Guide to Automatic Dialers

Automatic telephone dialers come in many formats. There are some pieces of automatic dialing software that you need to install locally on one of your servers; these can be beneficial, as they can integrate directly with your internal software programs. There are also options that are purely web-based, which can allow you more flexibility in location of your employees. There are also options for an automated dialer that allow you to use different types of phone connections.

When shopping for a telephone dialer system for your company, among the key points to consider are:

1. The hardware needs for the automatic dialer.

2. The type of phone lines your employees will be using with the telephone auto dialer.

3. The ability to use the autodialer software to record automatic messages.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Find automated dialing software that fits your existing hardware

If it's at all avoidable, don't purchase an automatic telephone dialer that requires you to spend hundreds if not thousands of dollars on new servers or upgrades. Find a telephone dialer that will either fit within your current server structure or one that is web-based and housed on the servers of telephone dialer manufacturer.

I recommend: Voicent's Broadcast by Phone Autodialer uses very little server space, making it deployable on many personal computers.

Use an automated dialer that is compatible with your phone lines

It can particularly difficult to find automated dialers that are compatible with multiple types of phone lines. However, as more companies are moving toward a cost-saving model where their call center employees work from home, this is absolutely vital. If your software doesn't support different types of phone lines, you can limit your ability to take advantage of available cost-saving opportunities.

I recommend: VanillaSoft's Automatic Dialer works with analog, digital and Voice-over-IP (VoIP) phone lines.

Ensure that the automatic dialer offers the ability to record automatic messages

When your company's calls head to voice mail or an answering machine, you want to make sure that your message is being communicated effectively. The best way to do this is by recording standard messages used by your employees in the appropriate situations. With just a click or two, the automatic phone dialer will play your message.

I recommend: VoiceShot Outbound makes it easy to record automated messages for a wide variety of needs.

Tips & Tactics
Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• When considering automatic dialers, make sure you consider your target clients. Some clients may be extremely insulted if they are able to determine that you are using automatic phone dialing instead of taking time for their business individually.

The official source of Automatic Dialers is the Automatic Dialers page at Business.com