the Dialing Agent has with the transfer agent.

When all lines are merged it records the Dialing Agent, Transfer Agent and the Contact. When the Dialing Agent leaves the bridged call the system continues to record the Transfer Agent and the Contact. It will continue to record the Contact until the Contact hangs up their phone. This will disconnect the contact from the PhoneBurner phone system.

Why are my Dial Sessions disconnecting after I reach a fax line?

Some VOIP Phone systems have both Voice and Fax capability.  If the system is not configured to ignore the Fax tone, the VOIP system may switch to Fax mode while Connected to Phoneburner when a fax is reached and further calls made in the same session may fail. 

If you experience this issue, it is recommended you contact the admin of your VOIP system  or your phone provider, and have them turn off fax capabilities. Alternatively, you can use a different phone to dial into Phoneburner.  Another option is to upgrade to a plan with our build in softphone.

If these are not an option, you will need to restart your dial sessions after a fax is reached each time it happens. 

Can I begin a Dial Session using the browser of a mobile device?

Although it is possible to use PhoneBurner from a mobile device, due to the richness of features within PhoneBurner, we recommend you use the program from a desktop, laptop. This usage may be unstable and optimal performance is not guaranteed.  If using a mobile device, you must set your browser to full desktop mode. You can use a mobile/cell phone to dial from to complete a dial session while running Phoneburner on your computer or laptop. 

 It is possible to connect to PhoneBurner via Salesforce on an iPad if you are using the browser and not the Saleforce mobile app. You will need to log in to Salesforce.com using the desktop version of the browser. 

What is the required internet speed for a Dial Session?

We recommend that you have a wired connection minimum of  1Mb upload and 1 Mb Download speed minimum per user using your internet connection.

When using a wired connection, be aware that using lower grade cabling,  especially if you're not close to the router/modem can lead to signal degradation. 

Latency can also be an issue. Latency measures how much time it takes for your electronic device to respond to an action or activity e.g. when you click on a link. This can have a significant impact on online activities such as using the dialer. 

Latency is measured in milliseconds (ms), so if latency is "70ms" then it will take 70 milliseconds for your device to respond to a request from the hosting server.

The lower your latency the better your experience will be. Whereas, high latency can cause frustrating connectivity issues that often are the cause of bad audio and loss of connections to the dialer. 

Why do I keep getting asked to log in again?

PhoneBurner will log you off after certain periods of inactivity and you will have to log back into your account again. This is not something we can change. 

1. Dial session inactivity (30 minutes)
2. Website inactivity (10440 seconds)