1.3 - Agents & the babelConnect integration

babelConnect is a powerful agent-integration tool that is usually embedded in a CRM or Help Desk. It serves as a gateway for agents to communicate with babelforce. Agents can easily manage their availability, view caller information, initiate recordings, control after-call time, and communicate with customers via SMS.

In this article, we will explain both Agents and babelConnect in depth. It is crucial to have a clear understanding of how agents and babelConnect interact, as it directly affects your team's ability to handle calls effectively.

Agents

"Agents" is a role which enables babelforce users to handle calls. Each member of your team must have an agent login in order to take calls. To access the list of agents you have set up, navigate to

Agents and Users > Agents

In this section of the manager, you can add Internal Agents by selecting "Add" (see screenshot below).

The Source column displays the word 'internal,' indicating that these accounts are not imported from any CRM or helpdesk integration. In this tutorial, we will not explain how agents are imported, this information can be found in the help center. For our purposes, understanding the setup of Internal Agents is sufficient.

In the screenshot, you can see an example of an Internal Agent named "My Test Agent" with an assigned number.

Key Points about the Agents Section

• All agents are automatically added to the default group "_all" upon creation.
• Agents have their Line-Status set to "available" by default, allowing them to receive calls when their presence state is also "available."
• In the provided example, the agent's Presence is currently set to "Busy," indicating that they won't receive incoming calls. You can modify this by clicking on the downward arrow.
• New agents are initially set to "Busy" status.
• The "number" typically represents the Agent ID provided to you by the babelforce team, which connects the agent to the softphone (usually starting with 999).
  • If a Softphone is unavailable, a mobile number can be added for testing purposes instead.
• The last two icons in the screenshot allow you to edit the account details and delete the agent.

To add internal agents 

1. Click the "Add" button in the upper right corner.
2. Enter the employee's name.
3. Provide a unique phone number for the agent to receive calls.
4. Enter the employee's unique email address.
5. The employee will receive an email to confirm their address.
6. After confirmation, another email will prompt the employee to set a password.

babelConnect

In the final step of setting up the agent user in babelforce, your employee must set a password. This password serves as the login for the babelConnect app. But what exactly is babelConnect, and why is it necessary?

babelConnect is the agent integration with the babelforce system, acting as a gateway for agents to access the platform. Although it's not a phone itself, agents will still need a softphone or hard phone to accept incoming calls. The babelConnect app enables agents to manage their status (e.g. switching from "busy-lunch" to "available"), view caller information, start and end call recordings, handle after-call time, send SMS messages, and initiate calls to customers.

This user-friendly tool empowers agents to efficiently manage their availability and call processes. While not mandatory (as some organizations prefer controlling agent availability through the manager app), we highly recommend utilizing babelConnect for its benefits.

For detailed explanations of each field and comprehensive training resources for your agents, refer to this article on babelConnect. It will enhance your understanding and proficiency of this tool.

The next section will introduce call queues, which is the final step before proceeding to create the most basic call flow.