1.3 - Example 1: Send an email for each incoming call

So let's get started and bring everything together. What Events and Actions can do - that's what we want you to understand in the upcoming sections.

In this easy first example you'll just send yourself an email at the start of a new call reaching babelforce:

We will be looking into these different setups:

1a. we'll just send a general, rather boring text, to your inbox.

1b. You'll learn about "Expressions". We will explain how you can, very easily, print all available expressions into an email.

2. we'll then explain how you can build these expressions by using so-called "Placeholders". They allow you to print dynamic text into your email.

In the end, we'll show you how to read Automations in the Live Logs.

All you need for this and all other examples: 

➝ A phone number that routes to any module, for instance, you can route the call to a Welcome Audio.

1a: Set up and test a basic Automation to send an email Action

First, go to

IVR / Voice Bot > Numbers 

Ensure that you have a phone number and that it is routed to a module. It will look something like the example below:

• If you'd like to receive an email for each incoming call to your hotline, consider creating a Global automation.
• If you have hotlines for different countries and want to receive emails specifying which country number was called, or if you want to receive an email when a customer provides input during a specific part of your call flow, consider using Local automations.

Creating a Global Automation

In babelforce Automations > Global Automations, add a new Automation using the 'Add' button, select the Event "Inbound call" and the action "Send email". Enter an email address that you use and send yourself a message. It will look like this:

Creating a Local Automation

1. Navigate to your call flow by clicking a map icon in front of the number associated with your call flow in IVR / Voicebot > Numbers.
   
   
   
   
2. Decide at which point of your call flow you'd like to receive an email. If we take the example of two hotlines for different countries, you can set up local automations on the entry point - the first module - of each call flow.
   
   
   
   
3. Double-click the module to open it and then move to the Automations tab. Click on the + Add icon to create either a Pre- or a Post automation.
   
   
4. Fill out the fields as shown in the screenshots below.
   
   
   
   
5. Save your automation. Now call the number from your cell phone or another phone. You will receive an email.

But not a very interesting one :)

Please note the rest of the article applies to local automations as well. 😊

1b: Add some more interesting data from the call - print all Expressions

We can actually add a lot of interesting data to your email.

Simply paste this placeholder {core.expressions} into the email body in the Action. Your Automation Action will now look like the example below.

This will reveal in your email the entire set of expressions and their values currently set in the system and available to use for other Automations. Part of it will look like this:

[call.from.number] evaluates to [4930920373300]
[call.from.anonymous] evaluates to [false]
[call.from.mobile] evaluates to [false]
[call.displayAs] evaluates to [null]
[call.to] evaluates to [4930920373321]
[call.to.number] evaluates to [4930920373321]

.... 

The items on the left are the expressions and on the right, you see the current value of the expression at the time of the "Inbound call" Event. So, for instance, the moment the call reached the platform, the expression call.to was equal to 4930920373321.

➝ Hint: in case you do not receive this email, check your spam folder. Some email clients would consider the long content of the core expressions insecure. 

2: Use specific placeholders to make your email content more useful

Take the same call flow setup as in our use case 1a. Again, we want to send an email on an incoming call, however, this time we want to make some use of expressions and put interesting content in the email.

To achieve this, select expressions from the list you sent to your inbox earlier. Find something that is interesting and tells you something about the caller. When you decide which expressions you want to use, put curly brackets around them. As soon as you do this, they become so-called placeholders: they can now be put into a text to hold the place for the real value. For instance, if you want to know the value for call.from.number do this: {call.from.number}.

To make the email content even more valuable, put some information before and after the placeholder so you know what the printed value actually means.

So we can, for instance, format the email using the "Send email" Action with useful information like this:

And that's how the email will look like when you receive a call:

You can also see the process from the steps described above in a video:

3: Test your setup: How to see what happens on your call with live logs

As mentioned in the previous sections, we recommend that you test your call flows by enabling Live Logging. 

Let's give that a try. Enable Live logging and repeat your test inbound call. You will see something like this in the Live Logs when your call arrives on the babelforce platform:

As you can see the call first hits the call flow voice module and simultaneously it triggers the email Action in the Automation you created. Once you have multiple Automations and potentially multiple call flows, you will see them all being fired here.

Great, the first step is made, you have built your first global Automations. Let's continue with the next use cases, this time we will introduce you to SMS Automations. Enjoy!