VDN of Origin Announcement (VOA) provides agents with a short message, no longer than 1.2 seconds in duration, about the city of origin of the caller or the requested service based on the VDN used to process the call. Use VOA messages to help agents to respond appropriately to callers. For example, if you have two toll-free numbers, one for placing orders and one for technical support, you can administer two unique VDNs to route calls to the same set of agents. When an incoming call is routed to a VDN with a VOA assigned (for example, new order or tech help), the VDN routes the call to a vector, which can place the call in an agent queue. The agent hears the VOA message when answering a call, and can respond appropriately to the caller’s request.

The agent cannot hear the caller while the VOA message is playing. The caller is not connected to the agent until after the message completes and cannot hear the message or the agent during the message. The caller hears ringback while the agent is listening to the VOA.

Agents logged in at multiline telephones see the call-appearance button for an incoming call flash until after the VOA completes. An agent can press the flashing call-appearance button to stop the VOA.

To repeat the VOA, an agent presses the VOA Repeat button. The VOA Repeat button lamp lights during the VOA. The VOA Repeat button lamp remains lit if the repeat request is queued. If an agent presses the VOA Repeat button while the lamp is lit, the VOA is stopped. If an agent presses the VOA Repeat button but there is no VOA or the system cannot play the VOA within three seconds, the lamp flutters.

You assign VOAs for each VDN. However, the VOA applies to a COR, so you must administer a COR for agents who will receive VOAs.

You can set up VOAs in four ways:

• Agents can hear a unique announcement based on the dialed number identification service (DNIS) received from the service office or carrier communication server. Assign each DNIS as the VDN of a vector. Set up the VOA to announce the services associated with the DNIS.

  Note:

  The announcement associated with the current VDN only plays if the VDN Override for the previous VDN is set to y. If VDN Override for the previous VDN is set to n, the VOA associated with that VDN plays.

• Use vector steps, an integrated prompting, or converse-on step to route calls to a VDN. Set up the VOA to announce the service the caller requested or to announce a condition that caused the call to route-to the VDN.

• You can route calls to a voice response system, directly or through a vector. Use voice prompting to direct the caller to enter a touchtone response, and route the call to a specific VDN based on the caller’s response. Set up the VOA to indicate the service the caller selected.

• If agents require a caller’s city of origin, assign the trunk group to a particular VDN. Set up the VOA to provide the location of the origin of the trunk group. Subsequent VDNs can be used to handle the call, or multiple VDNs can be assigned to a single vector.

  Note:

  VDN Override applies to VOA in the same way that VDN Override applies to display information. If a VDN with a VOA has VDN Override enabled, the system overrides the original VOA with VOAs in subsequent VDNs to which the call is routed.