When a CCXML speech application tries to access an HTML page that cannot be found or a VoiceXML application encounters an unexpected event, the application responds with an exception error message. A well-designed speech application includes exception handlers that deal with these messages and help the application recover so that it can continue processing the call.
Experience Portal uses the error handlers defined in the application whenever possible. However, if an exception error message occurs that is not handled by the application, or if there is a problem running the application due to issues with the application server or the speech servers, Experience Portal uses one of the event handlers installed on the MPP server.
The event handler Experience Portal uses depends on the state of the speech application. If an application:
Was successfully started and there is a call in progress, Experience Portal uses the event handler associated with that application when it was added to the Experience Portal system.
Could not be started, Experience Portal looks at the type of application that was requested and uses the appropriate default CCXML or VoiceXML event handler.
When you install the software, Experience Portal automatically installs default event handlers for CCXML and VoiceXML, as well as an event handler prompt that is played by the default event handlers.
To customize the way Experience Portal reacts to a problem, you can add your own event handlers and prompts, and then designate which ones Experience Portal should use as the default. Customers can review and update the messages to match their voice and to say something more user-friendly than The system is experiencing technical difficulty.
For example, you want your default event handler to:
Play a prompt explaining that there was a problem and that the customer is being redirected to an agent immediately.
Transfer the call to a special number reserved for such issues.
A call coming in on this special number alerts the agent that the caller has encountered and error in Experience Portal, and that the agent should find out what the customer was doing when the error occurred. The call center can then track these exceptions and fix areas that encounter frequent problems.
